Safety Archives - Track Your Truck Commercial Truck Tracking - Fleet Management Tue, 10 Sep 2024 17:43:09 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.1 https://www.trackyourtruck.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/favicon.png Safety Archives - Track Your Truck 32 32 Why You Need a Strong Trucking Safety Culture   https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/why-you-need-strong-trucking-safety-culture/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/why-you-need-strong-trucking-safety-culture/#respond Thu, 24 Mar 2022 13:37:30 +0000 https://www.trackyourtruck.com/?p=6024 If safety isn’t second nature to every driver in your fleet, you might want to look at the company’s safety culture. Strong safety culture is the backbone of a safe workplace, providing the direction everyone strives to follow. It’s more than just implementing safety policies — it’s about developing the mindsets that drive the business […]

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Why you need a strong trucking safety culture

If safety isn’t second nature to every driver in your fleet, you might want to look at the company’s safety culture. Strong safety culture is the backbone of a safe workplace, providing the direction everyone strives to follow. It’s more than just implementing safety policies — it’s about developing the mindsets that drive the business forward. Everything from purchasing decisions to routine inspections should occur within a robust safety policy.

Let’s look at what a strong trucking safety culture can do for your fleet.

What Is Trucking Safety Culture?

Safety culture refers to how people in the company perceive safety. Their values, attitudes and beliefs determine how they behave and whether they prioritize safety during the workday. A crucial part of safety culture is how these ideas fit in every part of the company, from the seasonal help to the CEO. 

Is safety at the foundation of administrative decisions, or is it an afterthought? Do employees take precautions to avoid discipline or out of a genuine desire to keep themselves and others safe?

Safety is a foundational part of all business practices in a company with a strong safety culture. It underpins everything the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and other regulators look for. Violations from these organizations are often symptoms of a much larger, underlying problem — a lack of safety culture in the business. When safety culture is present, violations tend to fall away since the correct, safe processes become foundational to the company’s operations.

A business with trucks depends heavily on its drivers’ behaviors. A significant part of trucking safety culture is addressing driver actions and beliefs, such as education, monitoring and accountability. Other essential parts of trucking safety culture include equipment and process safety. Trucks must be well-maintained to avoid breakdowns or accidents and outfitted with appropriate safety devices. Workplace procedures, like determining routes and conducting inspections, should be performed with safety front and center.

Trucking safety culture looks different for each fleet, but it ensures all employees behave safely, understand why and help others adopt safe behaviors. Poor safety culture has repercussions for the company, its employees and the people they share the highway with.

What Are the Benefits of Good Safety Culture in Trucking?

What Are the Benefits of Good Safety Culture in Trucking?

Safety culture’s importance ripples into virtually every part of the company, offering the following advantages:

1. Protecting Against Litigation

Nuclear verdicts — those in which the jury awards $10 million or more — are on the rise, and average verdict costs are up. Safety culture and the robust reporting that comes with it can help you avoid these outcomes and minor settlements that could add up. Companies with strong safety cultures work proactively to prevent these issues, but they’re also prepared if they occur. A safe fleet spends time on maintenance, inspections, hiring and training, all of which provide documentation to support a court case.

An exemplary safety program complete with thorough records and employee buy-in can help you prove your company’s commitment to safety. This information must be in place long before litigation occurs, as anything after that is too little, too late.

Safety culture can also help lower the costs of litigation protection. Most fleets turn to their insurance companies for help during settlements, but coverage can be expensive. Many parts of fleet safety, such as dashcams and smart-tracking technology, can help reduce insurance premiums.

2. Improving Compliance

Regulated industries must always be ready for inspections or audits. If you have a strong safety culture, it’s harder to get violations because safety is a major part of the workday. Safe behaviors and procedures are baked into every element of the company, protecting you during audits and helping you avoid them entirely. Typically, something triggers Department of Transportation (DOT) audits. With fewer potential triggers, you lessen your chance of an audit.

