Chain of Responsibility: Managing Road Safety the Easiest Way

One hundred seventy-seven people lost their lives in crashes involving heavy trucks in Australia in 2020, a decrease of 6.8 percent compared with the total in 2019, according to the Road Trauma Involving Heavy Vehicles 2020 Statistical Summary.

While this is good news, heavy trucks remain involved in a disproportionate number of severe road accidents. Chain of Responsibility (CoR) legislation under the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) is a safety management system introduced to manage these casualties.

What is Chain of Responsibility (CoR)?

CoR is a legal concept that places obligations on transport supply chain parties, introduced in the early 2000s. CoR aims to improve safety and compliance outcomes across the transport industry.

On October 1, 2018, amendments to Australia's HVNL came into force, including changes to how CoR operates. These changes require organisations using heavy vehicles in business dealings to take a more proactive approach to safety.

CoR now carries wider-ranging powers and tougher penalties for breaches. Everyone in the supply chain, on and off the road, holds accountability for transport safety, not only the driver. Company directors, management teams, consigners, dispatchers, loaders, contractors, and drivers are all responsible for ensuring road safety when heavy vehicles are involved.

A heavy vehicle is defined under HVNL as having a gross mass exceeding 4.5 tonnes. This includes vehicles such as:

• trailer trucks
• semi-trailer trucks
• freight trucks
• road trains
• passenger buses
• vehicle carriers
• agricultural vehicles
• mobile cranes
• special purpose vehicles

Concept of the Chain of Responsibility

Chain of responsibility describes a system of laws and regulations that assign responsibility for managing risks across the supply chain. This term refers to relationships between parties involved in transport activities, including manufacturers, importers, suppliers, carriers, and drivers of vehicles.

CoR holds each transport chain member accountable for safe, legal transport. Every party must prevent breaches of the law, such as overloading or speeding. Should any link in the chain fail to meet obligations, that party may be held liable for resulting injuries or damages. Compliance with CoR duties is not solely pinned on drivers — responsibility extends throughout the whole network. Learn more in our guide to understanding the chain of responsibility in transport safety.

Key Areas of the Amended Chain of Responsibility

The chain of accountability broadened to include regulatory compliance and key hazard management responsibilities, referred to as focus areas. These are outlined below.

1. Speed

Speed remains one of the most critical factors when operating any vehicle, playing a major role in minimising accident severity. As such, speeding is a significant focus of amended CoR regulations. Operators must take all reasonable steps to ensure vehicles run at safe speeds. This includes:

• Monitoring the rate of vehicles
• Setting and enforcing a speed limit
• Ensuring drivers receive correct training in speed management

2. Fatigue

Fatigue can impair driver performance and decision-making, raising the risk of mistakes. Fatigue-related risks include driving for too long without a break, driving at night, or driving while sleepy. Operators should have systems in place to manage driver fatigue, such as:

• Ensuring drivers have adequate rest breaks
• Limiting hours spent behind the wheel
• Monitoring driver performance
• Providing training on fatigue management requirements

3. Mass, dimension, and loading

The Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension, and Loading) National Regulation specifies mass and dimension limits for single and combination vehicles. These standards apply to construction, performance, and size limits. Operators must take all reasonable steps to ensure vehicles comply with these standards, which include:

• Informing all parties of vehicle mass and dimension constraints
• Training drivers or parties on load security
• Ensuring loads or freights have proper documentation and are loaded by trained parties
• Restraining loads adequately
• Placing and securing loads so they won't fall or get loose
• Ensuring loads don't protrude from the vehicle in ways that could endanger other road users, especially vulnerable road users near loading zones
• Complying with standards recommended in the National Transport Commission Load Restraint Guide, along with mass and dimension limits specified in the Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension, and Loading) National Regulation
• Loading and unloading in ways that don't damage vehicles or their cargo

4. Vehicle Standards

Work vehicles must remain in good condition to protect both drivers and the loads carried. Many incidents involving heavy vehicles stemmed from poor maintenance, unsafe practices, or defective equipment.

Employers, prime contractors, operators, loading managers, loaders, and unloaders must:

• Adhere to relevant vehicle standards and Australian Design Rules
• Conduct daily inspections to identify defects arising since the last check
• Maintain records or logs of any vehicle defects observed
• Set scheduled maintenance times to rectify issues
• Document maintenance activities to remain compliant with safety regulations
• Adopt an Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) where possible

Read more about managing vehicle safety in the workplace to strengthen your fleet's compliance approach.

Parties in the Chain of Responsibility

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) defines those involved in CoR. They are:

• Companies and individuals who hire, contract, schedule, pack, load, or unload heavy vehicles; and
• Companies and individuals who own, operate, or manage a heavy vehicle

Whenever a business transports goods using a heavy vehicle, it carries a responsibility to identify, assess, reduce, or eliminate safety risks. Anyone involved in the logistics and operation of heavy vehicle transport bears legal liability. The Master Industry Code of Practice, developed by Australia's NHVR, outlines responsibilities under CoR laws.

