The general secretary of the TUC, John Monks, has called for work-related road safety to be included in an employer's health and safety requirements.

His comments follow a report by the work-related road safety task group, set up by the government and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), which shows that up to 1000 lives are lost in work-related road accidents.

Monks said: "It's time to end the hidden scandal of work-related deaths on the road. One thousand deaths a year is nearly three times the number of workers killed at the workplace and accounts for nearly a third of all road traffic deaths. There's no longer any excuse for work-related road safety not to be treated as a health and safety issue".

The report also showed that there are an estimated 12,000 serious injuries caused by work-related accidents, and 70,000 slight injuries. Combined, the study estimates that these accidents cost society £3.7 billion per year and employers an estimated £2.7 billion.

Occupational safety advisor for RoSPA, Roger Bibbings said: "We want the government to develop a co-ordinated national action programme to deal with Britain's biggest occupational safety issue."