Grey fleet policy template: free editable policy wording

By the Smart Strix team · Updated 15 July 2026

Complete grey fleet policy wording you can copy, edit and adopt — covering scope, driver declarations, document checks and review dates. No download gate.

In short: below is a full grey fleet policy you can adopt today — every clause is on this page, ungated. Grey fleet means employees driving their own cars or vans on company business, and the employer's duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 applies just as it does to owned vehicles. Published by Smart Strix, the UK-first platform for 2–50 vehicle fleets; treat the wording as a starting point and take legal advice before formal adoption.

How do I use this grey fleet policy template?

Print this page or recreate it in a spreadsheet or document editor, replace the bracketed placeholders with your company details, delete clauses that don't apply, and have a director sign it off. The policy is written for UK small and mid-sized businesses whose staff sometimes drive privately owned vehicles for work. For the background — who counts as grey fleet, why HR mileage claims are the usual blind spot, and what enforcement looks like — read our grey fleet management guide first.

Grey fleet policy — full template text

1. Purpose and scope

1.1 This policy governs the use of privately owned vehicles on the business of [Company Name] ("the Company"). It applies to all employees, contractors and volunteers who drive their own car, van or motorcycle on any journey undertaken for the Company, other than ordinary commuting.

1.2 A journey is "on Company business" if it is made at the Company's request or for its benefit — including travel between sites, client visits, deliveries, collections and attendance at training or events. Claiming mileage for a journey is conclusive evidence that this policy applied to it.

2. Authorisation to drive

2.1 No person may use a private vehicle on Company business until the Company has approved them as a grey fleet driver. Approval requires a completed driver declaration (clause 3), sight of the documents in clause 4, and line-manager confirmation that private-vehicle use is genuinely necessary for the role.

2.2 Approval is vehicle-specific. Drivers must notify [responsible role, e.g. Operations Manager] before using a different vehicle, and the replacement vehicle must pass the same document checks first.

3. Driver declaration

3.1 Before first use and at each renewal, the driver must declare in writing that:

they hold a full, valid driving licence for the vehicle category driven, and will report any endorsement, suspension, disqualification or medical condition affecting their entitlement within [5] working days;
their insurance policy includes business use for the driving they will do, and remains in force;
the vehicle holds a current MOT certificate where one is required by law, and is taxed;
the vehicle is maintained in accordance with the manufacturer's servicing schedule and is roadworthy;
they will not drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs, will not use a handheld phone at the wheel, and will comply with road traffic law at all times;
they accept that the Company may verify licence status with DVLA, with their consent, using the DVLA licence-checking service.

4. Document checks and frequency

Document	Checked by the Company	Frequency
Driving licence	DVLA check code or licence-check service	At approval, then every [6/12] months; every [3] months for drivers with 6+ points
Insurance certificate (business use)	Copy of certificate or schedule showing class of use	At approval and at every renewal date
MOT certificate	GOV.UK MOT history check by registration	At approval, then every [12] months and at MOT expiry
Vehicle tax	GOV.UK vehicle enquiry service	Alongside the MOT check
Servicing evidence	Driver self-declaration; receipts on request	Annually with the declaration renewal

4.1 Expired or missing documents suspend grey fleet approval automatically. Mileage claims will not be paid for journeys made while approval was suspended.

5. Vehicle condition

5.1 Drivers must satisfy themselves before each business journey that tyres, lights, brakes, wipers and washers are serviceable, and must not use the vehicle for work if a safety defect is present. Defects that interrupt a business journey must be reported to [responsible role] the same day.

6. Journeys, hours and expenses

6.1 Drivers should consider whether a call, rail travel or a pool/hire vehicle would remove the need for the journey before setting off.
6.2 Journey plans must allow rest breaks on long drives, and no one is expected to drive when fatigued — long days combining work and driving should be flagged to the line manager.
6.3 Business mileage is reimbursed at [rate, e.g. HMRC approved mileage rates] against claims that state date, purpose, start point and destination.

7. Incidents

7.1 Any collision, injury or damage occurring on a business journey must be reported to [responsible role] within 24 hours, regardless of fault, in addition to the driver's own insurer notification. The Company will review incidents for lessons and may require refresher training before restoring approval.

8. Review cycle and ownership

8.1 This policy is owned by [role] and will be reviewed every [12] months, after any relevant legal change, and after any serious incident. Version, approval date and next review date appear in the table below.

Version	Approved by	Date	Next review
1.0	[Name, role]	[Date]	[Date + 12 months]

Why does a small business need a grey fleet policy at all?

Because the duty of care does not stop at vehicles you own. If an employee crashes their own car on a work errand and it turns out the Company never asked about insurance or licence status, the questions land on the employer — HSE and police can investigate work-related road deaths under health and safety law. A short signed policy plus a simple check schedule is the difference between "we had a system" and "we assumed". Our guide to the duty of care when driving for work sets out the legal footing in plain terms.

Once the policy is signed, the hard part is remembering renewal dates. Smart Strix keeps driver documents in a document vault with expiry alerts, so licence recheck dates, insurance renewals and MOT expiries chase themselves instead of living in someone's calendar.

Frequently asked questions

What counts as grey fleet?

Any privately owned vehicle used for a work journey other than commuting — an employee's own car driven to a client meeting, a personal van used for a collection, even a one-off errand in a family car if the business asked for it.

How often should grey fleet licences be checked?

There is no statutory interval; common practice is every 6–12 months, tightening to quarterly for drivers carrying penalty points. The template's clause 4 table lets you set your own frequencies and stick to them.

Does ordinary car insurance cover business journeys?

Usually not. Standard social, domestic and pleasure cover — even with commuting — typically excludes other business use, so the policy requires drivers to evidence a business-use class before approval.

Is this template legally binding once signed?

It becomes a workplace policy like any other: enforceable through your normal employment procedures, but it is a template, not legal advice. Have a solicitor or HR adviser review the final wording for your circumstances.

Can I adapt the template for volunteers or contractors?

Yes — clause 1 already includes them. For contractors you may prefer to require evidence of their own business motor insurance rather than bringing them inside your approval scheme; adjust clauses 2–4 accordingly.