The UK still faces a major problem with HGV driver recruitment
If you’ll forgive the metaphor, it’s been a bumpy couple of years for the road haulage and logistics sector. Now, while there have been signs of certain issues easing up recently, still one big problem remains: driver recruitment. Along with fuel theft, or skimming, it’s one of the most widespread challenges facing the UK industry – and if you’re unlucky, it may even be an issue that you’ve had some direct experience with yourself. A recent report from the Road Haulage Association (RHA) has shed some more light on where the UK finds itself now, and what work still needs to be done.
What does the RHA report say?
The Road Haulage Association says that we need 200,000 new HGV drivers in the UK over the next five years to avoid a repeat of the 2021 driver shortage (which was never technically resolved). To save you a bit of maths, this is about 40,000 new drivers annually, which is the minimum number we need to meet demand and maintain the supply chain stability.
It's an issue that the government is taking seriously, and rightly so. 81% of all freight is transported across the UK by road, encompassing essential goods like food, medicine, fuel, construction materials.
How has the shortfall come about?
o be honest, there are a variety of causes, including: HGV tests not taking place because of the pandemic, economic bounce-back from Covid, and an over-reliance on overseas labour. The resulting driver shortage makes up a key part of several ongoing challenges for the industry – including an ageing workforce, lack of diversity, and driver retention.
The driver shortage properly hit headlines in 2021, when it peaked at a shortfall of 100,000 qualified drivers. That gap has closed a bit now, but it’s still not fully resolved. As we’ve just touched on, one of the biggest related problems is that a lot of drivers are approaching retirement age. According to figures from Nationwide Vehicle Contracts, which analysed figures from the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency, about 55% of drivers are currently aged between 50 and 65, while less than 2% of drivers are under the age of 25. That creates the risk that the shortfall gap is likely to widen (possibly quite abruptly) when the current crop of drivers start to retire, and there aren’t enough younger drivers to take their place.
So what’s being done about it?
One of the main solutions that the RHA is suggesting is greater flexibility in the Growth and Skills Levy, a government scheme designed to help businesses to fund apprenticeships and training programmes to develop their workforce. Another key approach involves closer collaboration between the logistics and education sectors – in other words, getting involved in schools, and colleges to promote careers in logistics.
The government isn’t blind to the problem, and says it’s taking 33 actions to deal with the shortage. Amongst its main ones are:
providing funding to help train new HGV drivers
increasing the number of HGV driving tests
encouraging former drivers to return to driving
It’s also looking at measures to improve the long-term stability of existing supply chains, and taking economic measures to support the haulage industry. (You can read the full list over in the official government response.)
The tricky thing about these sorts of challenges is that there are no simple solutions – as well as a co-ordinated response from the government, it requires individual action from businesses too.
On that note, if you’re looking at your own action plans for the rest of 2025, it’s worth looking at your fuel security too. And that’s exactly where we can help here at TankSafe. Anti-siphon devices like our TankSafe Optimum are one of the single most reliable ways to deal with them. It’s the only anti-siphon device that offers 3-in-1 protection, with a patented mechanism that’s guaranteed to prevent fuel theft. It’s an excellent way to secure your fuel in the short term while you gradually build up additional security measures that can help catch perpetrators in the act.
You can read more about how TankSafe Optimum works, or don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team if you have any further questions about the best ways to protect your fuel in 2024. Give us a quick call on 01253 400 401, and we'll be happy to help however we can!