Queries to the FTA’s Member Advice Centre (MAC) have doubled since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak as logistics professionals seek advice on legal, technical and operational matters relating to the pandemic.
The centre provides expert advice and answers to questions on legal, technical and operational matters relating to logistics, on topics such as Brexit, Covid-19, drivers’ hours, through to vehicle maintenance standards; it normally answers 28,000 questions from FTA’s members per year on average.
Robert Saunders, manager of the MAC, said: “FTA’s policy team have been working closely with government to help it solve challenges arising from the pandemic – such as the need for delivery hours to be extended to help keep supermarkets and other retailers stocked during this period of high demand – and this has assisted logistics businesses endlessly. With thanks to them, we are seeing growing confidence from our members, but we are still needed to help answer pressing questions as the pandemic continues.”
Common questions relate to the furloughing of drivers; medical certificates due to expire; relaxation of drivers’ hours rules; and calibration of tachographs.
