Chain of Responsibility (CoR)

What is Chain of Responsibility (CoR)?

Chain of Responsibility (CoR) is a significant law for businesses in Australia that work with heavy vehicles. CoR ensures that everyone involved in the transport chain is accountable for ensuring safety, from the business owner, managers, and drivers, to the clients.

CoR is administered by The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR), which is a regulatory body pertaining to heavy vehicles over 4.5 tonnes of gross vehicle mass. The NHVR enforces the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) and five sets of regulations. The HVNL came into effect on 10 February 2014 in the Australian Capital Territory, Queensland, Tasmania, New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria. Each state or territory passed a law that either adopted or replicated the HVNL (with certain changes) as a law within their jurisdiction. While the HVNL has not yet come into effect in the Northern Territory or Western Australia, it applies equally to vehicles from these areas when they cross into any of the states where the HVNL is in effect. Additionally, in some instances, drivers may need to comply with certain aspects of the HVNL before crossing the border (e.g., work diary requirements). In 2018, the HVNL was amended, and it is now also referred to as the Chain of Responsibility (CoR).

Under CoR, each party in the supply chain is obliged to ensure breaches of road transport laws do not occur.  A party may include any person who can influence or control the transport chain.

Why is CoR important?

CoR was introduced to ensure that everyone involved in the transport chain takes responsibility for safety. While safety breaches are usually done by the drivers, CoR recognises that many parties may be involved and certain pressures and demands of these parties may also be a reason for these breaches. For example, a consigner or a consignee may have agreements which are hard to achieve such as delivery timelines. This may result in the driver overspeeding. Such agreements and contracts are considered illegal and consigners or consignees are also accountable for such practices.

What does having CoR System Mean for your Business?

For businesses, having a CoR system means that they must take responsibility for the safety of their operations. They must ensure that they have appropriate policies and procedures in place for the transportation of goods. They must also ensure that their employees are trained in these policies and procedures. Failure to comply with the CoR system can lead to fines, legal action, and damage to the business’s reputation.

How can Businesses Comply with CoR?

Having a Safety Management System is a simple way to help meet your primary duty obligations.

The steps that you can take to meet CoR obligations are:

Build a safety management system

This will include developing CoR compliance policies and procedures. You should create and execute policies and procedures for Chain of Responsibility (CoR) compliance within your organisation, as well as with every other entity in the supply chain you interact with. Organisations need to evaluate and define the responsibilities of all parties in the supply chain.

The policies and procedures shall be defined in a manner that all compliance obligations are addressed. This include but is not limited to:

• Systems to manage fatigue
• Maintaining heavy vehicle
• Checking vehicle weights and dimensions
• Safe Loading and Unloading practices

Raise awareness and implement compliance training

Once a set of policies and procedures are developed, the next step is to ensure that all personnel involved know what is required of them under the CoR and how the organisation’s policies and procedures help to comply with the CoR requirements.

Include compliance terms in commercial arrangements

Everyone in your supply-chain shall follow the CoR requirements. A great way to ensure compliance is to include terms in your contracts which require them to comply with CoR and your organisation’s policies and procedures.

Implement and Monitor CoR Compliance

Your organisation needs to establish a mechanism to verify compliance both within and outside of the organization to ensure it is being followed. Any non-compliance matters must be recorded, examined, and corrected or addressed. This will include working with your suppliers to mitigate risks and monitor issues that may result in breaches of the law on a regular basis.

Who does CoR apply to?

CoR applies to all parties who have control or influence over the transport of goods. This includes the consignor, packers, loaders, drivers, and consignees. The legislation applies to all types of heavy vehicles, including trucks, trailers, and buses, as well as any other vehicle that exceeds the prescribed mass or dimension limits.