A poor safety rating is a significant blow for many fleets. It may also come with civil penalties. A bad enough audit could get a fleet shut down. If not, it might receive a conditional rating to stay operational while fixing the issues. Conditionally rated carriers are often considered less-than-ideal service providers. Many customers won’t do business with them at all, and insurance companies may charge higher premiums.

If you do get audited, your commitment to safety should be ever-present. It can play a significant role in convincing an auditor that your company deserves a good safety rating. Say there’s an incident where a driver’s speed comes into question, but the driver is adamant that he wasn’t driving over the speed limit. A company monitoring speeding behaviors can turn to the driver’s long track record of following the law or the many training modules taken on careful driving to support their case to an auditor.

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Meeting safety standards is key to successful operations, but safety culture helps you go beyond the bare minimum and improve performance through foundational attitudes.

3. Retaining Employees and Boosting Satisfaction

The percentage of employees quoting unsafe environments as the reason for leaving is rising faster than those citing other environmental factors. Another popular reason for leaving is a mismatch between the employee and the organizational culture. Improving your safety culture is a great way to address both concerns.

No one wants to go to work every day feeling like they could get hurt on the job. Those people might feel their employer doesn’t care about them and aren’t very attached to the job or the company as a result. Employees can often tell when employers don’t have their best interests at heart, and workers are more than ready to quit their jobs if they aren’t satisfied — “quit rates” are now much higher than they’ve been in the last two decades.

Employee retention is a multifaceted part of business, but making the workplace safe is vital. This goal includes everything from ideas and policies to safe, dependable trucks. Yet safety policies, procedures and trucks aren’t enough. If the workplace is safe, but employees don’t understand or value the reasons behind the safe behaviors, they might feel frustrated and unsure why they perform tasks.

Consider a trucker who is annoyed with her daily inspection. She might see it as a waste of time and fail to assess the truck thoroughly, even though her report has all the right boxes checked. If she knows how her inspection keeps her and other drivers safe, she’s likely to take it more seriously and enjoy the autonomous, active role she plays in fleet safety and health.

Safety culture can extend beyond the workplace. Some businesses implement personal health programs with incentives or resources to support individual health, such as preventative care and weight loss. An employee might learn more about taking care of themselves, allowing them to stay healthier and potentially reduce sick days. Similarly, education about fire safety could help a homeowner protect his house and family, giving him a greater appreciation for his workplace.

4. Supporting Continuous Improvement

If your fleet is working toward continuous improvement, a culture of safety can help. Fleet safety typically involves thorough inspections, reports and assessments to help you identify areas for further improvement. Safety culture can offer a wealth of information to support further safety improvements or other operational goals.

Detailed equipment data could help you spot repair needs sooner or implement more effective maintenance practices based on real-world usage. Administrators conducting regular knowledge checks may identify a gap in understanding and adjust training methods accordingly. Policies rewarding employee vigilance could encourage a driver to come forward with a safety issue. Overall, a culture of safety fosters improvement across many areas of the workplace.

When you tighten your standards and only hire workers with safe records, you also improve overall staff quality. A safety-focused work environment allows these skilled employees to work off of each other, encouraging safe behaviors and fostering a collective positive attitude toward safety. It may even improve team bonding as drivers train and learn to look out for each other. For example, senior drivers might help young recruits learn more about staying safe because they value it and see it as an integral part of the job.

A culture of safety builds on the team’s knowledge and mindset, and a high-quality team is a huge benefit for companies focused on improving every day.

5. Improving Performance

However it’s used, fleet safety culture falls back on employee knowledge. Behind every safe behavior is confidence and appreciation for the task. Employee training can improve performance by developing the skills needed for a task, but company culture also plays a prominent role. 

Improving Performance

Instilling positive attitudes about safety helps employees feel supported and capable. They can work more confidently and understand the whole picture of safety. When employees understand the “why” of what they’re doing, they’re more empowered to make better, faster decisions.

