Telematics services are now a must-have for any fleet. No matter how many vehicles you’re responsible for, these tools ensure your fleet operation is as cost-effective and efficient as possible.
Simon Pavey
Website Marketing Manager
The benefits of deploying telematics software are wide-ranging. Among their primary advantages is that they can significantly reduce expenses such as fuel costs. They can also improve efficiency, boost driver safety, and more.
Telematics are, therefore, a vital asset for any effective fleet manager. Here are ten ways they can make your life easier and your business more cost-effective.
Reduced fuel costs are a key benefit of a good telematics solution. These tools can achieve savings in many ways. For instance, they can guide drivers to cheaper fuel stations, alert you to fuel fraud or advise employees on improving their driving style to be more efficient.
By highlighting harsh acceleration and braking, for instance, they can reduce fuel consumption. They can also spot if a driver is idling their engine unnecessarily, which can help improve overall fuel management.
For more fuel-saving tips, read our article that will allow you to unlock fuel savings using Motia telematics.
Telematics can also analyse your vehicles' routes and suggest more efficient alternatives. This may help reduce the time taken to reach destinations or avoid known areas of congestion that will slow your drivers down and increase fuel consumption.
Relying on real-time data lets drivers adjust their routes on the move to avoid incidents or high traffic volumes. This also means less time on the road and more time helping customers.
Read our article discussing what telematics is and how it can help improve your fleet management.
Sensors that monitor vehicle inputs—including acceleration, braking, and steering—can all give insight into your employees’ driving standards. GPS tracking also helps spot any instances of speeding that are putting the driver or other road users in danger.
This information can then be used to create a table of your best and worst-performing drivers. Training or even disciplinary action can then be implemented to improve behaviour.
What’s more, even the presence of telematics can boost driving standards, even if no direct action is taken. This is because individuals tend to be more cautious when they know their actions are being monitored.
This in turn increases driver safety. See how you can optimise your driver and vehicle safety.
Real-time data on vehicle location can also be fed directly back to fleet managers, colleagues and even customers. This means you always know where your assets and employees are, helping you better plan your fleet activities.
You can also receive alerts if a vehicle goes outside a designated area or is used outside of working hours, for instance, to ensure your fleet is being used appropriately. Alerts can also be sent automatically if a vehicle is involved in a collision or other incident.
Protect your assets before it is too late with our asset-tracking services.
Telematics sensors can also monitor your vehicle’s systems to spot potential issues before they arise. This can allow you to schedule in maintenance to correct any problems and avoid breakdowns.
You can also set up alerts for routine procedures such as servicing to help you plan ahead. This not only prevents costly repairs but also improves productivity, as vehicles will not be unexpectedly taken out of action.
Real-time tracking and route planning found in any high-standard fleet telematics system can be a great tool for boosting your customer experience. For instance, you can give much more accurate estimated arrival times for appointments, send reminders when an employee is close, or even let users track a driver in real-time.
If a job or delivery is delayed for reasons outside your control, you can also give quick updates and revised estimates. This can reduce the number of complaints you receive and ensure you don’t lose a customer’s business.
The use of telematics can also improve employee satisfaction. Because their movements are tracked automatically, they will not need to spend time filling out tedious manual paperwork for areas such as mileage reporting or driving hours.
This also makes life easier for fleet managers. They have easy access to transparent, simple reporting and analytics tools, giving them instant insight into their drivers’ activities. As a result, they have to spend less time hunting down information and can devote more effort to more valuable activities.
Another benefit of improved reporting is it makes activities like calculating expense claims quicker, easier, and more accurate. Managers won’t have to worry about drivers padding claims for fuel costs or working hours.
With the right telematics system, they can also access precise reporting on issues such as MPG and CO2 emissions to ensure they meet their responsibilities.
Tracking software can instantly alert managers if a vehicle is being used when or where it shouldn’t be. This can protect your fleet in the event of theft or unauthorised usage by employees. The systems can be made tamper-proof with tools such as battery backups, even if they are disconnected.
Fleet telematics also helps crack down on fuel fraud. By looking at location data for fuel card usage and combining this with GPS information from the vehicle, you can ensure any use is legitimate. According to Shell, nearly two-thirds of UK fleets see this as a significant concern, which may be an essential factor for many firms.
Telematics can also be combined with cameras to give a complete picture of any incident. This can be especially helpful in determining liability in an accident. For instance, as well as clear, high-definition video of what happened, it can show the exact speed of the vehicle, when brakes were applied and more.
See what fleet cameras Motia have available to help determine fleet liability.
This can greatly lower any insurance claims and costs. In one case, telematics were found to have reduced accident rates almost nine-fold, and cut expenses by 84 per cent.
Insurance providers also offer lower premiums for fleets with telematics on board.
If you’d like to know more about telematics and what they can do for your business, contact our team of experts today.
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