Accidents are a hassle few fleet operators look forward to addressing but it’s an unavoidable part of running a profitable fleet service. Now however, some of the stress has been removed with the development of a new product that plugs the gap in the sector.

Total Accident Management has launched the Fleet 1-Call Service which offers a full claims management service to both small-medium enterprise (SME) fleets with one-20 vehicles and companies that run employment car ownership schemes (ECOS).

With the Fleet 1-Call service both ECOS and SMEs with fully comprehensive insurance or a low excess can benefit from a full and hassle free accident management service that incorporates the collection and repair of a vehicle, along with managing third party claims and providing a hire car.

“We became increasingly aware that professional accident management in the SME sector had fallen into a gaping hole,” said Penny Stoolman, sales & marketing director of Total Accident Management.

“We’ve designed Fleet 1-Call to plug that gap so SME fleet customers and ECOS can benefit from first class customer care and reduced overall accident management costs normally seen by larger fleets.”

The Fleet 1-Call Service is just one of the modules available from Total Accident Management. Others include Fleet Indemnity, which provides credit hire, credit repair and personal injury service for non-fault claims; Tpro, a way of controlling the cost of third party claims; and Fleet Complete, a full accident management service for large fleets.

For more information visit: totalaccman.co.uk.

 Worries over wasted fuel could soon be a concern of the past thanks to a new development from Merridale fuel management.

The company has developed a switching module for commercial diesel pumps that allows users to choose between a low flow rate for smaller vehicles such as estate cars, 4×4s and car-based vans; and a high flow rate for fuelling lorries.

The device could offer an ideal solution for fleet operators who own a mixture of vehicles - such as company cars and service vans.

It works by modulating the output of a standard high flow dispenser - which is typically around 90 litres per minute. It can be adapted for use with new pumps or it can be fitted to existing installations.

The development is the latest fuel management system brought to life by Merridale - a company that aims to offer solutions for any size of fleet whether they are large fleets with multiple depots or small operators. Sales and marketing director Stephen Hannan believes this device is a response to large demand in the fleet sector.

“Customers have asked us to provide this facility, to maximise their utilisation of in-house and depot fuelling facilities,” commented Mr Hannan.

“The main advantage of the switching module is to make self-serve fuelling easier, and less wasteful, for office staff and other personnel, using company cars and vans.”

For more information visit: merridale.co.uk.

Western Power Distribution has renewed its contract with Ford to supply all its light commercial vehicles and small business cars. The new agreement is for two years, with an option to extend.The electricity distribution company for South-West England and South and West Wales, based in Bristol, runs 600 diesel-powered Ford Transit T300s and T350s, Transit Connects and Rangers, as well as Ford Focus hatchbacks.

WPD delivers electricity to 2.5 million customers over a 10,000 square mile area. Its technicians use Ford vehicles, which are purchased outright, for construction and maintenance of its large network.

“We’re very pleased with the vehicles,” said WPD’s Fleet Manager John Brooks. “They’re reliable, and delivery and service from the main dealer is very good. The drivers are happy too - it’s an all-round good-quality product.”

The fleet of Ford commercial vehicles is supplied to a standard specification, with an additional choice of racking for tools and equipment and ladder racks. The Ford Transits are mainly van-bodied, though WPD also operates a number of pick-ups with tail lifts.

The Ford Rangers provide additional flexibility to the fleet. “With their off-road capability, load capacity and ability to take ladders, they’re good all-rounders that we can use for towing,” said Mr Brooks.

Western Power Distribution is currently developing a plastic rear box section, as an alternative to the existing SVP glass fibre bodies, that can be transferred readily between Ranger pick-ups.

The company is likely to replace some 200 Transits, Transit Connects and Rangers over the next two years. WPD runs its commercial vehicles on various replacement cycles, to a maximum of 130,000 miles.

“Replacement is not dependent on mileage so much as on time,” said John. “A Transit Connect is likely to be replaced after five years, and a Transit or Ranger could be running for as long as seven.”