Say a driver is assigned a specific route but knows he can finish the trip faster by cutting through a busier highway. Without more context, he might take the riskier path, endangering himself and others, or become frustrated with an employer he thinks is wasting time. If he understands safe route planning and why that decision was made, he might happily take the assigned, safer route and contribute to the company’s dedication to safety.

Another way safety culture can help with performance is through a more predictable, efficient workplace and lower accident rates. Safety factors into schedules, protective equipment is standard, and response plans are in place for incidents. Preparation like preventative maintenance software and well-cleaned garages can help stop unexpected injuries and the downtime that comes with them. 

Working safely means you frequently reap other benefits of proactive behaviors, like a well-maintained vehicle that runs better or a faster onboarding process.

In short, more predictable, dependable and efficient operations are a byproduct of proactive safety culture.

6. Boosting Competitiveness

Stellar safety ratings are excellent for your reputation. They can help you bring in more customers and prove your reliability to your existing partners. Easy compliance and good safety help your customers stay far away from scandals, and fewer incidents mean fewer delays. 

Strong safety culture is easy to spot, and it can give you a leg up on the competition.

7. Reducing Costs

Many of these benefits translate into lower costs. While investments in safety sometimes seem like extra expenses, they usually offer exceptional returns on investment, something we frequently see in studies. Some ways safety culture might help your bottom line include:

  • Equipment performance and life span: Safe equipment needs regular inspections, making it easy to catch problems before they cause expensive repairs. It also contributes to better maintenance to improve the equipment’s life span.
  • Fewer violations and less litigation: Safety culture can avoid or mitigate the costs of penalties and legal fees. If litigation or audits occur, safety practices can quickly show your commitment to safety. These practices can also help you save on labor hours and legal fees by getting the process done faster.
  • Fewer workers’ compensation claims: By reducing incident rates, companies can save on costly workers’ compensation payouts.
  • Less turnover: Turnover can cost between one-half and two times an employee’s annual salary, so creating a better environment for worker retention can translate to business savings.
  • Less absenteeism: Whether due to injury, illness or something else, the costs of absenteeism add up. Safety culture can help reduce it by providing safer, healthier workplaces. When managers understand the importance of health and safety through accommodations and flexible policies, they can also prevent the ripple effect of employees working when sick, injured or otherwise unable to work safely.
  • More business: The new business you drum up with a positive reputation can help increase profits and retain valuable customers.
  • Fewer unexpected interruptions: Injuries and illness interrupt the typical workflow. Avoiding them can help you minimize downtime.
  • Lower insurance premiums: Certain safety tools and policies can help reduce premiums. A wide-reaching culture of safety can reduce incident rates and minimize risk in the eyes of your insurer.
Implementing the Right Resources for Trucking Safety Culture

Implementing the Right Resources for Trucking Safety Culture

Now that you know just how valuable safety culture can be, you might be ready to make some changes. Fortunately, there are multiple ways you can improve fleet safety. These strategies include establishing incentives, prioritizing maintenance and monitoring driving habits.

Track Your Truck has provided quality fleet safety tools and tracking solutions since 1998, with an extensive catalog of tracking devices and fleet management software to help. From dashcams and vehicle trackers to maintenance, dispatching and monitoring software, our quality solutions can help you pave the way to safer fleet culture. Browse our truck tracking products online, or request a quote to learn more.

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Ways to Improve Your Fleet Safety https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/ways-improve-your-fleet-safety/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/ways-improve-your-fleet-safety/#respond Fri, 13 Aug 2021 13:42:00 +0000 https://tyt.webpagefxstage.com/?p=2819 Maintaining the safety of your fleet is a crucial part of operating a successful service or delivery business. Reckless driving by your employees can hurt your business’s reputation, cause major financial losses and pose risks to other drivers on the road. In contrast, safe driving establishes trust with clients and helps reduce the chance of accidents.

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Maintaining the safety of your fleet is a crucial part of operating a successful service or delivery business. Reckless driving by your employees can hurt your business’s reputation, cause major financial losses and pose risks to other drivers on the road. In contrast, safe driving establishes trust with clients and helps reduce the chance of accidents.

