31 Dec 2011
For the Record – response to Mike Sheahan's column in Herald Sun – 14 17/11/11
I was encouraged to read Mike Sheahan's piece in today's Herald Sun and am pleased that one of our great sport's writers has turned his attention to road safety and saving lives.
The past few weeks on our roads have been nothing short of horrific, and a sad reminder that we can all do more to reduce the trauma.
Road trauma is the biggest killer of young people worldwide and at the TAC one of our greatest passions lies in developing new and innovative ways to target that high-risk group with our messages.
We do not deny that the tragic crash at Penshurst last Saturday should never have happened, and my heart sunk when I heard of the incident.
But, while Mike's personal interest in the issue is encouraging, the TAC and Victoria's road safety partners put enormous effort into reducing youth road trauma and I feel it is important to acknowledge that.
While our TV and radio advertisements might be all that Mike and his peers see and hear of the TAC, I can assure the community there is much, much more being done at other levels in different mediums to engage young people in road safety.
Our focus on youth peer-to-peer communication is the driver behind our 20-year partnership of the TAC Cup, the recent Blood Oath campaign which engaged more than 40,000 people on-line, the Vanessa mobile cinema which appears at all major music festivals and uni open days, our Make a Film, Make a Difference (MAFMAD) short film competition, and the Fit2Drive program in schools.
We welcome Mike Sheehan's interest in these projects, and would be happy to have him involved.
While we are enthused by the success of these programs, we can always do more, and it saddens me that it takes a tragedy on a grand scale to bring the mainstream media's attention to the issue.
I firmly agree with Mike's point that it is an indictment on this community that so many young people are lost to road trauma each year – every road death is preventable.
This is what fuels the TAC to work harder, every day, to prevent tragedies and save lives, and we thank Mike and all media outlets for their assistance in helping us get the message out there.
Sincerely,
Janet Dore
Chief Executive Officer, TAC
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For the Record - The TAC's Annual Report has been tabled in State Parliament and reported on in The Age newspaper. – 14 Spetember 2011
The TAC's Annual Report has been tabled in State Parliament and reported on in The Age newspaper.
The Annual Report highlights that during the last financial year the TAC paid a record $937 million in support services and benefits to clients, and recorded a Performance from Insurance Operations of $187 million.
However, the report also shows that during the last financial year, the TAC Client Satisfaction Score was at its lowest in five years.
TAC CEO Janet Dore was disappointed with the score, but said the business had worked hard to address key areas of concern.
"It's disappointing that we were unable to meet our target for this year and we are increasing our focus on client experience to ensure improvements are made," Ms Dore said.
"We have identified some key areas that we need to work on, organisation-wide, to ensure our clients are provided with the best service possible to assist them in recovering from their transport accident."
"These include helping clients resolve their issues efficiently, keeping clients up to date on the status of their claim and providing them with a level of service that best suits their individual needs.
"We are confident we can address these issues and we are already seeing improvements in these areas in this financial year."
The TAC currently has 43,794 clients requiring support services and benefits.
Key results for the TAC in 2010/11 included:
* $937 million in support services and benefits for 43,794 clients
* Performance from Insurance Operations of $187 million
* Client satisfaction score of 7.31/10
* Common law claims resolutions at 943
* Actuarial release of $42 million
* Strong investment markets resulted in a positive return of 10.9%.
Ms Dore said overall, the results for the 2010/2011 financial year were positive.
"Now we are focused on improving client outcomes, enhancing client experience and ensuring the ongoing financial viability of the TAC," she said.
"It is important we all continue to work hard and stick together to achieve our goals."
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For the Record - In response to the New South Wales Auditor General releasing a report into the speed camera program in New South Wales. – 28 July 2011
The New South Wales Auditor General has released a report into the speed camera program in New South Wales.
For the record, the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) supports the use of speed cameras as part of Victoria's overall road safety strategy.
It cannot be denied that the findings from the NSW report will not help us enhance the Victorian community's belief in our state's speed camera program.
But what motorists must remember is that since speed cameras were introduced here in the late 1980s our road toll has more than halved, and the level of serious injuries suffered has reduced significantly.
