Why not consider vehicle tracking?

There are many common misconceptions that prevent companies from considering installing vehicle tracking. In this article we aim to provide a helpful overview of how vehicle tracking can save your company money, and show that vehicle tracking is right for your organisation.

There are a lot of reasons why, in an economic recession, businesses should install vehicle tracking into their fleet. Fleet managers may dismiss the idea of vehicle tracking because they think they will not have the budget to buy this kind of technology. However, tracking units do not have to be bought outright. A popular offer is to lease the tracking unit, for example, over the course of 36 months. By choosing a leasing option, companies of all sizes can make a vehicle tracking system pay for itself per month. All you need to do is save 1 litre of fuel per day and the savings you make will cover the cost of the unit.

Money can be saved on fuel in a number of ways. Mileage claims can become a major expense in a mobile workforce. A standard feature of a tracking system is mileage reports, so you make sure that all expenses claims are accurate. Another way of saving money on fuel is to install a tracking system which provides reports on how efficiently a vehicle is being driven. Vehicles that are not being driven efficiently will use more fuel. With simple amendments to how a driver operates the vehicle, more money can be saved.

Other perceived difficulties with the installation of a vehicle tracking system is the amount of time an installation will take, and the amount of time staff will need to spend ‘watching’ the vehicles. Vehicle tracking can be installed at employee’s homes or office locations during or out of operating hours, depending on the tracking supplier, minimising the amount of time that vehicles are off the road for. If you choose to have a vehicle tracking system installed during operating hours then employee’s can be trained on the tracking system whilst the device is installed in their vehicle. For out of office installations the training can even be done via the internet.

Office staff will not have to ‘watch’ the vehicles all day. Vehicle tracking systems are designed to help the operational running of a modern business, and so do not need to take up a lot of your employees time. Reports can be printed off whenever they are needed, and real time alerts can be set up so that the office staff are alerted when their driver travels at excessive speeds or enters a predetermined location, for example.

Managers may be reluctant to install vehicle tracking because they believe the decision will be badly received by their workforce. However, employees who are performing well, and fulfilling their operational duties are unlikely to object, as the data from the tracking unit could be an ideal way to display how hard they are working. It can also be popular because it saves employees time with admin, such as completing mileage and time sheets.