How to Improve Driver Safety in Your Fleet

How do you protect assets and team members who are constantly on the move? With advanced vehicle tracking solutions, you can improve your fleet safety and ensure each driver follows best practices. Here are the top five ways that you can improve safety with fleet management. 

1. Develop a Strong Safety Culture

One of the most effective ways to improve fleet safety using fleet tracking software is establishing a strong safety culture right from the start. Doing so will set clear expectations that everyone can follow and establish baseline rules regarding the behavior you expect from your drivers, maintenance teams, fleet managers and administrative staff.

Some of the ways you can use tracking devices to develop a stronger safety culture include:

  • Establishing a policy: Safety needs to be at the root of every decision you make. Set limits on driver hours, perform background checks on new hires and encourage people to speak up when they spot an issue.
  • Creating accountability: Let your drivers know you are monitoring them. Fleet tracking devices take the guesswork out of finding out what happens on the road. Review trip histories and address anything that gets your attention.
  • Offering rewards: The data you collect using fleet tracking solutions will tell you who follows the rules. Incentivizing safe behavior using a reward system is an excellent way to motivate your drivers and others to do the right thing.

2. Monitor Driving Habits

Fleet software allows you to monitor company vehicles from almost any location on a computer desktop or mobile device.

Some of the detailed driver information you can view using this technology includes:

  • Where: You can monitor real-time vehicle location and current speed.
  • When: You can see customizable reports featuring historical driver insights.
  • How: You can look out for behaviors like speeding, after hours usage, and excessive mileage.

Monitoring drivers’ habits will give you insight into which employees are driving safely and which need further training or incentives. If members of your team are putting themselves or others at risk, knowing when and where it happens can help you take steps to correct the behavior.

3. Find the Safest Routes

With fleet tracking devices and software, you can view past and current trips using a map overlay to see where your vehicles are and where they’ve been. You can use the data in multiple ways to place your drivers on the safest possible routes:

  • Planning a safe trip: You can review the map block-by-block to create a customized route for your drivers. Decide which roads to use, which neighborhoods to pass through and where they should stop for fuel.
  • Responding to emergencies: Real-time monitoring capability means you can make snap decisions to route drivers around traffic, road hazards and other emergencies. And if your vehicle breaks down, you’ll know right where it is.
  • Reducing road time: The more time drivers spend on the road, the more exposure they have to the potential for an accident. Fleet tracking solutions help you find the fastest and shortest routes to take, shaving unnecessary miles and reducing driver risk.
  • Prevent driver fatigue: Knowing how much time your drivers are spending on the road, how many miles they’re driving and how long the engine is running will help you make sure drivers are working a reasonable schedule and taking breaks.

4. Prioritize Vehicle Maintenance

When considering how you can improve fleet safety, one option is to implement defensive driving programs or provide positive reinforcement to safe drivers. At the same time, it can be easy to forget the importance of vehicle maintenance. 

GPS tracking solutions allow you to receive alerts when it’s time to schedule important preventative maintenance and inspections for company vehicles. Keeping up with regular maintenance is much safer and more cost-effective than waiting for a major mechanical failure.

Some of the ways to improve your fleet safety using telematics data for maintenance operations include:

  • Instant alerts: If one of your vehicles is due for maintenance, you’ll know right away so you can schedule service.
  • Historical records: Over time, you will build up historical records for vehicles that you can use to identify maintenance trends.
  • Maintenance documentation: Fleet tracking solutions let technicians upload vehicle maintenance information directly to the cloud.

5. Collect Safety Data

Tracking patterns in your safety data can help you make better decisions about changes and improvements to implement in your business. Fleet management software and devices make it easier to collect and store safety information about your employees each day. In addition, you can choose to keep a record of accidents, tickets and reports from other drivers or clients.

