Avoid these common pitfalls that can sabotage your fleet business

While every fleet faces its own unique set of challenges and troubles, there are a few pitfalls common to every business that owns and operates its own vehicles. Managing to avoid these can mean the difference between a profitable business and a failed one. The following are a few of the major stumbling blocks most fleets will need to overcome to succeed.

A Rising Accident Rate

If you’ve noticed your fleet’s collision rates going up over the past few months, it’s time to take action. Even minor accidents can incur major costs by necessitating spendy repairs, increasing your business’ liability exposure, and hiking up insurance rates. Fleet managers can benefit from a proactive approach to driver training and safety. If you aren’t sure where to start, we offer a free downloadable driver coaching program you can use to improve driver safety across your entire fleet.

High Turnover

With the ELD mandate and other DOT/FMCSA regulations pushing truckers and transportation companies to the limits of their patience, it can be tough to keep drivers and dispatchers invested in their work. Hard-working, experienced drivers are in great demand, which makes it hard for many fleet-owning businesses to fill their ranks with operators they can trust. This makes it more important than ever to hold on to good employees. If you value your staff, let them know. Creating a driver incentive program or offering vehicle take-home options can go a long way toward keeping drivers productive and boosting employee morale.

Exploding Fuel Costs

Fleet owners and managers need to be careful when it comes to managing their fuel spend, but oftentimes the answer isn’t as simple as putting together a budget. It can be tough to create and stick to a fuel budget these days, when gas prices tend to fluctuate so wildly. While it might not be possible for every fleet, upgrading to fuel-efficient vehicles can go a long way towards reducing overall fuel costs. Using GPS fleet tracking software to monitors fuel usage and idle time has been proven to help fleet-owning businesses optimize and reduce their fuel spend.

Depreciation

Countless fleets operate vehicles that will eventually fail to yield any significant return on their investment. This is often due to poor maintenance and reckless driving behaviors, both of which can damage a vehicle far beyond the usual wear-and-tear. Fleet managers can avoid jeopardizing their vehicles’ resale value by implementing a thorough and recurring preventative maintenance schedule.

While it can feel like there are seemingly endless challenges for the modern fleet manager to overcome, many of these “hazards of the job” can be avoided with good planning and the right tools. TSO Mobile offers robust solutions designed specifically to help fleet-owning businesses avoid these common pitfalls and see significant return on their investment. Interested in learning more? Give us a call at 866-429-4929 or request a free demo.