How fleet management systems improve driver safety
Safer driving practices pay off in multiple ways and on numerous levels of any organization in any industry. Fleet safety solutions are a must regardless of how large or small your fleet is. With today’s rising costs, cutting extra spending is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Effective fleet management and driver safety can lead to lower insurance costs, lower maintenance spending, and improved fuel efficiency. Fleet management systems provide multiple benefits, such as keeping track of scheduled maintenance and unscheduled repairs, purchasing and lease tracking, and recording vehicle use. In addition to fleet specifics, a fleet management system provides a central location for keeping track of your employees’ driver’s license data and documenting driver performance. These various aspects require a plethora of data which can be time-consuming to maintain. It only makes sense to delegate this task through a fleet management system.
Important aspects for your fleet management system
The system you choose will be a valuable partner in implementing and enforcing your drivers’ safety. The key aspects to consider specifically with drivers in mind are GPS vehicle tracking, driving behavior analysis, fleet alarms, and driver licensing. Having your vehicles outfitted with GPS tracking allows you to access real-time locations and movement of your fleet. It will enable you to see when and where a trip originated, any stops made along the way, how long they stayed at any given place, and when and where a trip ends. In many cases, just the knowledge that the company has access to this information is enough incentive for drivers to pay more attention. GPS tracking can discourage a driver from making unnecessary stops, taking obscure routes, and speeding.
Driver behavior analysis data
Providing driver behavior analysis data is critical to an effective fleet management system. Systems can analyze excessive acceleration, hard braking, speeding, and swerving. If you utilize dash cams with your fleet safety management system, they often are triggered by these events. Having a record of these incidents to track their frequency across employees allows companies to focus on where they see recurring problems or trends and to deal with them proactively rather than reactively after an incident.
Setting fleet alarms
The most important feature to encourage driver safety is the ability to set fleet alarms. These are custom alerts for situations of your choice. For instance, you may want to know when any of your employees are speeding. You can receive real-time alerts documenting the incident with specific details, allowing you to use the data and have one-on-one coaching sessions as needed. Having documentation and consistently implementing your fleet management system is as important as having one.
Driver’s license data
Depending on your fleet size, keeping track of your employees’ driver’s licenses could be a full-time job. Your fleet management system should be able to help you with this. You will want to know when it was issued and when it expires, and also have a method in place to constantly pull motor vehicle records. Only pulling driving records on an annual basis is no longer acceptable. The ability to know, in real-time, if an employee has a severe infraction is a must.
Technology has undoubtedly made distracted driving more common, but on the flip side, technological improvements have allowed employers to monitor their drivers and driving habits better. With so much data available, having a fleet management system and not utilizing it to encourage driver safety is as detrimental as not having one.