WORKING with partners, Essex Police officers were making checks on delivery drivers across the county at the weekend to ensure they are working safely and within the law.

The officers were checking for insurance, driving licences and other documents but they also made several arrests for drugs offences.

The force works to safeguard people who are being exploited by criminals while also targeting the perpetrators of organised immigration crime.

Altogether, 180 vehicles were stopped and checked during the two days in Basildon, Braintree, Clacton, Colchester and Southend.

And 14 people were arrested – including seven arrests on suspicion of driving while under the influence of cocaine or cannabis, five for breaching immigration rules and two for possession with intent to supply ketamine.

Another 35 people were reported for driving offences and 26 vehicles were seized because they weren’t insured or the driver didn’t have the correct licence.

One vehicle prohibition notice was also issued because officers found it had such serious safety defects it was unfit to drive.

These operations are a vital part of our strategies to safeguard vulnerable people and to prevent tragedies on Essex roads.  

More are planned in the coming weeks, with our local policing teams working in tandem with fellow officers from our Roads Policing Unit and Operational Support Group plus colleagues from the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime Unit (ERSOU MSOIU) and the Home Office’s immigration service.

Road safety is a top priority for us. Driving a vehicle that is safe and fit for the road is not just a legal requirement – it’s a critical responsibility for every driver, as a roadworthy car significantly reduces the risk of collisions. Faulty vehicle parts can lead to catastrophic failures, putting you, your passengers and other road users in danger.

Just before Christmas our Chief Constable, Ben-Julian Harrington, highlighted the dangers of people driving with drugs in their system, saying the county is facing ‘a drug-driving epidemic’.

Across the country one in three fatal collisions involve someone with cocaine or cannabis in their system and in Essex during December, our officers have arrested more than 10 people a day for drug-driving.

LINK: https://www.essex.police.uk/news/essex/news/news/2025/december/drug-driving-epidemic-in-essex

We continue to ask the public to contact us if they suspect someone is unfit to drive through drink or drugs.