By gathering all this data over time, you can track patterns in individual driver safety and overall safety within your company. This insight can help you implement new strategies and identify ways to better train employees exhibiting poor driving behavior.

Enhance Your Fleet With Track Your Truck

Safety is a major part of running a reliable, trustworthy company. Track Your Truck software offers the latest and most accurate mobile and desktop tracking technology so you can improve fleet safety and run a safer, more productive business. Our systems are certified and activated before shipment, so all you need to do is set up the components, install the software and get started.

Contact us today to request a quote if you’re interested in learning more about what our products can do for you. We serve a variety of diverse industries, providing efficient, customized solutions to accommodate any business requirements.

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The Top Reasons for Roadside Breakdowns https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/top-reasons-for-roadside-breakdowns/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/top-reasons-for-roadside-breakdowns/#respond Tue, 24 Nov 2020 13:46:00 +0000 https://tyt.webpagefxstage.com/?p=2822 A roadside breakdown can happen to anyone. Whether one of your employees is stopping to visit a local client or driving across the country for a major delivery, a vehicle malfunction could arise and leave them stranded on the side of the road. That's why it's so important to understand what causes breakdowns and develop an effective response strategy.

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A roadside breakdown can happen to anyone. Whether one of your employees is stopping to visit a local client or driving across the country for a major delivery, a vehicle malfunction could arise and leave them stranded on the side of the road. That’s why it’s so important to understand what causes breakdowns and develop an effective response strategy.

While there are all types of reasons for roadside breakdowns, there are a few common causes to particularly watch for. In this guide, we’ll give you a few tips about breakdowns and demonstrate how Track Your Truck can maximize fleet productivity.

Dead Battery

One of the most common reasons vehicles break down is the battery. If your car’s battery is faulty or dying, traveling in any direction could prove challenging. A dead battery may even prevent your vehicle from starting at all.

The battery is responsible for powering the starter motor, making it an essential part of the vehicle. Faulty components or infrequent use could put your machines at risk, so make sure to watch for battery depletion between trips.

Tire Damage

Valve damage and road hazards can cause flat tires, which often result in major delays for companies. Damaged tires can also compromise driver safety if left unchecked. 

Before sending your employees on trips, it’s important to check the tire pressure and ensure it’s up to standard. Staying away from obstacles such as potholes, curbs and other objects on the road can also help protect the vehicle’s wheels.

Transmission Failures

Wear and tear on a car’s systems can eventually cause them to fail. If this starts to affect the vehicle’s performance, you’ll need to take the truck to a mechanic right away for repairs.

Taking care of your vehicle’s transmission is crucial in making sure it continues to run smoothly. Impromptu repairs and replacements can lead to huge expenses for your business.

Fuel Issues

It happens more often than you might think. A driver traveling in an unfamiliar area could run out of fuel or use the wrong one by mistake. By the time they’ve realized how serious the situation is, it’s too late.

Efficient routing and fleet management can help ensure that your drivers are equipped to fill their tanks properly. This will help reduce the risk of preventable breakdowns and repairs. 

Overheating

Overheating can cause serious damage to a vehicle. Encourage your employees to pull over and call for help as soon as possible if their vehicle starts to overheat. In many cases, overheating stems from an issue with the cooling system. Monitoring the engine and cooling system regularly can mitigate potential issues and keep drivers safe on the road.

Streamline Maintenance With Track Your Truck

Staying up to date on inspections and maintenance is the best way to protect your vehicles from unexpected malfunctions and breakdowns during travel. At Track Your Truck, we help you streamline vehicle maintenance with our advanced tracking solutions. With live tracking, you can:

  • Monitor vehicle location throughout the day.
  • Track driver behaviors that might cause wear on your vehicles.
  • Set up alerts to remind you when maintenance is due.
  • Maintain records of performance and repair histories.

While there are many reasons for roadside breakdowns, you can minimize these risks by implementing the latest management strategies. Our tracking software and devices offer high-end technology and features so you can enjoy their benefits at a low cost.

