The legal age a person can acquire an LGV (large goods vehicle) licence has been lowered from 21 to 18, as part of the new Driver CPC legislation, which came into force on 10 September.
However, the change has been met with a mixed response from the industry, claiming that what appears to be a solution to both the shortage of drivers in the industry as well as its ageing workforce will prove costly to operators.
Sean Pargeter, sales director at EP Training Services in Surrey tells CM: "I do not think there is a shortage of drivers, there is a shortage of good drivers. Dropping the age to obtain LGV licence age to 18 gives me two areas of concern: the lack of experience required to gain employment and the high insurance premiums. Operators are not going to want to employ people without experience or road sense."
Pargeter also questioned why lowering the age limit for an LGV licence had not been publicised ahead of the introduction of the Driver CPC.
Ray Conneely, general manager at Massey Wilcox Transport, concurs: "In my opinion, there are not many 18-year olds that are mature enough. Most don't think ahead about potential traffic dangers and are much more likely to have accidents, which is why car insurance premiums are so high for 18-year olds. It would need to be a remarkable individual indeed for us to consider employing an 18-year-old HGV driver."
Meanwhile, a spokesman for recruitment agency Driver Hire adds: "It will make road transport a more attractive proposition as a career for younger people. The requirement to be 21 before applying for an HGV licence often meant that they went in to other industries.
"As a driver agency, we have a duty to our clients to ensure that the drivers we provide are compliant, reliable, trustworthy and suitably skilled people. That's why we carry out stringent checks on all new drivers. If they are younger, this does, perhaps, become even more important. But, as long as we are certain that a driver is competent and sensible, and insurers are prepared to provide adequate cover, this move is broadly welcomed by us."