Fiat has launched a new dealer programme will should help develop Fiat Group fleet sales. Small Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) are a key focus for Fiat Group’s sales growth in the corporate sector during 2008 according to fleet and remarketing director Adam Pumfrey.
According to the Italian maker this focus across the new Fiat Fleet Specialist network combines with Fiat’s corporate sales team’s work with larger fleets and contract hire companies to increasingly educate drivers and fleet managers alike about Fiat’s low CO2 range of cars.
Adam Pumfrey, Fiat’s fleet and remarketing director said, “Our aim is to establish a group of dealers that will employ dedicated people to focus on developing relationships with fleets in their local area. Our regional corporate sales team will work with each dealer to help them identify fleet prospects and to convert these relationships into sales.
The Italian maker is now in the process of appointing 10 dealer fleet specialists in 2008 and hopes to eventually grow the network to around 15.
Each dealer will be set a local fleet sales target, employ a dedicated fleet sales resource and run dedicated corporate demonstrators within the dealership. Finance training will be provided to enable each fleet specialist to engage with companies about a wide range of finance options including contract hire and contract purchase.
While each Fleet Specialist will also offer a comprehensive aftersales service for fleets, which includes a collection and delivery service in their local area for company car drivers who need their car serviced.
Simon McBride

 The number of EU nationals living and working in the UK is the cause of some fierce debate over immigration laws - however, it’s the rise of overseas fleet drivers that has caused controversy this week.

Research from a car insurance provider has shown a 270,000 increase in the number of resident EU drivers in the last six years. During the same period the number of HGV traffic from the continent has trebled.

This has brought with it many problems including increased congestion, a rise in the number of accidents and huge costs for the car insurance industry. In fact the total cost for the UK economy is estimated to be in the region of £795million.

Car insurance claims from accidents involving EU drivers have grown every year since 2001 - increasing by 61.4 per cent in that time period. This has cost the car insurance industry around £36million in claims.

Polish drivers are the most likely to be involved in an accident on UK roads - they are involved in 16.6 per cent of the total. They are closely followed by German drivers (13.5 per cent) and drivers from the Netherlands (13 per cent).

It’s not just the rise in the number of accidents that is causing problems, however. The report also highlighted the affect on congestion with EU car and lorry drivers collectively adding an extra 6.6billion miles to UK traffic. This cost the economy around £328million in 2006 and is expected to leap to £494million annually by 2012.

UK fleet drivers have been urged to take extra caution as EU drivers may not be overly familiar with the road system. If you are involved in an accident with an EU driver take additional care when exchanging details and gather as much information as you can as it can take several years to resolve car insurance claims due to the number of intermediaries involved in negotiations.

Connaught Engineering launched its hybrid technology during last month’s CV Show and has since reported a surge of interest in the product.  Connaught HYBRID+ system can be applied to any vehicle as a retro-fit to existing vehicles. It can be applied to all major van makes and costs around £2,750.00 to install. Suitable for all light commercial vehicles and can reduce fuel consumption by up to 25%.

http://www.connaughtengineering.com/

Faye Sunderland

Last October research by Arval, one of the UK’s leading business car specialists, demonstrated wide scale issues with employees using their own cars on business. Now, follow up research has highlighted that their message is getting through and some businesses seem to be taking steps to reduce their risk with the new Corporate Manslaughter Bill coming into force.

The new findings show that since Arval’s original ‘grey fleet’ research 46% of respondents are currently reviewing their fleet duty of care, and a further 22% have already completed a review. Of these 9% have not only completed a review but have already implemented the necessary changes.  

The original research carried out last year showed that policing and management of grey fleets does not reach the high standards that many employers bring to their company car fleets. At the time nearly 1 in 4 vehicles on the road being driven on business was a grey fleet vehicle, with 83% of businesses having no procedures in place to check that non-company cars are regularly maintained and 74% of businesses not asking their employees for a valid MOT certificate for their vehicles.

The primary area of concern for own vehicle business driving was insurance and the new research shows that some companies have responded to this as 6% more businesses are now checking that drivers of non-company vehicles driven on company business have the correct insurance.

The findings suggest that Arval’s original research made businesses sit up and take notice, especially with the Governments Corporate Manslaughter Act 2007 coming into force on 6 April 2008. Alongside a clear police focus on incidents involving work related driving, the act does not introduce any new obligations on a company to comply with existing health and safety legislation but does make it possible to prosecute a corporate entity following fatal accidents. The actions of senior management involved in any prosecution will be put under renewed focus as a result of the new law.

