Repairers could avoid prosecution under tough new health and safety guidelines by using dealer management systems, according to a leading industry figure.

Neville Briggs, managing director of DMS provider Pinewood, says the systems could help create a paper trail, which would prove invaluable in case of an at-work road accident.

According to the newly-issued “Driving at Work” guidelines, employers must ensure that vehicles used for work purposes are maintained to an acceptable standard and in line with manufacturers' servicing recommendations.

And legal experts warn that in the event of an accident where maintenance problems appear to have been a contributing factor, repairers could face prosecution. Briggs says: “Repairers need to be able to show two things. Firstly, that a procedure exists to ensure that maintenance is undertaken and, secondly, how that has been applied to the vehicle in question.

“For both these instances, the systems and records facilities inherent in any good DMS should provide an easy route to fulfilling these important health and safety responsibilities and putting a watertight infrastructure in place.”