Contact Us to Help Prevent Breakdowns 

We’ll provide a maintenance solution that helps your business flourish. For more information, request a quote today.

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Elements of an Effective Fleet Safety Program https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/elements-effective-fleet-safety-program/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/elements-effective-fleet-safety-program/#respond Fri, 13 Nov 2020 13:52:00 +0000 https://tyt.webpagefxstage.com/?p=2824 Safety is one of the most important components of any fleet management strategy. You need to be able to trust your vehicles and workers to get the job done and make it back in one piece. That's why it's important to have an effective fleet safety program in place before you send drivers out on the road. A complete fleet safety checklist will help you take better control of your drivers and give them the tools they need to feel confident on the road. There are several elements you need to consider when developing a safety program.

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Safety is one of the most important components of any fleet management strategy. You need to be able to trust your vehicles and workers to get the job done and make it back in one piece. That’s why it’s important to have an effective fleet safety program in place before you send drivers out on the road. A complete fleet safety checklist will help you take better control of your drivers and give them the tools they need to feel confident on the road. There are several elements you need to consider when developing a safety program.

Thorough Safety Policies

The first element of a fleet safety program is the policy. What expectations will you set? How will your employees be responsible for upholding driver safety? It’s crucial to consider these questions and ensure everyone on the team is aware of the rules and guidelines from the beginning.

Knowing that everyone understands their roles and responsibilities can help reduce the risk of miscommunication on the job. It also sets clearly defined expectations, which helps you organize processes more efficiently.

Training Sessions

Before you let your employees get behind the wheel, host driver training sessions, so every employee is equipped to operate their vehicle safely. Speeding, hard breaking, reckless driving and wasteful fuel usage can harm vehicle performance. Accidents and emergency breakdowns are costly and can put everyone on the road at risk.

Regular training for drivers keeps safety at the forefront of everyone’s minds and encourages good driver behavior.

Maintenance Planning

As a fleet manager, you can do your part to improve vehicle safety by developing a repair and maintenance strategy. Prevention is the best way to protect against emergency breakdowns and vehicle failures.

Thanks to the wonders of today’s fleet management technology, it’s easier than ever to plan and stick with a maintenance schedule. Staying consistent will help you catch performance issues before they start to impact productivity and safety.

Accident Response Plan

While you may do everything you can to maximize fleet safety, accidents can still happen. That’s why it’s important to set up a plan of action for collisions. When you’re unable to prevent a situation, you can still control the reaction and response.

Being prepared for anything means you can act more quickly and take the steps necessary to save time and reduce damage.

The Right Work Environment

Out of all these components, one of the most effective ways to improve fleet safety is to create a work environment that encourages it. Doing everything you can to make sure each employee is as committed to safety as you are can foster better driving habits and accountability.

Achieving this goal may require a strict hiring process, more training programs, open communication and even incentives for safe driving.

Contact Track Your Truck

Are you looking to maximize fleet safety with the latest fleet management technology? Enhance your fleet safety checklist today by trying our affordable software solutions. For more information, request a quote online today.

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Ways to Stay Alert While Driving https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/ways-to-stay-alert-while-driving/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/ways-to-stay-alert-while-driving/#respond Thu, 13 Aug 2020 13:56:00 +0000 https://tyt.webpagefxstage.com/?p=2826 Managing a fleet is a big responsibility. The safety of your drivers and the general public hinges on a variety of factors, including communication, vehicle performance and, of course, driver behavior.

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Managing a fleet is a big responsibility. The safety of your drivers and the general public hinges on a variety of factors, including communication, vehicle performance and, of course, driver behavior.

Many of us have been known to do it before — we get behind the wheel of a vehicle after a long day or a poor night’s rest, and we think we’re fine. The issue is that driving drowsy, especially if you have to drive long-distance, can be dangerous. That’s why it’s so important to implement strategies that will help your commercial drivers stay alert while driving.

Why Is Alert Driving So Important?