Being a supply chain party depends on what tasks are performed, not on job titles or contracts. More than half of CoR's functions involve people and businesses without heavy vehicles. Where your company transfers or receives items via heavy vehicle, sharing heavy vehicle safety duties becomes part of your legal position.

Duties Under CoR

As defined by NHVR, CoR law "ensures everyone who works with heavy vehicles – from the business that employs a driver to the place where goods are delivered – is accountable for safety." Chain of responsibility imposes obligations on a broad range of parties, from consignors and consignees to packers, loaders, drivers, operators, and schedulers.

The primary duty is an obligation "to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of your transport activities." Reasonably practicable means weighing what an ordinary, sensible person would consider appropriate given the circumstances. Judgment plays a role in deciding what's right in each situation.

Chain of responsibility parallels work health and safety laws in many respects. Businesses must do everything possible so people involved in transport activities remain safe. This duty includes making sure risks involved in these activities are:

• identified
• assessed
• eliminated
• minimised

Never take measures that could influence drivers or others to speed or break HVNL rules. This covers direct requests, contract conditions, penalties or rewards, preferential treatment, or any words or acts that could encourage a driver to break rules.

Ways to Ensure Compliance with CoR

Several strategies exist to help your company comply with chain of responsibility laws.

1. Establish a Safety Management System

Road safety risks can be managed more effectively by adopting a Safety Management System (SMS). An SMS represents a systematic approach to managing safety, integrated throughout the business wherever practical. It should identify, assess, and control risks while continually improving safety performance.

An SMS can help you:

• Identify needs for managing road safety risks
• Set up systems and procedures to control operations
• Monitor and measure whether systems are working
• Provide a safe working environment
• Prevent incidents and injuries
• Meet safety duties under HVNL
• Improve business performance

2. Place Appropriate Control Measures

Control measures represent actions taken to minimise risks. These range from simple changes to work methods or equipment through to significantly redesigning facilities or processes. Measures for complying with CoR include:

• Conducting driver induction training
• Making modifications to vehicles
• Implementing regular self-auditing and inspections
• Maintaining detailed and accurate records
• Reviewing safety procedures and policy documents regularly

3. Provide Awareness and Compliance Training

Raising awareness of HVNL requirements among workers helps ensure everyone understands compliance obligations. Training ensures each transport supply chain party knows their duties and what's required for compliance. Achieve this by:

• Providing everyone with briefings and training on policy and procedure
• Giving refresher training periodically
• Ensuring new drivers and other CoR parties receive induction into company policies and procedures

4. Review and Monitor CoR Party Performance Regularly

Many factors affect compliance performance, including changes in law, shifts in policy, or adjustments in manufacturing. Performance of everyone within the responsibility chain should be monitored and reviewed regularly to confirm compliance with HVNL. Achieve this by:

• Having regular audits from external sources such as consultants or government agencies
• Conducting internal audits within each department level of the company
• Utilising data from compliance monitoring tools to review performance
• Identifying trends or issues through analysis of performance records

5. Use Fleet Management Technologies and Solutions

Keeping vehicles safe and compliant with Chain of Responsibility regulations remains essential to protecting drivers, cargo, and your bottom line. Numerous tools, systems, and processes exist to help your fleet achieve safety and compliance. Consider testing new ways of tracking performance, such as:

• Investing in GPS tracking that allows real-time fleet monitoring, so safety or compliance issues get identified and addressed quickly
• Using GPS tracking data to improve routes and schedules
• Providing vehicle maintenance and driver training programs

Make Compliance with Chain of Responsibility Easy Using SafetyDocs

If your operations involve transport activities, the last thing you want to worry about is whether your workplace meets its legal obligations. CoR is more than just avoiding fines — it all comes down to keeping everyone on the road safe. With a proper safety management system in place, your workplace can stay compliant while workers remain safe.

SafetyDocs by SafetyCulture can help you meet obligations under CoR through our range of safety documents for road safety and heavy vehicles, part of Australia's legal framework governing transport operations. Begin your CoR compliance journey with the following documentation:

• Chain of Responsibility Management Plan
• Vehicle Pre-Operational Checklist
• Light Vehicle Driver Fatigue Management Form
• Loading and Unloading Trucks Safe Operating Procedure
• Forms Kit

Explore our Transport & Warehousing Integrated Industry Suite for a complete set of documentation covering fleet operations, or browse our safety software options to detect risks before they escalate. Contact us to find out how SafetyDocs can help your business comply with chain of responsibility legislation.

Available for instant download and supplied in fully editable MS Word format for use in your business.

Please note that the above information is provided as a comment only and should not be relied on as professional, legal or financial advice.