Speed cameras have played an important role in this reduction. They slow the average speed of roads down and this has a direct impact on the level of road trauma.
There's no doubt that any discussion about speed cameras is a debate that stirs strong emotions within the community. Unfortunately, what is often lost in these debates is the cost of road trauma and how much this state pays out each year to help people affected by it rehabilitate and recover.
The TAC alone paid out over $900 million in benefits and support services to transport accident victims last financial year - a figure well in excess of the estimated $226 million raised annually by speeding fines.
The last Victorian Auditor General's investigation into this issue in 2006 found "no evidence that the speed enforcement program is focussed on raising revenue".
The data presented in the report indicated that Victoria's expenditure on road safety across Victoria Police, VicRoads, the Department of Justice and the TAC exceeds the amount raised on fines by more than 50%.
What this showed is that fine revenue barely puts a dent in the cost of reducing road trauma and caring for those people affected by transport accidents.
Speed cameras are not going to save every life on Victorian roads but there is no doubt that cameras make people slow down, which ultimately saves lives.
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For the Record - In response to Herald Sun relating to TAC staff traffic infringements and damage caused to fleet vehicles. – 17 July 2011
An article appeared in today's Sunday Herald Sun relating to TAC staff traffic infringements and damage caused to fleet vehicles.
For the record, the majority of these incidents have not caused injury to our staff, did not involve other vehicles, and the majority of incidents (48 of 62) have caused less than $1500 damage.
But, we acknowledge that road trauma remains a big issue for this state and there is no doubt the money spent on repairs would be better spent preventing road trauma and helping those who suffer injuries resulting from transport accidents.
There is not a culture of unsafe driving at the TAC. Staff who have been involved in incidents causing damage to fleet vehicles, or who have received a traffic infringement are part of a minority group that does not reflect the TAC's core values of safe driving.
As the premier road safety agency in this state, the TAC does not condone or accept reckless driving.
We always expect TAC staff to uphold our organisational values whether they are working within the office building, visiting our clients or driving on the roads.
Our road safety campaigning is well known amongst Victorians and rated highly here and overseas, and we acknowledge that for these messages to resonate we must promote them internally as well as externally.
Where possible, we promote safe driving messages to staff via our internal communications and messages from the CEO.
In addition, every TAC employee must agree to the TAC's Safe Driving Policy before taking possession of a fleet vehicle. This policy is designed to assist drivers to better understand the most common factors contributing to road crashes and casualties, and show them how to reduce those risks.
The TAC is constantly striving for further road safety improvements and a reduction in road trauma and to achieve this we must adopt a leadership stance and act as a catalyst for change within our community.
A TAC employee who receives a traffic infringement is subject to formal disciplinary action which can, in extreme cases, lead to dismissal.
The TAC takes a tough stance against reckless driving within the wider community and it would be hypocritical of us to ignore any breach of road rules by a staff member.
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For the Record - In response to Herald Sun relating to a Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) hearing involving the TAC and Mr Craig Reid – 17 July 2011
Yesterday there was an article featured in the Herald Sun relating to a Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) hearing involving the TAC and Mr Craig Reid.
For the record, the TAC stands by its decision to oppose the plaintiff's claim for compensation.
The TAC rejected Mr Reid's compensation claim because his injury was not directly caused by the driving of a motor vehicle as required by the legislation under which the TAC is governed.
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For the Record - In response to 'TAC's plan to support a Brewer's Challenge'– 20 May 2011
You may have seen an article in the Herald Sun today referring to the TAC's plan to support a Brewer's Challenge inviting Australian breweries to develop a Low Alcohol Beer. For the record, the TAC has supported this category as part of the Australian International Beer Awards for the past two years as part of its marketing strategy to target low-level drink drivers.
This year the TAC was planning to offer a $250,000 promotional and marketing assistance package to the brewer who could develop a Gold Medal-class beer with less than 1.15 per cent alcohol.
Last night the Government instructed the TAC to retract its support for the Brewers Challenge and we have done so.
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For the Record - In response to 'Getting fair go no accident' – 18 February 2011
The Herald Sun today published an opinion piece from Mr Andrew Dimsey, Principal Lawyer, Maurice Blackburn (page 37) in which he claims "often the TAC rejects fair claims or underestimates the consequences of injuries, adding to the stress, pain and tragedy accidents cause".
