uberdrive.com

Category: Learning Library

  • Driver Training

    Driver training plays a key role in operating a fleet of vehicles.

    All of your drivers should have the correct licence entitlements to drive their vehicles, that’s one part of fleet compliance.

    Another aspect is making sure all of your drivers are competent, capable, and understand exactly what is required of them when they’re behind the wheel.

     

    [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Custom_HTML”][/siteorigin_widget]

    Ongoing Driver Training for HGV Drivers

    If we take HGV drivers, for example, vocational licence holders they are required to do ongoing driver training in the form of a CPC, which stands for Driver Certificate of Professional Competence.

    In brief, this is 35 hours of training, every 5 years, ongoing for a commercially operated vehicle.

    Why Driver Training is so important

    Driver training doesn’t just relate to making sure a driver can operate their vehicle to a high degree of competency.

    It also helps with things like carrying out pre-use checks, which play an essential role in identifying potential defects on a vehicle.

    It’s an offence to operate a vehicle on a highway with a defect that affects roadworthiness.

    Pre-use checks are required in the O licence and HGV sector and are best practices in the car and LCV sector.

    So, training your drivers on how to spot and report defects plays an essential role in your fleet processes and helps ensure your vehicles are safe and roadworthy.

    Safe Loading Training

    If your drivers are transporting heavy loads, vehicles have a limited amount of capacity they can carry and drivers need to be aware of what this is.

    If a driver operates a vehicle that is overloaded, this can have catastrophic effects on the mechanical capabilities of the vehicle.

    The brakes will not work as effectively, the steering can be compromised, and it increases the risk of a road traffic accident.

    Towing Vehicles

    There is a lot of legislation to adhere to when towing a trailer as well as training to ensure drivers know how to properly secure and tow a trailer.

    You can only tow up to a certain weight with a car driving licence, and the amount a person can tow also depends on when they got their licence.

    You’ll also need to know the weight of both the vehicle and the trailer, this is known as the  ‘Maximum Authorised Mass’ (MAM).

    If the weight is more than 3.5 tonnes, you may be in the O Licencing sector and need to install a tachograph machine.

    Effective Driver Training Means Lower Fuel Costs

    Effective driver training means more efficient drivers and lower fuel costs.

    With the cost of fuel spiralling and also being one of the largest fleet-related costs, fleet operators can see huge savings over time by training their drivers to drive in a more mindful, and fuel-efficient way.

    The knock-on effect is also savings on vehicle maintenance costs, driver retention, and some other areas.

    If you would like any more information about driver training, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our team by using this form or calling our office on 01666 575900.

  • Telematics

    Telematics is essentially detailed information about your vehicles; such as how they’re being driven and the location of your vehicles.

    It’s an effective management tool, not only for the logistical reasons of knowing exactly where your vehicles are but also for identifying high-risk drivers.

    If you can better identify high-risk drivers, you can take action and prevent accidents from happening.

    We’ve already covered how to identify high-risk drivers when you have robust driver licence checking processes, but telematics provides much more detailed information on driver behaviour.

    [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Custom_HTML”][/siteorigin_widget]

    Reviewing Telematics Data

    Fleet operators should review their telematics data on a regular basis.  A few of the things you should be looking at are:

    Speeding Trends – You’ll be able to identify how fast your drivers are going, how hard they’re accelerating, and so on.

    G-Rating – This will tell you how hard your drivers are corning, which has an impact on tyre wear and fuel consumption.

    Harsh Braking – If a particular driver is braking hard on a regular basis, it tells you that they’re lacking due care and attention.

    Driver Communication – With real-time data showing you where a vehicle is, there are a number of ways you can better communicate with your drivers to optimise their routes.

    Fuel Consumption – You can easily identify at a glance which vehicles are using the most fuel, then drill down to identify exactly why.

    Cross-Referencing Telematics Data With Maintenance Data

    You can also cross-reference telematics data with maintenance data. This will help explain why certain vehicles are wearing through certain parts quickly, or help you identify maintenance trends.

    There is a huge potential for saving money on replacing parts and other maintenance costs if you use telematics data to identify and prevent high-risk driving behaviours.

    Increasing Driver Safety

    Ultimately, telematics is a fantastic management tool to ensure you’re increasing safety across your fleet.

    You can look at detailed data that create patterns of driving behaviours, flag up high-risk behaviours such as harsh braking or hard accelerating, and get a picture of how your employees are driving.

    When used effectively, telematics demonstrates that you’re managing the risk within your fleet and reducing the number of road accident-related incidents your drivers are involved in.

    Many fleet operators are using telematics to develop safety policies outlining the responsibilities of their drivers and create a culture of better road safety.

    If you would like to know more about how you could be using telematics data within your organisation, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our team by using this form or calling our office on 01666 575900.

  • Driver Licence Checking

    Checking your drivers’ licences is an essential fleet management practice.

    I think we can all appreciate that as fleet managers, we need to ensure anyone operating a company vehicle is entitled to do so.

    But how robust are your licence checking procedures?

    Are you aware that taking a photocopy of a driver’s licence is not adequate?

    Are you aware that seeing just the photocard part of a driver’s licence has limitations?

    Photocards do not show you if the driver has points or endorsements on their licence, you’ll need to see the paper section of their licence for that.

    [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Custom_HTML”][/siteorigin_widget]

    Ways to Effectively Check Your Drivers’ Licences

    There are three main methods fleet operators use to check their employee’s driving licences on a regular basis:

    Use a Third-Party Company

    There are third-party companies that will handle checking your employee’s licences for you. This is best suited to small companies without the infrastructure to manage it themselves.

    Manage Licence Checking Manually In-House

    You can check a driver’s licence using the Gov.uk site. However, this is time-consuming and requires some back and forth in obtaining Check Codes.

    This method is really only suitable if you have a small number of drivers in your fleet.

    Using Software Like FleetCheck LicenceAssured

    The most effective and robust way to manage all of your driver’s licences is using software designed to manage like FleetCheck LicenceAssured.

    Using FleetCheck LicenceAssured you’ll save time and money, and you can be sure your processes are robust and compliant with GDPR.

    Things to Be Aware of When Checking Licences

    Understanding Categories and Codes

    As a fleet manager or operator, it’s also important that you understand what the categories and codes mean on your employee’s driving licences.

    For example, if a driver has an ‘01’ code on their licence, this tells you that they need some form of eyesight correction to be able to drive.

    Checking Expiry Dates

    A driver’s licence, photocard, and the individual categories can have expiry dates. You also need to be aware of a driver’s age and if they’re due a medical declaration.

    Points and Endorsements

    Points and endorsements are a good way of identifying higher-risk drivers. The higher risk a driver is, the more often you should check their licence.

    For example, as a general guide, the frequency you check a driver’s licence based on how many points they have could be:

    • 0-3 points – check their licence every 6 months
    • 4-6 points – check their licence every 4 months
    • 6+ points – check their licence even more frequently

    It’s also a good idea to check with your insurance company if there is a limit to the number of points a driver can have on their licence as still be covered by your insurance.

    If you would like any more information or have a simple conversation about driver licence checking or even book a demo of FleetCheck LicenceAssured, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our team by using this form or calling our office on 01666 575900.

  • Fuel Management

    We’re sure you’re well aware of the spiralling fuel costs in the UK over the last few years.

    For most businesses with a fleet, fuel accounts for about 40% of operating costs. So, you will also have been seeing the rising cost of fuel making a bigger dent in your bottom line.

    This is where an effective fuel management system can make a difference and start to roll back the amount you’re spending on fuel.

    Here are five fuel management tips that will make a huge impact on your fuel spend when tackled correctly:

    [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Custom_HTML”][/siteorigin_widget]

     

    Encouraging Economical Driving

    As a fleet manager, by engaging with your drivers and encouraging them to drive more economically you’ll see an increase in your average MPG.

    Some of the driving habits that impact MPG are:

    • How quickly a vehicle accelerates
    • Changing up gears too soon
    • Being more aware of the road traffic conditions ahead
    • Driving within the speed limit or lowering speed

    The speed at which your drivers are going can have a huge impact on fuel usage.

    We’re sure your drivers are always in a hurry, but if they were to drive at 60mph instead of 70mph they would use 8% less fuel!

    Preparing Vehicles

    By training your drivers to better prepare their vehicles they can also make substantial savings on the amount of fuel they’re using.

    This means things like:

    • Only transporting bulky items when they’re needed
    • Removing heavy items or any unnecessary weight
    • Discouraging the use of power-hungry devices like phone chargers, air conditioning, etc.
    • Checking tyre pressures are correct

    Either one or a combination of these points can make a noticeable impact on how much fuel a vehicle uses.

    Measuring Fuel Usage

    This might sound obvious, but it’s amazing how many fleet operators do not know how much fuel their fleet and individual vehicles are using.

    Unless you’re tracking and measuring fuel usage, you will not know the impact of any changes you make.

    The easiest way to track fuel usage is by giving your drivers specialist fuel cards.

    This way you can track every transaction electronically and generate reports using your fleet management system identifying how much fuel your drivers and vehicles are using.

    Analysing Fuel Data

    As long as you’re measuring your fuel usage, you can analyse your data and take a more strategic approach to reducing fuel usage.

    For this, you need a robust fleet management system. Using Fleetcheck you can:

    • Integrate your fuel card data into your account
    • Clearly see how much fuel drivers are using
    • Receive detailed MPG analysis
    • Have visibility on any maintenance issues causing excessive fuel consumption
    • Identify suspect fuel transactions
    • And more

    Challenge Your Drivers

    The single biggest factor that affects fuel consumption in a vehicle is driver behavior.

    It’s not uncommon to see a difference of up to 30% fuel consumption between different drivers using the same vehicle for the same route.

    Let your drivers know that you’re able to monitor their fuel usage through your fleet management system by collecting telematics data.

    If your drivers are driving responsibility, they have nothing to worry about by being monitored.

    There is nothing wrong with highlighting driver behaviours that cause an increase in fuel consumption.

    At the end of the day, it’s about saving money for your business and identifying training needs for drivers so they can become better, more fuel-efficient drivers.

    If you’d like to find out more about how Fleetcheck can help you measure or manage your fuel usage, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our team by using this form or calling our office on 01666 577928.

  • Tyre Management

    In this lesson, we’re looking at tyre management and why an effective tyre management system is a crucial part of an overall fleet management system.

    As we start to move away from internal combustion engines and onto more environmentally-friendly options like EV vehicles, we’re also going to see a change in tyre technologies.

    However, there are still some core fundamentals to keep an eye on that can have a huge impact on the performance of your fleet.

    In particular, we’re looking at the three key aspects of tyre management; Pressure, Tread, and Age.

    [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Custom_HTML”][/siteorigin_widget]

    Pressure

    It’s crucial that you’re aware of the correct pressure for your vehicle’s tyres, as well as checking them on a regular basis to ensure your tyres are running at the correct pressure.

    Tyre pressure has a direct impact on:

    Operating a vehicle with incorrect tyre pressures can cost you anywhere between 3-10% more in fuel consumption.

    If you don’t have a system in place to check the tyre pressure across your entire fleet, you can imagine how multiplying that number by the number of vehicles in your fleet can make a real difference to your bottom line.

    Tread

    Tread depth is also something that will have an impact on how well a vehicle handles and the fuel consumption.

    The legal limit for a car in the UK is 1.6mm. When a tyre’s tread depth reaches this point, the tyre has to be replaced.

    However, this doesn’t mean you should wait until your tyres wear down to 1.6mm.

    Every company has their own tyre tread policy, but most companies check their vehicle tyres on a regular basis and change them when the tread depth is somewhere in the 3-4mm range.

    With serious safety implications to operating a vehicle on or under the legal wear limit, how confident are you that your vehicle tyres are checked regularly enough?

    Age

    There was some new legislation that was released in 2021 in regards to the age of tyres on company vehicles.

    It is now illegal for the front (steering) tyres on goods vehicles with a gross mass of 3.5 tonnes or more (HGVs), coaches, buses, and single wheels fitted to a minibus to be more than 10 years old.

    For this reason, you should have a process in place to keep a record of how old the tyres are on your vehicles and flag when any tyres are approaching 10 years old.

    If you’re unsure of how old the tyres currently are on your vehicles, there is a code on the side of every tyre showing the week/month and year of manufacture.

    Need Help With Your Tyre Management Systems?

    This was a brief look at tyre management covering the three main aspects of ensuring your vehicles and tyres are roadworthy and safe.

    Ultimately, as vehicle operators, it’s our responsibility to have robust processes in place to ensure all of our vehicles are safe.

    If you’d like to know more about tyre safety or how Fleetcheck can help streamline and automate your tyre safety checks, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our team or call  01666 577928.