When you look at the facts, it’s easy to understand why drowsy driving is so risky. According to the National Safety Council, 100,000 car accidents occur every year because of drowsy driving.

Driver alertness is a critical factor to consider when you’re updating your fleet management strategy. It only takes a second of distraction for a driver to cause an accident, which can lead to claims, injuries and, in some cases, reputational damage. These tips for commercial drivers will help your employees stay awake and give you some peace of mind each time one of your drivers goes on a trip.

How to Stay Awake on the Road: Commercial Driver Risks

While there’s only so much you can do to protect drivers when they’re on the road and miles away, you can employ a number of strategies to establish a safer fleet. Some of the tips we recommend considering are to:

  • Spread awareness: If you want to protect drivers from the dangers of getting distracted or dosing off behind the wheel, awareness is a great place to start. You can make this topic a part of the fleet’s training routine. Ensuring that your workers understand the risks can prevent them from making dangerous choices.
  • Use tracking software: Thanks to the growing prevalence of tracking software for fleets, it’s easier than ever to monitor vehicles and drivers. Logging devices allow drivers to record their driving hours and breaks, so you can make sure they’re getting the rest they need with access to this technology. Meanwhile, customized alerts can update you whenever a driver starts demonstrating risky behavior.
  • Discuss strategies with your employees: Open communication with drivers is one of the most important parts of managing a fleet. Discussing ways to stay alert while driving can provide your employees with the skills and tools they need to stay safe. Encourage your drivers to pack snacks, drink plenty of water and plan regular breaks. You may also encourage them to pull off the road if they start to feel tired or distracted during a drive.

Contact Us for a Quote

While you may have limited control over what your commercial drivers do, these tips can help you and your employees reduce driving risks. Track Your Truck can help you eliminate drowsy driving with our efficient, cost-effective tracking devices. Contact us today for a quote and more information.

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Stolen Vehicle Recovery and GPS Tracking Systems https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/stolen-vehicle-recovery-gps-tracking-systems/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/stolen-vehicle-recovery-gps-tracking-systems/#respond Fri, 24 Jul 2020 14:00:00 +0000 https://tyt.webpagefxstage.com/?p=2830 Your vehicles are some of your company’s most valuable assets. Ideally, these are reliable machines that allow your employees to carry tools, equipment or other passengers from place to place. They’re also expensive to replace, which is why it’s so important to keep each asset updated in terms of maintenance and security.

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Your vehicles are some of your company’s most valuable assets. Ideally, these are reliable machines that allow your employees to carry tools, equipment or other passengers from place to place. They’re also expensive to replace, which is why it’s so important to keep each asset updated in terms of maintenance and security.

A stolen vehicle can cost thousands in damages and drive up your insurance expenses. That said, there are ways to prevent theft and keep these losses to a minimum. By installing a stolen vehicle recovery system that’s enhanced with GPS tracking technology, you’ll be more equipped to handle any challenge that comes your way.

Vehicle Theft in Commercial Fleets

Vehicle theft is more common than you might think. According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, almost 800,000 vehicle thefts occurred in 2017 alone. It can happen to anyone, and when you operate a fleet of multiple assets every day, these risks can increase. 

Protecting against theft is essential, especially when you manage expensive vehicles or transport valuable goods. The challenge arises when you work with multiple vehicles and need a way to monitor them all at once. How can you prevent theft and increase the chances of recovery if it occurs? The solution is to implement a technologically advanced vehicle recovery system.

What Is a Vehicle Recovery System?

A vehicle recovery system is a strategy you use to prevent theft in your fleet. If an incident ever does occur, you need a plan or system in place that will help you recover the stolen vehicle fast.

The purpose of a vehicle recovery system is to help you keep financial losses to a minimum if someone steals one of your assets. GPS fleet tracking is a great solution if you want to make sure you’re equipped to give you a chance to recover company property quickly and safely.

Why Implement a Stolen Vehicle Recovery System?

