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“Driver” Management Becomes a New Focus for Fleet Managers
Companies operating fleets of vehicles are being advised to place greater focus on the management of their drivers according to Phil Elms, National Sales Manager at Sandicliffe Motor Contracts.
His advice comes as an increasing number of fleets are risk assessing and training their company drivers to comply with the law.
However according to Phil, this is not simply a compliancy issue and a wide range of benefits can be achieved through broader driver management.
“Traditionally, fleet management has been all about the vehicle “, said Phil. “How it is funded, its running costs, its reliability, where it goes for servicing, what happens in the event of an accident, how much fuel it consumes, what re-sale value it achieves at the end of its contract, and so the list goes on. Historically, the driver has had very little focus.
“But if you establish a vehicle policy around whole life costs, for example choosing a Ford Mondeo because it achieves a competitive cost per mile, that vehicle in reality will achieve very different true whole life costs when driven by two different people.
“One driver will have more accidents, be more aggressive behind the wheel and use up more fuel, will perhaps make more unnecessary journeys, heighten servicing and repair costs by going through more brake pads and tyres and will be quite an expense to the business.
“The upshot is that many fleet managers are recognising that if they implement plans for driver management, as well as fleet management, they can control their costs and run an even more efficient fleet operation than before. And their driver management plans can be quite far reaching. For example, should you encourage more working from home and an increased use of technology to make video conference calls, rather than spend hours on the road trapped in congestion?
“Because of health and safety issues forcing many businesses to risk assess and train drivers, which is deemed by many as a painful headache, driver management has to date been viewed quite negatively. However, we are now seeing a shift as companies begin to see that a driver strategy can become a very effective tool to reduce costs further within their business.”
For a conversation and some advice about how you could develop a driver management strategy to reduce costs and improve efficiency, simply call Phil Elms, National Sales Manager on 01159 466 466 or email phil.elms@motorcontracts.co.uk
<< show all articles
“Driver” Management Becomes a New Focus for Fleet Managers
Companies operating fleets of vehicles are being advised to place greater focus on the management of their drivers according to Phil Elms, National Sales Manager at Sandicliffe Motor Contracts.
His advice comes as an increasing number of fleets are risk assessing and training their company drivers to comply with the law.
However according to Phil, this is not simply a compliancy issue and a wide range of benefits can be achieved through broader driver management.
“Traditionally, fleet management has been all about the vehicle “, said Phil. “How it is funded, its running costs, its reliability, where it goes for servicing, what happens in the event of an accident, how much fuel it consumes, what re-sale value it achieves at the end of its contract, and so the list goes on. Historically, the driver has had very little focus.
“But if you establish a vehicle policy around whole life costs, for example choosing a Ford Mondeo because it achieves a competitive cost per mile, that vehicle in reality will achieve very different true whole life costs when driven by two different people.
“One driver will have more accidents, be more aggressive behind the wheel and use up more fuel, will perhaps make more unnecessary journeys, heighten servicing and repair costs by going through more brake pads and tyres and will be quite an expense to the business.
“The upshot is that many fleet managers are recognising that if they implement plans for driver management, as well as fleet management, they can control their costs and run an even more efficient fleet operation than before. And their driver management plans can be quite far reaching. For example, should you encourage more working from home and an increased use of technology to make video conference calls, rather than spend hours on the road trapped in congestion?
“Because of health and safety issues forcing many businesses to risk assess and train drivers, which is deemed by many as a painful headache, driver management has to date been viewed quite negatively. However, we are now seeing a shift as companies begin to see that a driver strategy can become a very effective tool to reduce costs further within their business.”
For a conversation and some advice about how you could develop a driver management strategy to reduce costs and improve efficiency, simply call Phil Elms, National Sales Manager on 01159 466 466 or email phil.elms@motorcontracts.co.uk