Running a successful business often means having a fleet of vehicles, which can be used to carry out tasks for the company. Or the cars in it might just be for an “employees’ benefits” program.
Nonetheless, fleet maintenance is of dire importance. So, here are 5 tips on how to maintain a fleet of company cars.
Benefits of Company Car Fleet Maintenance
The advantages of a well-kept fleet cannot be understated. For starters, it makes your business more efficient due to the cars being more reliable. Time is saved as better maintained and managed cars will be more reliable.
Similarly, it will help you manage finances better. Scheduling regular fleet maintenance with genuine spare parts from reliable suppliers will make your cars will lessen maintenance costs.
It’ll also ensure that the cars run more continuously, have better fuel economies, and live longer lives. Security, safety, and better data collection are some other perks that you get.
How to Maintain A Company’s Fleet of Cars?
Just as with any other business aspect, the array of company vehicles can be preserved with some key points in mind:
1. Dedicated Management System
All businesses with a fleet of company owned vehicles should have a purpose-built department for vehicle maintenance and management. This means that a managerial figure should be available to supervise vehicle usage.
Similarly, there is software that exists for the job, which can be fed data. These maintain records of fuel consumption, maintenance schedules, car assignees, and reliable suppliers for quality procurement of parts.
Smaller businesses with tighter budgets might say otherwise. However, companies that revolve around cars such as rentals and tourism agencies need to compromise.
2. Employee SOPs
It is the employees that are to drive the cars which is why effective fleet management policies keep them before any other factor. Communication with your employees about the rules and regulations comes first.
Company policies need to be enforced that will ensure that drivers will drive safely and will be liable for any damages due to overspeeding or carelessness.
Just as important is assigning cars to skilled drivers that have a valid driving license and have gone through a training program.
3. Fleet Insurance
You just can’t live without insurance these days and it is recommended that your business doesn’t either. Car insurance is a surefire way of covering any damages that your cars might endure.
With a plethora of insurance options available, you can find the right rates based on your budget. You might even encounter insurers that give discounts for implementations like better employee trainings and data collection softwares.
4. Replacing Old Vehicles
Businesses aim to make the most money while trying to spend the least amounts of it. This means that they continuously analyze where they’re losing money.
One money squandering loophole encountered is the high cost of ownership associated with some vehicles. These might be older, more luxurious, terrible maintained, or all of the above. In case of an aging vehicle giving constant trouble, it is best to dispose it off.
This can save a lot of money and time in the long run, and keep your fleet of vehicles well-maintained. Analyze market habits and trends and consult with an expert before making any moves.
5. Regular Tune-ups
Finally, we get to the most important tip. The company that owns the fleet needs to ensure that it receives proper care and the cars are serviced at intervals recommended by the manufacturers.
This will ensure reliability and it will even compensate for your employees’ poor driving habits. Fluid and tire rotations along with the usage of genuine spare parts from reliable suppliers are important.
If you’ve got a fleet of cars that needs proper maintenance, check out STS-Global.com to get quality procurement of genuine parts.