For the record, the TAC objects to this incorrect claim.
TAC staff are committed to helping our clients recover from transport accidents and return to independent lives. In fact in 2009/10, the TAC provided over $900 million in benefits and support to over 42,900 people.
While it is true there will be cases where the TAC disagrees on points of law with plaintiff law firms, the suggestion that the TAC often rejects fair claims is both incorrect and insulting to our staff, who every day provide TAC clients with the high levels of service they deserve.
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For the Record - Response to Peter Moore's article in the Geelong Advertiser - 15 February 2011
We respect the ongoing interest of your columnist, Peter Moore, in the road safety debate. If everyone who drove a car was as focussed on road safety as he is, our roads would undoubtedly be a lot safer.
We would however like to correct his recent statement that "the number of people killed on our roads increased in 2010". While the numbers of vehicles on our roads is increasing, 2010 actually resulted in the lowest road toll in Victorian history with 287 fatalities.
This was the third year in a row Victoria recorded its lowest ever road toll.
The TAC would also like to remind your readers that every 5km over the speed limit does matter.
In fact, small changes in speed can result in significant reductions to road trauma. In average conditions, a car travelling at 60km/h will take about 45 metres to stop in an emergency braking situation. A car braking from 65km/h will still be moving at close to 32km/h after travelling 45 metres.
If the unexpected occurs on our roads, more distance to brake and an extra split second to make a decision can make an enormous impact on whether someone will experience road trauma.
People assume that fatalities only occur in high speed zones. However, the sad reality is that 79 people lost their lives last year on roads in a 50km or 60 km speed zone and over 3,000 people suffered a serious injury in the lower speed zones.
Peter Moore does raise a good point about the multi-faceted nature of accidents –crashes may be due to a combination of factors such as speed, fatigue, distraction, and drink or drug driving. However the fact remains that Police who investigate crashes in Victoria believe that speed was the major factor in around a third of crashes.
Knowing that crashes can be caused by several factors, Victoria has adopted a safe system approach to addressing road trauma. The safe system looks at all elements of the road system. The roads we drive, ride and walk on, the cars and other vehicles we transport ourselves in and the behaviour of users of the system.
The TAC, together with our road safety partners, will continue to advocate for the important role speed cameras play in reminding people to obey the speed limits because they do slow people down and they do undoubtedly save lives.
http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2011/02/08/241431_opinion.html
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For the Record - Response to John Lambert's Letter to the Editor Geelong Advertiser, 5 January, 2011
Witnessing first-hand the emotional and physical impacts one collision has on our clients and their families fuels the TAC's motivation for reducing road trauma.
So we were a little surprised at the accusation in your 'letter to the editor' column yesterday that TAC personnel "make any statements they like in respect of the road toll" to support our high profile in road safety.
The sad reality is that the vast majority of TAC employees interact with over 40,000 clients who are suffering the sometimes catastrophic consequences of road trauma.
We will continue to ignite public debate about road safety until Victoria's road toll and serious injury rate amounts to nothing – and we make no apologies for highlighting spikes or drops in statistics to achieve that.
Last year there were 16 more deaths on rural and regional roads than the previous year, and regardless of where those motorists reside the fact is that travelling on roads outside of metropolitan Melbourne came at higher risk than in 2009.
There is no doubt that we have a long way to go to reduce road trauma. As your correspondent noted, this is not just about where the accidents occur, but also on specific vehicle types – such as motorcycles – that are at an increased risk.
The TAC's agenda lies solely in making every journey a safe one, and if one driver or rider thinks twice before driving dangerously on their next trip, our efforts to place road safety into the public domain, through the release of statistics or otherwise, have been justified.
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For the Record - TAC work related driving in 2010 - 30 December 2010
In order to improve the safety performance of a company fleet, all employers should regularly review work related driving.
For the record in 2010, eighteen employees of the TAC received driving infringements. About 800 employees share the fleet of 100 cars.
A guide to safe work related driving was created to provide practical advice to employers, fleet managers and drivers on measures to reduce risks associated with driving. A link to the guide can be found here: