Opinion: How can telematics improve the road safety within your fleet?

By Jonathan Haseler, Radius managing director for UK and Ireland

The importance of improving road safety

With approximately 126,000 road accidents in Great Britain a year, which works out as almost 346 each day, road safety is a serious concern for fleet managers.

Many fleet drivers may speed to achieve targets and deliver all the goods to where they need to be on time. This has contributed to four out of five driving offences occurring in company cars and vans.

These dangers become increasingly prominent in the lead up to Christmas. However, this can often put the drivers themselves and all road users around them in danger.

Road Safety Week aims to tackle the rising dangers on the road.

The week-long event, taking place between 19-25 November, shares important road safety messages, remembers people affected by road deaths and injuries and raises funds to help campaign for safer roads for everyone.

With this year’s theme focusing on raising awareness of the dangers of speeding, now is the time for fleet managers to question how safe their drivers are truly being in their driving style.

Organisations need to put measures in place to minimise the risks of employees and other road users being involved in road accidents.

So, what can fleet managers do to improve vehicle safety? Adopting telematics is just one way they can promote safer driving.

What is telematics?

Telematics, in its simple terms, is the integrated use of telecommunications and informatics for application in vehicles.

This involves sending, receiving and storing information relating to each vehicle, which is achieved through GPS receivers and other devices used for telematics and can be rolled out across all and any fleets.

Why is it important?

Fleet managers are increasingly adopting telematics in their vehicles. Telematics can provide a number of benefits for organisations. This ranges from improving efficiency and performance to complying with changing regulatory requirements.

Most importantly though, telematics can help improve road safety in a variety of ways, ensuring drivers are driving in a safe and responsible way.

How can telematics help fleet managers ensure better road safety?

• Identify dangerous driving behaviour

Utilising telematics allows fleet managers to monitor reckless driving. Telematics can notify managers of a range of dangerous driving habits such as harsh braking, cornering and excessive acceleration.

Over time companies can gather this vehicle data and gain further insights into driving habits. This insight can assist in putting together coaching sessions and training programs tailored to the key areas that drivers need to work on.

• Monitor and reduce any speeding incidents

Proactive alerts and driver scores can help to understand when employees may be speeding.

Telematics can also pull data on when these incidents are occurring. For example, is it the end of month when the drivers may be trying to meet certain quotas, or during the peak periods around Black Friday and Christmas?

Fleet managers can then utilise this data to understand the reasons behind speeding incidents to help address wider business problems, like over-worked drivers or intensive quotas. By tackling these issues, they can then ensure their drivers are driving safely, without excessive pressure.

• See what your drivers see

Dash cams are key to improving road safety. Achieving complete visibility to avoid potential accidents can lead to a significant overall reduction in collisions on our roads.

In the event of an accident, dash cams can further protect road users providing proof of what happened.

With the ever-evolving technology advancements, dash cams are only getting smarter. AI implementation means that cameras installed in or on vehicles can alert drivers of pedestrians or obstructions in the road, improving safety for all road users.

• Keep drivers focused

Dash cams aren’t only for outside the vehicle. Internal cameras can monitor drivers, ensuring they’re staying focused on the roads and are aware of what’s happening around them.

With driver distraction AI technologies, these cameras can identify when drivers may be distracted, whether that be due to tiredness or mobile phone usage. This can significantly minimise the chance of accidents.

What should fleet managers do now?

Fleet managers need to consider using telematics throughout their vehicles.

Implementing vehicle tracking and dash cam technologies will ensure fleet drivers are better protected, more aware of potential hazards and more cautious on the roads.

It’s important that fleet managers tackle dangerous driving as it is likely to persist unless addressed and can have a dramatic impact on people’s lives as well as businesses.

With Road Safety Week being upon us again, now is the time for businesses to take a step back and consider their own driving habits and how they can help ensure the roads are a safer place for all.