The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has teamed up with the Fatigue Group, a non-profit organisation led by NHS anaesthetists, to educate workers and employers on the dangers of driver fatigue, promoting strategies for managing tiredness, recognising when individuals are too fatigued to drive, and ensuring adequate rest breaks.
RoSPA highlighted the risks associated with drowsy driving ahead of World Sleep Day on Friday, 14th March 2025. The organisation warned that fatigue-related collisions resulted in more than 430 deaths or serious injuries and 1,276 crashes in 2023 alone.
‘If you’re tired, don’t drive’, is the key message RoSPA aims to spread this World Sleep Day.
The Fatigue Group was created in response to the tragic deaths of healthcare professionals who fell asleep at the wheel after long shifts. The group’s work builds on the #fightfatigue campaign originally designed for NHS staff, offering advice relevant to all shift workers and those in high-risk industries.
One of its core recommendations is the HALT principle, advising individuals not to drive when they are Hungry, Angry, Late, or Tired.
Although the issue is particularly prevalent in the healthcare sector, where a Medical Defence Union (MDU) survey found that 90% of doctors feel sleep-deprived at work, the dangers of fatigue extend to all industries. Physically demanding sectors such as haulage and construction are especially at risk, but even office workers putting in long hours can be affected.
RoSPA urged drivers who experience fatigue to stop driving as soon as it is safe, and ideally, find somewhere secure to rest. While drinking two strong coffees and taking a 15-minute nap may provide temporary relief, this should not be used as a substitute for proper rest.
Employers also have a critical role in preventing fatigue-related crashes. RoSPA called on businesses to implement robust fatigue risk management systems, including scheduled rest breaks and safer working patterns for employees.
Additionally, RoSPA pressed the Government to take more proactive steps in addressing drowsy driving. These include: introducing standardised fatigue assessment tests, similar to breathalyser tests for alcohol; establishing a national registry to track drowsy driving incidents; launching public awareness campaigns targeting high-risk groups, such as shift workers.
The Fatigue Group advocates for regulatory changes in healthcare, urging hospitals to provide dedicated rest areas and mandatory fatigue risk management protocols similar to those in other safety-critical industries.
Caitlin Taylor, road safety manager at RoSPA, said: “Drowsy driving is responsible for many serious and fatal collisions each year. Fatigue impairs driving ability similar to drink or drug driving but gets much less attention. This must change.
“Fatigue slows reaction times, reduces awareness, and affects decision-making, putting everyone at risk. RoSPA calls on employers, policymakers, and the government to act now by improving workplace fatigue management, investing in public awareness campaigns, and collecting better data on fatigue-related crashes. No one should lose their life due to preventable driver fatigue.”
JP Lomas of The Fatigue Group added: “We have our own personal experience of the perils of driving while tired, having had colleagues die driving home after night shifts. Although not every journey ends in tragedy, the pressure on healthcare staff leads to many feeling forced to take risks, with research showing that 57% of trainees and 45% of consultants had experienced an accident or near miss driving tired post-shift.
“With such a large number of tired employees on the roads all day and night, this is an urgent problem in the healthcare sector. We call for hospitals to provide dedicated rest time and spaces for staff. The so-called ‘hero’ culture where people continue working despite being exhausted for fear of looking ‘weak’ or letting others down needs to be replaced by a safety culture where staff mitigate the impacts of fatigue with power naps and rest breaks.
“Our message is simple – getting enough rest is a necessity, not a weakness, and could save lives.”