In the run up to this new legislation coming into force other positive news is that since the last piece of research 9% more respondents ask drivers of non-company vehicles to produce an MOT certificate for vehicles more than 3 years old and 9% more respondents check whether vehicles driven on company business are serviced at regular intervals.

Jenny Powley, Arval Director Large Corporate Group, comments:

“Our original findings demonstrated that grey fleet vehicles are not subject to the same rigorous reporting and inspection procedures given to company cars so it is encouraging that this new research has highlighted that the grey fleet safety message we have taken to the market is starting to have an effect.”

She added:

“Grey fleet vehicles that are unsafe and not fit-for-purpose put employees and other road users at risk so are a big concern to us. On the back of our research we urge businesses to review their fleet duty of care, making our roads safer and reducing their own exposure to legal action through negligence and failing to meet duty of care obligations. It’s also important to remember that a safe well driven fleet is also likely to be more cost effective and less environmentally damaging.”

Overview of research findings:

• 46% of businesses are reviewing their fleet duty of care.  
• 12% of businesses have completed a review in the last 4 months and changes are being implemented.
• Over 9% of businesses have completed a review in the last 4 months and changes are in place.
• Since the last piece of research 6% more respondents are checking that drivers of non-company vehicles driven on company business have the correct insurance.
• Since the last piece of research 9% more respondents require drivers of non-company vehicles driven on company business to produce MOT certificate for vehicles more than 3 years old.
• Since the last piece of research 9% more respondents check whether vehicles driven on company business are serviced at regular intervals.
• 16% of businesses do not plan to take any action regarding their fleet duty of care.
• 16% of businesses are not aware of the Corporate Manslaughter Bill.

Additional health and safety statistics:

Health & Safety Executive Statistics

• It is estimated that 150 road deaths and serious injuries each week involve someone at work. That means an estimated one third of all crashes involves somebody who was at work at the time - that’s a tragic waste of about 1,000 lives every year.
• In 2000 the HSE estimated the costs to employers arising from ‘at-work’ road traffic accidents to be in the region of £2.7 billion per annum.

Department for Transport Statistics

• About a quarter of all vehicle miles travelled annually on Britain’s roads are for work purposes (excluding commuting).
• There are an estimated three million company cars on the roads and roughly 1 in 3 will be involved in an accident each year.
• Company drivers who drive more than 80% of their annual mileage on work related journeys have more than 50% more injury accidents than similar drivers who do no work related mileage.
• The annual risk of dying in a road accident while driving for business reasons is significantly greater than the risk of dying as a result of all other workplace accidents.
• About 300 people are killed each year as a result of drivers falling asleep at the wheel. About 4 in 10 tiredness-related crashes involve someone driving a commercial vehicle.
• Work-related road accidents are the biggest cause of work-related accidental death. Between 800 and 1000 people are killed annually in work-related road traffic accidents compared to approximately 250 fatalities due to accidents notified annually under the Reporting of Injuries Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR).
• Business drivers have collision rates that are 30 - 40% higher than those of private drivers.

For further information please call Graham Nichols, PR Manager, on 01793 894453 

E-mail graham.nichols@arval.co.uk

Grey Fleet report

The research was conducted among 107 fleet managers and those with fleet responsibility who took part in the initial research. An internet questionnaire was used with a postal option. Those with a fleet size responsibility of 50-500+, sub-50 and sub-25 were all included in the research.

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

If a court finds that a work-related death resulted from gross failures in the way an organisation managed or organised its activities, it can impose unlimited fines together with remedial orders and publicity orders requiring the organisation to publish details of its conviction.

Unlike the existing offence of gross negligence manslaughter (which still exists), the new Act does not require the prosecution to prove that an individual person or persons was responsible for the death. Instead, courts will look at management systems and practices right across the organisation.

Using a hand-held phone whilst driving became illegal in 2003 but new figures announced by the Ministry of Justice show that more people than ever are being fined for talking on a mobile phone whilst driving. Information released this week shows that Police in England and Wales issued 164,900 fixed penalty notices in 2006 - up 38,100 on the previous year.