Fleet management tracking does more than help your drivers log their hours and make sure they reach their destinations on time. GPS tracking can also help you stop theft in progress and recover vehicles before they cost you hours of productivity or even thousands of dollars.

GPS tracking for fleets is a combination of hardware and software you can use to monitor your commercial vehicles and drivers no matter where they go. In most cases, all you need to do is access the software on a computer, hook up a device to each vehicle and start tracking right away. Fleet management software is a convenient solution that can help you cut costs and minimize productivity losses.

Modern fleet management solutions offer consistent real-time data on all your vehicles, allowing you to receive frequent status and location updates. With the power of technology, you can catch theft as it’s happening and notify law enforcement immediately. Acting faster will increase your chances of recovering the vehicle and getting back to work. Having cameras or tracking devices installed in a secured place may even prevent incidents completely by deterring thieves on the spot.

Enhance Your Business With Track Your Truck

GPS tracking software is smart, intuitive, and ready to help address all your security and money-saving needs. At Track Your Truck, we deliver GPS tracking for fleets in a wide range of industries. Contact us today for a quote to learn more. 

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Distracted Driving Solutions https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/distracted-driving-solutions/ https://www.trackyourtruck.com/blog/distracted-driving-solutions/#respond Fri, 08 May 2020 14:04:00 +0000 https://tyt.webpagefxstage.com/?p=2833 Distracted driving can affect anyone behind the wheel of a vehicle. If you operate a fleet, it can present risks to your business’s finances, reputation and driver safety. Why take the chance when you have the power to reduce distracted driving with preventative strategies? By using distracted driving prevention technology, you can become better equipped to keep employees and other drivers on the road safe.

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Distracted driving can affect anyone behind the wheel of a vehicle. If you operate a fleet, it can present risks to your business’s finances, reputation and driver safety. Why take the chance when you have the power to reduce distracted driving with preventative strategies? By using distracted driving prevention technology, you can become better equipped to keep employees and other drivers on the road safe.

How Dangerous Is Distracted Driving, Really?

Just to provide a little perspective on the dangers of distracted driving, consider this statistic. The NHTSA reports that in 2018, 2,841 people died as a result of distracted driving. That’s equal to approximately eight people every single day.

When someone is driving, they become responsible for both their own lives and the lives of the people around them. That’s why it’s so important to practice safe driving when you’re doing deliveries or transporting other people. Reducing the level of distraction among your drivers will cement the reliability of your business and help ensure that your workers get from point A to point B in one piece every time.

Tips to Avoid Distracted Driving

Every time you look at a cellphone, take a drink from your bottled water, check a map for directions or change the radio station, you’re taking your attention off the road. It only takes a second for one of these actions to turn into an accident. In many areas, distracted driving can also come with legal consequences.

While finding ways to establish safe road habits is critical, some driver distractions can be challenging to predict and prevent. Others are easier to manage. Here are a few tips that can help you reduce distracted driving among your fleet members:

  • Educate your drivers: First and foremost, you’ll need to make sure your drivers understand the risks associated with distracted driving, which includes informing them of all the current laws, providing meaningful statistics and writing out clear-cut driving policies, especially when it comes to cellphone use. Knowledge is one of the best gifts you can give your employees to keep them safe.
  • Use fleet tracking software: While tracking software is designed to monitor location and improve communication in your team, many tracking solutions are also enhanced with extra features that can monitor speeding and hard braking. These features can help you pick out employees who could be behaving poorly on the road or driving distracted.
  • Implement camera technology: With the rise of new technologies in fleets, some business leaders are using AI and cameras to catch employees in the act. With these distracted driving solutions, you’ll have a more reliable way to determine who needs more training or discipline.

Protect Your Fleet With Track Your Truck

Simply encouraging employees to pull off the road when they feel sleepy could help you prevent accidents and avoid major expenses, and that’s just one aspect of the distracted driving issue. Use in-depth training strategies and technology to prevent distracted driving today.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to protect your fleet with high-quality software solutions, contact Track Your Truck today.

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