Many companies, such as Same Day Courier Gloucester businesses, and trades have started to track their vehicles. The reasons for this can be to look at fuel consumption, as an added security measure for when items are being left in a vehicle or to provide extra reassurances to customers that their parcels and packages are being monitored during the journey. Here are some advantages and disadvantages of using the systems.
Advantages – there are many advantages for both business, customer and employees on using these systems and they include.
- Tracking in real-time means businesses can reach employees much faster if they are in need as well as providing customers with an idea of when their deliveries will arrive.
- Location data is a safeguard against theft and can lead to significant insurance discounts.
- Employees become more aware of their driving behaviours and tracking can reduce speeding incidents by up to 60%
- Employee efficiency is improved as traffic updates can allow them to correct their route to avoid congestion.
Disadvantages – there are many rules and regulations that you need to adhere to when using these systems to ensure that you do not fall foul of the law. Here are some of the things that you are not allowed to do.
- Tracking to check up on workers – Whilst it is legal to track business vehicles, it must be for collecting data only for business purposes and not to track employee behaviour or the company risks fines and penalties.
- Tracking in non-business hours – If vehicles are used outside of core business hours, they can have a tracking device, but it must be turned off outside of working hours.
- Covert tracking – Hiding a device is also not allowed if it’s for monitoring an employee. A hidden device can be installed if it’s to prevent theft and the employee has given their consent.
- GPS Jamming – This is strictly prohibited. Any process that damages, abuses or replaces data is restricted.
What fleets lose without GPS tracking
For businesses running several service vehicles, the case for tracking is often clearest when you look at what happens without it. The first problem is driver accountability. With no record of where a van has been, a company has little way of holding a driver responsible for what happens in the field. Drivers who know their driving is monitored tend to drive more safely, waste less time and get more done.
Fuel is the second issue. In larger fleets, tracking costs by hand quickly becomes difficult, and without location data it can be hard to work out why the fuel bill is so high. Tracking makes it easier to spot wasted mileage and bring costs down.
Labour costs follow the same pattern. Tracking shows when each driver starts and finishes, how many stops they make and how long each one lasts. That gives both employer and driver a more reliable timesheet and helps pick out hours that have been padded or time spent unproductively.
Other ways to protect vehicles from theft
Tracking is one part of a wider approach to vehicle security. Many thefts are driven by the demand for parts that can be sold on, so preventing a vehicle being taken in the first place matters. Security devices are only as effective as the person fitting them, so use a trustworthy installer who knows what they are doing, and ask for the device to be hidden from view.
A tracker then adds real time updates on the vehicle’s location and alerts if someone tries to move it, which is especially valuable for vans carrying tools or stock.
Where vehicles are kept matters too. Park in well lit areas, preferably covered by CCTV, and store vehicles somewhere secure, such as a private garage with strong locks, whenever possible. Secure storage can also help keep insurance premiums down.