The fleet policy gaps businesses only notice when something goes wrong
Most businesses have a fleet policy in place but how often is it actually looked at?
Once it’s been written and shared with drivers, it’s easy to tick it off the to-do list and move on. But fleet operations change, sometimes quite significantly, without the policy necessarily changing with them.
It’s often only when something goes wrong that businesses realise something important has been overlooked. Perhaps an employee has an accident while using their own car for work and it turns out they don’t have the right insurance in place, or maybe someone leaves the company and there’s damage to their vehicle.
These situations can quickly become a headache for fleet managers, especially when the rules, and who’s responsible for what, isn’t clear.
So how can fleets avoid getting caught out?
When personal use becomes a grey area
Personal use of company vehicles can be a grey area, particularly when a policy leaves room for interpretation. For example, it might allow for reasonable personal use, but where do you draw the line?
It’s easy for drivers to make assumptions, especially when it comes to things such as when the vehicle can be used or letting a family member use it.
The problem is that these misunderstandings can have wider consequences. If someone who isn’t authorised to drive the vehicle has an accident, for example, it could lead to complications with insurance cover.
Being clear about what’s acceptable from the start means drivers aren’t left guessing about what they can and can’t do.
Don’t overlook employees’ own vehicles
It can also be easy to overlook employees who use their own cars for work, particularly if they only do so occasionally.
Employers still have a duty of care, however, when it comes to driver safety and making sure vehicles are roadworthy.
Then there’s insurance to consider. An employee might assume they’re covered to use their own car to visit customers, only to discover after an accident that their policy doesn’t include business use.
Having clear processes for checking things such as insurance and vehicle documentation can help avoid problems later on. These checks shouldn’t be a one-off either, as documents can expire and circumstances can change.
EVs have introduced some new complications
Electric vehicles have brought new challenges when it comes to fleet policies.
In the case of home charging, for example, employees can pay very different rates for electricity depending on their tariff, which makes working out a fair reimbursement rate difficult.
It’s important to establish what evidence is required, how reimbursement rates are determined and whether there are different arrangements for home, workplace and public charging.
Public charging can also be expensive, particularly if drivers regularly use more expensive rapid chargers. Without clear guidance on which chargers to use and when, costs can soon add up.
In addition, there’s the home charging equipment to think about, especially if a business has paid for it. Make sure to detail who’s responsible if the charger breaks and whether the charger can be kept if the employee leaves the business.
What happens when something goes wrong?
Imagine a driver is involved in a minor collision. Nobody is injured and the vehicle’s still fine to drive, so they swap details and carry on with their day.
They don’t report the incident to the fleet team until several days later, when the other party makes a claim.
By then, important details may have been forgotten, photographs may not have been taken and opportunities to manage the incident promptly could have been missed.
This is why it’s important to make sure drivers know what steps to take after an accident and who they need to get in touch with. A good policy should also cover incidents outside working hours when their key emergency contact might not be available.
Just as importantly, these instructions need to be easy to access. The last thing a driver needs after an accident is to be stood at the side of the road scrolling through pages upon pages of a lengthy fleet policy trying to find an emergency contact number.
The handover details that get missed
Vehicle handovers are another area where gaps in a fleet policy can lead to disagreements.
When someone receives a company vehicle, they need to understand what’s expected of them when it comes to looking after it and what condition it should be in when it’s returned. Drivers should also know how to go about arranging maintenance and what to do if their vehicle gets damaged.
It’s very important to record any existing damage when a vehicle is first handed over, otherwise an employee could find themselves being charged for something they insist was already there.
There can also be issues over what counts as fair wear and tear. A driver might think a few scratches are only to be expected after years of use, only to face an unexpected charge when the vehicle is returned.
Make sure drivers know what’s acceptable and keep a record of the vehicle’s condition – this can help avoid disputes and unexpected costs.
Make reviews more than a paperwork exercise
There’s little point in updating a fleet policy if all you’re doing is adding more pages to a document that nobody reads, however.
A good place to start is by looking at the problems that keep cropping up. Perhaps drivers are regularly asking the same questions or the same issues keep occurring.
These can all be signs that something in the policy isn’t working as well as it should.
It’s also worth thinking about what’s changed since the policy was last reviewed and try to ask drivers for their views. They may have come across problems that the fleet team isn’t even aware of.
Once the policy has been updated, it’s important to make sure drivers understand what’s changed and how it affects them. This can make a huge difference in whether the new guidance is actually followed.
Ultimately, a good fleet policy should make life easier for everyone – drivers will know where they stand and fleet managers will spend less time dealing with avoidable problems.