Are you a Proxy?
Are you a Proxy in your private capacity?
If your company runs vehicles, someone is its Proxy. If you let anyone else drive your own car, that someone is you. Either way, the law holds you responsible for what happens behind the wheel.
The Proxy always carries the consequences of others’ actions
- Every business with vehicles must name a Proxy for each branch (National Road Traffic Regulations, regulation 336).
- The Proxy is deemed to be a Director for criminal proceedings (section 332 of the Criminal Procedure Act).
- You answer for the vehicles: their condition, their licensing and how they are driven.
- The stakes are real: some offences under the National Road Traffic Act carry a fine or up to six years’ imprisonment.
A Proxy in your private capacity
It doesn’t stop at work. If you allow others to drive your personal vehicles, you are deemed to be a Proxy in your personal capacity, and the consequences and responsibilities are similar. Your spouse, your children, a friend borrowing your car: their fines and offences can become your problem.
What every Proxy must get right
- A correct, written appointment, signed and accepted
- Up-to-date details at the licensing department, kept separate from your personal ones
- Every fine handled accurately and on time: transferred to the driver or answered with a representation
- A working knowledge of the legislation and the AARTO process
- Regular reports to management, and written agreements on who is responsible for what
- Compliance with POPIA when handling drivers’ personal information
Miss one, and the consequences land on you.
How SASMiNT upskills Proxies
Since 2008 we have delivered more than 1,000 AARTO seminars to fleet operators, municipalities and government departments. Upskilling Proxies has always been at the heart of what we do.
- AARTO-PPP: Policies, Proxies and Procedures. A live, practical session on the Proxy’s role, duties and risks, and how to protect yourself and your company.
- The eProxy Handbook. Your company’s practical roadmap for AARTO, business continuity and Proxy protection, issued to companies that attend our webinar.
- Teach the Team©. Our train-the-trainer programme, so your own people can carry the knowledge through the company.
