Changes to Chain of Responsibility

New Primary Duty laws

On 1 October 2018, the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) was amended to provide that every party in the heavy vehicle transport supply chain has a duty to ensure the safety of their transport activities. In practical terms, this primary duty represents an obligation to eliminate or minimise potential harm or loss (risk) by doing all that is reasonably practicable to ensure safety. As a party in the supply chain, the best way to do this is to have Safety Management Systems (SMS) and controls in place, such as business practices, training, procedures and review processes that:

  • identify, assess, evaluate, and control risk
  • manage compliance with speed, fatigue, mass, dimension, loading and vehicle standards requirements through identified best practice
  • involve regular reporting, including to executive officers
  • document or record actions taken to manage safety.

Useful links

  • CoR Gap Assessment Tool - Through a series of practical questions, the CoR Gap Assessment Tool enables you to examine your business practices and systems controls against known risks and recognised best practice.
  • CoR Quick Briefs - The CoR Quick Briefs are designed to help educate industry on their safety duties under the HVNL.
  • Master Industry Code of Practice - The Industry Master Code represents an industry-led risk-based safety and compliance framework and provides a set of national standards and procedures developed to assist parties in the chain of responsibility to identify and mitigate risks to meet their obligations under the HVNL.
  • Safety Management Systems (SMS) - Having an effective Safety Management System (SMS) can be one of the best ways of ensuring you have a safety-focused business and are complying with your safety duty obligations under the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL).

CoR and Safety Management Systems video presentation

1. Safety Duties and CoR

2. Safety Management Systems

3. SMS Tools and Templates

4. Codes of Practice and accreditation schemes

CoR Gap Assessment Tool

Through a series of practical questions, the CoR Gap Assessment Tool enables you to examine your business practices and systems controls against known risks and recognised best practice.

Safety Management Systems

  • Introduction to risk management (PDF, 424KB) - This guide will familiarise you with risk management and help you begin to establish and refine your own processes for identifying, assessing and managing risks in your heavy vehicle transport activities.

A Safety Management System is a systematic approach to managing safety, including the necessary organisational structures, accountabilities, policies and procedures, which is integrated throughout the business wherever possible. For more information see the following section of our website, Safety Management Systems (SMS).

Podcasts

Presentations

Videos