The importance of keeping your fleet compliant

Road Safety Week 2022 took place from the 14th to the 20th of November in the UK and, with over 26,000 serious injuries on the road in 2021[1], provided an opportune moment to pause and think of ways we can all protect ourselves and others while driving.

 

When road use forms a large part of your business, the responsibility is on you to ensure the vehicles and drivers in your fleet are performing accordingly. A consistently compliant fleet significantly improves road safety while protecting your company’s reputation. Additionally, it allows your business to continue operating seamlessly and time-effectively.

 

Here we look at why fleet compliance is important and how it can be guaranteed.

 

 

How roadworthy are your employees’ vehicles?

For companies whose employees use their own vehicles, also known as Grey Fleets, it can be difficult for fleet managers to determine whether they are safe and legal. Checking each vehicle can take up a lot of your time and result in administrative headaches as you attempt to keep on top of your entire fleet.

 

A 2021 survey stated that almost 30% of businesses had been affected by grey fleet issues in the previous 18 months[2], so you must ensure that each car’s tax, MOT and insurance are up to date. This is particularly important when you consider how your company’s reputation is represented by these vehicles being on the road. Any vehicle deemed unsafe or even illegal reflects badly on you and your business, so it is in your best interests for your Grey Fleet to undergo regular compliance checks.

 

 

Guaranteeing you have the right drivers in your fleet

Much like the vehicles representing you on the road, you need to ensure your fleet drivers are acting safely and legally while behind the wheel. This often means a long and time-consuming check of each driving licence in your fleet. The inconsistency of this process might result in issues regarding points on a licence, validity dates and even qualifications not being addressed.

 

With recent DVLA figures showing that 926,000 drivers have failed to renew their licence in the past year[3], your company will be at risk of legal action should any of your drivers be using an invalid or expired licence. By gaining a full overview of your fleet’s driving licences, you are able to track each of your employees’ individual compliance and act quickly when it is time for them to be renewed.

 

 

Do quick and hassle-free vehicle inspections exist?

Vehicle inspections notoriously take up a lot of time and can create huge disruptions to your company’s daily operations, but are ultimately crucial for keeping your fleet compliant and safe.

 

Ensuring your vehicles are fault-free increases your drivers’ and other road users’ safety while your fleet is in operation, significantly minimising the risk of collisions and accidents.

 

The condition of each vehicle representing your business needs to be easily accessible, allowing you to view the overall condition of your fleet, flag any faults and quickly report them to your supplier. This further ensures that only safe vehicles from your fleet are on the road.

 

 

How your drivers can support your fleet’s compliance

When working to keep your fleet fully compliant, it is crucial that you know where your drivers excel and where they need to improve. With 19% of glasses-wearing motorists admitting in a recent survey that they have not had their eyes tested for three years or more[4], companies need to ensure their drivers are doing everything they can to promote safety while driving. 

 

Whether you are looking to assess your current employers or are incorporating new members into your fleet, an overview of their driving abilities, history and knowledge would be of benefit to you, as it displays how they can develop and become safer drivers. This would, in turn, enhance the performance of your fleet as a whole.

 

 

How can Northgate help to keep your fleet compliant?

With Northgate Safe Driver, you can save time and avoid administrative nightmares by guaranteeing Grey Fleets are suitable for business use while validating each driving licence. The same service can also provide reports and notifications when MOT and tax renewals are due, allowing you to act immediately and ensure your fleet remains fully compliant, safe and legal[5].

 

With regards to driver behaviour, a Driver Risk Profile helps your employees to feel confident in areas where they excel while improving their driving through a number of E-Learning courses, designed to enhance speed recognition, parking and manoeuvring, electric vehicles and more.

 

For additional safety, Northgate Telematics allows you to live track vehicles, providing instant fleet insights to improve driver behaviour, while FleetUser can be added to identify vehicle usage and flag any which are being under-utilised[6].

 

Finally, the Northgate Vehicle Inspection App lets you administer inspection reports that enables your drivers to check vehicles when you want them to, monitoring them in a 100% paperless process.[7]

 

However, you need to improve the compliance of your fleet, Northgate’s dedicated team provides the support and guidance required to keep vehicles, drivers, other users and your company’s reputation safe on the road.