Information for Volunteer Drivers
Good Practice Guidelines for Voluntary Car Schemes, prepared by Hampshire County Council and the Good Neighbours Support Service, can be seen here
SWAG provides secondary insurance that covers any excess payable or increase in your no-claims bonus if you have an accident whilst driving for SWAG. See the Outline of Cover here. here.
On becoming a driver we check that your road fund licence is current, that your insurance company knows that you are a volunteer driver and that you are not aware of any medical or physical condition that would preclude you from being a volunteer driver. After that it is your responsibility to inform SWAG of any changes in your circumstances.
There are additional formalities for older drivers aged 75 or over - see our Older Drivers Policy Statement here.
Drivers’ Disclosure and Barring Service checks must be renewed every 5 years – SWAG will organise this. The DBS now provides an update service, currently free for volunteers, which provides various advantages. See details here.
Parking information for all the local hospitals can be found here and maps of the principal hospital sites here. Hospitals’ rules and practices vary, but volunteers are usually entitled to free parking, use of bays dedicated for hospital drivers and sometimes parking in disabled bays. It's always best to check with the hospital.
The Hospital Parking Permit provided to each driver must be displayed when parked and drivers should always carry their SWAG ID badge. Rules for using the permit can be found here.
Disabled clients may have their own “Blue Badge” disabled parking permit for parking in disabled bays – drivers should check this when confirming appointments. If not, SWAG has an organisational Blue Badge for use with clients with severe mobility constraints. (See Blue badge rules here). SWAG also has a car assist handle. Details of both are available from the Driving Co-ordinator.
Maps and guidance:
Click here for a local map of Sway by Streetmap.co.uk.
Or click here for a Google map of Sway that can be zoomed and dragged around, and used to plot routes to your destination.
If you would like to sign up as a SWAG driver contact us on 01590 681 500 or email us at info@swaghants.org.uk