Safety comes first, especially when it comes to work.
Companies are required to make sure that all drivers are aware of the fire regulations on thought vehicles and the guidelines to follow in case of an emergency.
Every employee, before going on a trip and during travel, must be protected from more or less serious unforeseen events that, unfortunately, can happen to everyone.
Therefore, it is recommended for those who own trucking and truck fleets or those who simply operate as private individuals to know the current situation on fire regulations.
Fire extinguishers on heavy vehicles
Currently, in our legislation, there are no regulations that require trucks to be equipped with a fire extinguisher. Indeed, within the Unified Health and Safety Law of the Labor Inspectorate it is stated in Article 46 that “in workplaces subject to this legislative decree, appropriate measures must be taken to prevent fire and to protect the safety of workers.” Within the utterance there is no direct mention of heavy vehicles or trucks, only physical places.
Although having a fire extinguisher on board is not expressly required by law, it is desirable for employers to still be responsible for the safety of their employees.
Truck fire extinguisher regulations
As we have seen, the regulatory vacuum regarding fire extinguishers in trucks does not allow us to say that a heavy transport vehicle must necessarily have a fire extinguisher on board.
However, there is an unwritten law that is often far more powerful than codes: the protection of one’s employees. Through respectful work ethics, a valuable tool that any employer should follow, it is still possible to accomplish what is not provided for in current regulations.
Many accidents that occur on highways or, even worse, inside tunnels, result in self-combustion and fires. For this reason, every vehicle must be secured for the protection of workers by installing devices that ensure the safety of the driver.
Quite different is the case with regard to fire extinguishers on passenger vehicles. In this case, the law stipulates that any vehicle used to transport people must carry a water- or carbonic snow-based fire extinguisher.
A vehicle equipped with a fire extinguisher can ensure the safety of those driving it and those being transported, as well as the vehicle itself. The cost of installing a fire extinguisher is decidedly trivial compared to the damage a bad accident could cause.
