Employees who use company vehicles must pay attention to several important points. Failing to observe these rules can lead to accidents or traffic fines that may cost them their jobs without severance.
Attention for Company Vehicle Drivers
Many employers, especially in sales and marketing, provide company cars to help employees complete tasks more quickly. Employees must remember that vehicles assigned by the company are not for personal use. Beyond that, anyone driving a company vehicle must exercise caution for many reasons. These rules apply not only to sales or marketing staff but also to professional drivers employed by a firm. If drivers disregard the rules, they may be required to pay fines themselves and, depending on the circumstances, face dismissal without compensation.
When an employer assigns a vehicle to an employee, the company typically issues rules on how the vehicle should be used, how it should be driven, and what to watch for. These instructions are considered part of the employment terms and are treated as contractual obligations. Employees who do not follow the required vehicle use policies may be regarded as violating their employment contract, which can be grounds for dismissal without severance.
Fines Are the Driver’s Responsibility
Responsibility for paying traffic fines involving company vehicles generally falls on the driver. If someone driving a company car violates traffic laws, resulting fines and penalties under the Highway Traffic Law are treated as personal liabilities. Although the vehicle belongs to the company, penalty points can be applied to the driver’s license. When a fine is issued to the license plate rather than the driver, employers may still pass the cost on to the employee if the company vehicle was driven by that person. Employers often set rules about how and at what speeds the vehicle should be operated when issuing the vehicle to an employee.
If the employer has set a specific speed or use limit and an employee exceeds that limit and receives a fine, the employer may deduct that fine from the employee’s salary. If the employer has not set an internal limit, statutory speed limits that apply on public roads are used. For example, if a road has a 50 km/h limit and the driver of a company vehicle exceeds that limit, the resulting fine is typically the driver’s responsibility and unlikely to be successfully contested by the company. In some exceptional cases, the company may choose to cover traffic fines.
Don’t Overlook These Points
Drivers of company vehicles should follow certain rules to avoid fines and disciplinary action. Repeated violations—such as speeding or running red lights—can justify dismissal by the employer. In those cases, the employer may be required to pay severance; however, in serious violations such as driving under the influence, endangering others, or failing to wear a seat belt, employees can be dismissed without compensation. Not wearing a seat belt is considered a direct violation of workplace health and safety standards.
Before an employer can lawfully dismiss an employee over improper vehicle use, specific conditions must usually be met. The employer should have provided relevant training and be able to document it, there should be concrete evidence of the employee’s infractions (for example, proof of not wearing a seat belt), and the employee should have received prior written warnings regarding vehicle use. When these steps are followed, the employer has clearer grounds for disciplinary action up to and including dismissal without severance.