As a fleet manager, you have many duties and responsibilities. One of the most important ones that you shouldn’t forget is your driver’s safety. Protecting your assets is a major responsibility but your assets don’t just include vehicles in your fleet. It also includes the drivers that control them.

Not only is it your job to keep the drivers safe, but you will benefit when they are safe. When you avoid accidents, you also avoid costly repairs, downtime, insurance claims, and even court fees. Plus, accidents could also damage your company’s reputation.

The safety of your drivers lies in their hands as well. However, there are some things that you can do as a fleet manager to help them out. They are as follows:

Have A Safety Policy

Having a safety policy is a great way to encourage your drivers to focus on their safety too. The safety policy could include limiting the driver hours so that they could be well-rested.

Driver safety training should also be conducted. However, you’d also have to implement policies like giving consequences to DUIS or license suspensions so that they’d be more pushed to think about safety. The policies should be clearly stated and handed out to every driver.

Whenever an accident happens, don’t immediately blame your drivers for it. There are times when accidents can’t really be avoided. It would be best to conduct a review of the accident so you can really see who is liable for the penalties and fines.

A copy of your review should also be given to the driver. There, you can give your feedback and if there is a driver error, you can do something about it by getting them into a training program to further improve safety.

Base Decisions On Safety As Well

When making decisions, like whether to get snow tires or not, you should always consider safety. Some optional equipment and items for your fleet may cost more but they do improve safety so it is best to choose to have them.

Good Communication

You may have already created safety policies but are they known by your drivers? Good communication is essential between the drivers and fleet managers. You can provide them a physical copy of the safety policies so they always have one in case they need to read up on them.

Additionally, you can also talk to them personally or digitally about it. It is also best to be open to their opinions and suggestions. You also have to learn to listen to them and try to consider their side of things. After all, they are on the road most of the time and they might have useful insights that could improve your safety policies.

Preventive Vehicle Maintenance Should Be Prioritized

Some accidents can be avoided if the vehicles are properly maintained. Don’t wait for the vehicles to act up before checking them. It is best to train the drivers to inspect their vehicles before they drive them. A checklist can be provided to ensure that all are properly checked and nothing is forgotten.

Some may decide to cut on costs by skipping some of the maintenance procedures. Although that could save some money in the short term, it could backfire and cost expensive repairs due to accidents.

Preventive maintenance doesn’t only improve safety. It also helps improve the performance and efficiency of the vehicles on your fleet.

Use Safety Technology

There are various technologies that you can use to improve safety. One of them is to fit vehicles with GPS devices. These will help you know where your vehicles are in real-time. Additionally, there is also telematics that can help with driver monitoring. It can tell you whether they are prone to speeding or not.

Dashcams can also be fitted on your vehicles for more security. It helps drivers to be more careful because what they see is also being recorded. The recorded videos could also be helpful as examples on what to do and what not to do when certain situations arise.