More than 2,000 drivers were fined by magistrates for mobile phone use, and one was prosecuted in crown court. Mike Waters, Head of Market Analysis for Arval, commented:

“There is no excuse for drivers using their mobile phone whilst driving and while it is reassuring that the police are cracking down on offenders the fact that the message doesn’t seem to be getting through to drivers is a real concern.”

This new data supports a survey commissioned by Arval last year which showed that fleet drivers were also ignoring the law. The survey examined 731 business drivers at forecourts across the country. A study average of 7%, approximately 51 drivers, admitted they are continuing to break the law by using their mobile phone whilst in the car, without any hands-free capabilities, with 70% of drivers still continuing to make calls whilst driving

The extension of the 2006 Road Safety Act, which came into force in February 2007, not only increased the penalty for those caught using a handset whilst driving, but also determined that drivers can be fined even if they use a hands-free kit, if the vehicle is deemed to be ‘out of control’.

From a fleet perspective Waters continued:

“These new results should be high on the agenda of any fleet manager. Clearly this is still a problem as drivers continue to ignore the safety messages linked to mobile phones and are being caught, incurring penalty points and fines for hand held mobile phone use.”

“Companies must realise that the driver is not solely accountable for using a mobile phone and if they don’t manage their drivers closely they are opening themselves up to significant risk. If a business call to a driver is found to result in an accident, the company could be held legally responsible.”

“It is important to understand why drivers are continuing to use their phone behind the wheel, and in some cases companies will need to look at the messages that they are sending to their drivers. It may be that drivers are simply ignoring the law but there is also a danger that companies are continuing to put pressure on staff to answer the phone whilst behind the wheel?”

“At Arval our own fleet drivers are prohibited from using a mobile phone whilst driving, even if they are using a hands free kit. While we understand that some fleets will not want to follow suit we always recommend that drivers take breaks when they can make calls and listen to messages. There really is no need for drivers to talk on a mobile phone whilst behind the wheel”.

Mobile phones and the LAW

Nationwide Autocentre, the leading UK MOT and car servicing specialist, has launched a 19-point duty of care service for grey fleet vehicles. A grey fleet vehicle is owned by the employee but used on company business. This is an area in which fleets need to be careful as they now risk prosecution under the Corporate Manslaughter Act.

The 19-point duty of care inspection will include brakes, steering and shock absorbers. The cost of the service will be from £25 a vehicle.

Duncan Wilkes, chief executive of Nationwide Autocentre stated “Our customers are looked after as well as at a franchised dealer, but franchised networks costs are higher,” said Wilkes. “Their locations are set up for sales not for servicing, which means their costs of branding is higher and they often have lower capacity. Our strategy works, we spend a lot of time making sure we can deliver”

Nationwide Autocentre are looking to move further into the fleet sector, they are currently expanding at the rate of 20 service centres a year and now total 216 centres in the UK. 

For more information on this scheme or to find your local Nationwide Autocentre, follow this link - http://www.nationwideautocentres.co.uk/

 There’s a new ‘must-have’ in the fleet sector - with one in four UK fleets now utilising tracking systems within their vehicle operations.

The research, conducted by fleet solution provider DigiCore, has revealed that three quarters of those using the technology are reaping the rewards with the value gained. Payback on their investment has been achieved in numerous ways including increased productivity (54 per cent), reduced costs (44 per cent), lower overtime claims (13 per cent) and reduced fuel costs (12 per cent).

Eighty five per cent of those that had invested in the technology claimed to be satisfied with their current provider and stated that service levels are much more important than competitive pricing.

Take-up has been particularly large among commercial vehicles (30 per cent) and fleet operators with more than 100 vehicles (31 per cent).

However, there is still some way to go to break down negativity towards tracking devices despite the generally positive response by those currently using them. Of those not using vehicle tracking currently, only 48 per cent believed tracking could benefit their business while a mere 44 per cent believed it could offer a return on the investment.

DigiCore UK Ltd Managing Director Tom O’Connor said: “There is still much work to be done by solutions providers to enhance the image industry and develop systems that best meet the needs of the fleet sector.”

For the full results of the survey visit digicore.com.