Vehicle Tracking advice for Fleet Managers

Yes Vehicle Tracking have teamed up with their supplier Citation plc, a Queens Award Winning employment law specialist. As part of the partnership, Yes Vehicle Tracking have supplied vehicle tracking for Citation plc's fleet of 61 vehicles. The aim is to offer support and advice to fleet managers considering vehicle tracking.

Fleet Managers are rightly concerned about the perception their company’s employees have in relation to their invasion of privacy, seeing the device as an infringement of their right to privacy. However, vehicle tracking should be both seen and used as a positive move to increase productivity, reduce costs, improve customer service, ensure driver safety and ultimately be used to the benefit of employer, employee and customer.

Positive employee benefits:

• The system provides a fair and accurate record of the employee’s work pattern helping your company manage the fleet more efficiently
  
  
• The system acts as a security device and greatly improves the chances of your vehicle being recovered if it is stolen. Helpful especially if high value loads or expensive tools are being carried.
  
  
• Helps in adhering to the working time directive, enhancing the safety of employees on the road. Organise service, MOT dates, make sure your employee’s licence details are up to date (photo licences have to be renewed every 10 years).
  www.dvla.gov.uk/media/pdf/leaflets/inf229.pdf
  
  
• Work can be distributed more fairly, especially if the system shows for example, an employee is doing more work/mileage, thus a reward or re-allocation of work can be given.
  
  
• Make better use of your employee’s time, e.g. better route planning, cutting down travelling time.
  
  
• If an employee breaks down, your office-based staff can pin-point their exact location and notify a breakdown service. Also, if an employee is lost, the system can be used as a navigational aid.
  
  
• If a customer disputes how long an engineer has spent on site, vehicle tracking will back you up proving your employee was at the address or on site.
  
  
• Ensure your employees are paid correctly for each job, taking into account how much travelling was involved and any demurrage charges that have been incurred.

Employers who implement vehicle tracking systems on vehicles driven by employees should be aware that the use of information and data gathered by these systems are regulated by numerous pieces of legislation.

The use of data and the actions taken by an employer or public body as a result of information gathered by technology such as vehicle tracking are governed under Data Protection and Employment Rights legislation.

Operating throughout the UK since 1995, Citation provides professional advice and compliance packages to business clients. Independently endorsed at the highest level its market leading services provide guaranteed protection in the high risk areas of employment law and health & safety regulations.

Citation safeguards and protects more than 4,500 businesses across the UK via its team of regionally located, employed consultants. Citation has stringent recruitment policies to ensure that all the advisors are not only well qualified, they also have senior management experience. Led by a solicitor with over 20 years experience in private practice, Citation ensures that clients are provided with Employment Law and Health and Safety advice that is legally accurate and, most importantly, practical. Particular focus is placed on helping clients in areas where they need it the most, with issues such as Contracts of Employment, Employment Tribunals, Health and Safety policies and Risk Assessments.