Managing fleet costs will become increasingly important as the price of gas puts more and more pressure on shippers and fleets around the country. While you could get away with being lax in certain areas before, you will now need to have a clear view of everything your drivers are doing and act upon that data swiftly.
You cannot afford to be inefficient in this day and age as it could spell the end for your business. And if you manage to survive, poor cost management could drive your operation costs to levels that would make it extremely hard to compete. Here are some of the silent ways fleets lose money and how you can deal with them.
Fraud and Theft
One of the most insidious ways fleets lose money is through dishonest drivers. Fuel theft in particular is a scourge for fleets, especially at a time when truckers themselves may have trouble making ends meet because of rising fuel costs.
If you want to prevent and stop fuel theft in your organization, you will need to monitor fuel payments more efficiently and make sure that they’re consistent with usage. This can be extremely difficult to do, however, even with advanced telematics. But there are tools like Fleetcor fuel cards that can be used with your telematic systems to faithfully report fuel expenses and reconcile them with fleet usage.
These cards when integrated with a good telematics system will allow you to track when drivers make purchases and validate them. You can also set limits on how much they spend. You could even get alerts when something irregular happens, like when an employee uses their card when their work vehicle isn’t close to a pump or when filling a vehicle over its capacity.
Poorly Inflated Tires
Bad vehicle maintenance and a poor check-up system will also lead fleets to lose money. Something as simple as not checking the tire pressure on a truck could have a major impact on your operating costs. Did you know that poor tire inflation pressure is the number one maintenance issue with fleets around the country?
This is understandable because of all the problems that can arise from poorly inflated tires. Not only do they lead you to spend more on fuel but are more likely to cause breakdowns and accidents. So, make sure that you monitor tire pressure constantly by using a proper fleet management system.
Inability to Pivot
Fleets also leave money on the table when they can’t get emergency calls. When you have a solid localization system in place and good dispatchers, finding a driver wherever they are is easy. But when you don’t, you have to decline calls and lose business. This is another area you may have to tighten up if you feel you’re not up to par.
Your fleet might be bleeding a lot of money right now and you need to take action immediately as you can’t afford to be inefficient at this moment. This could mean life or death for your business, so work on monitoring your costs more closely and doing everything you can to bring costs under control.
Interesting Related Article: “3 Straightforward Ways to Improve Fleet Safety“