Boosting your fleet safety program: Overcoming 4 common roadblocks

Fleet management · Nov 12, 2024

In the fast-paced world of fleet management, safety is a top priority. However, many fleet managers find themselves struggling to maximize the potential of their safety programs. According to

ExpertMarket

, nearly half (48%) of respondents rate safety as a top operational priority, especially driver training. Fleet technology is also front and centre, with 42% mentioning they are experiencing considerably fewer incidents after implementing vehicle tracking solutions.

Pro tip: You can easily assess your fleet’s risk with

TELUS Business partner Geotab’s online Fleet Safety Grader

and discover how your safety program stacks up.

Despite safety being a priority, navigating the implementation of a strong safety program into their existing workforce can be a challenge. By proactively addressing roadblocks, fleet managers could significantly boost their safety programs, minimize downtime, increase productivity and foster a safer, more satisfied team of drivers.

Discover four common roadblocks and how to overcome them to unlock new value for your business.

1. Overwhelmed by telematics data

Telematics solutions provide a wealth of data, but the sheer volume can be overwhelming. To extract meaningful insights, it’s crucial to integrate this data with other sources that can help visualize your data better. Intelligent algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) can help you manage and interpret data. Gaining a good understanding of your data will allow you to make informed decisions that improve safety along with your operational workflow.

2. Choosing the right camera technology

AI-integrated dash cameras are essential for a comprehensive safety program. They provide visual context to incidents and help detect risky behaviours. The right camera solution should integrate seamlessly with your telematics system, offering customizable controls and enhancing safety without compromising privacy. It’s also important to ensure that the technology you’re investing in allows for cloud storage so that you can easily access, review and save footage from anywhere.

3. Benchmarking woes

Benchmarking is vital for setting safety standards within your organization and identifying areas for improvement. Without proper context, benchmarks can be misleading and allow for gaps to slip past you, leaving your business vulnerable. Utilize comprehensive data analytics to ensure your benchmarks are relevant and actionable, helping you stay competitive, focused on continuous improvement and workplace safety.

“The ease of custom reporting has brought new insights to TELUS management on unsafe driving incidents. We’re able to customize real triggers to thresholds that fit our organizations’ needs. We have seen some great improvements in seat belt usage and speeding incidents, both on a per kilometre basis.”

Justin Quan
Business Analyst
TELUS Business

Businesses can leverage vehicle tracking data to create dashboards to monitor hazardous behaviours such as aggressive driving, seat belt usage and more. That information can be used by fleet managers to coach employees and reward drivers who display improvements.

4. Reactive approach to safety

Relying solely on historical data can limit your ability to anticipate and prevent incidents. Embrace real-time (or near-real-time) predictive insights to guide proactive safety measures. This approach not only improves safety results, but it can also help improve your workplace safety environment. This can help reduce turnover and aid recruitment, while potentially making safety programs more profitable.

Although some of these barriers may take time to overcome, addressing these challenges can help significantly improve safety programs. Investing in your safety programs on a consistent basis, can lead to less downtime, boosted productivity and a safer, more satisfied team of drivers.

Discover why smart vehicle management is important for small businesses and what you should consider when choosing a fleet management solution in our latest handbook

“Smart vehicle management for small businesses: Combining GPS and video for cost-savings and efficiencies”

Whether you’re a small business looking to add vehicle diagnostics, live video streaming and in-vehicle Wi-Fi to stay connected while on-the-go – or you’re a large commercial fleet in need of real-time monitoring, advanced reporting and ELD capabilities – TELUS Business has a solution that’s ideal for your needs.

Connect with a TELUS specialist

to learn more about how

TELUS Business Fleet Management solutions

can help you optimize fleet performance. From November 8-30, 2024, TELUS Business customers can save 6 cents per litre for the first 6 months when they

apply for a new PetroCanada SuperPass.*

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