The biggest misconception when it comes to adopting a vehicle tracking system for fleet management

Probably the biggest misconception when it comes to adopting a vehicle tracking system for fleet management, is that the company drivers will strongly oppose it. We have always known this was not the case in most circumstances, from the numerous cases where Frotcom was implemented. But now there is clear evidence that we were right. Arval, one of the leading vehicle leasing and fleet management companies, interviewed thousands of European fleet managers of companies where vehicle tracking systems had been installed. One of the questions was about the acceptance by drivers of the gathering of driving behaviour data. The replies were quite interesting. In the case of small companies, 85% of the managers reported that drivers were open or had no opinion about the system. Only 8% were reluctant and 7% were strongly opposed. In the case of medium and large companies, 81% of the managers reported that drivers were open or had no opinion. 14% were reluctant and 5% were strongly opposed. In sum, in the majority of companies where vehicle tracking systems are installed, drivers have a positive or neutral view of it. Why so, when in fact this type of system undeniably increases the control over the driving behaviour? We believe that a vehicle tracking system is seen by the good drivers as the chance to finally provide evidence to their hierarchies of that good driving behaviour. For them, it is finally the possibility to see their skills and behaviour duly recognized by the company. Naturally, for the not so conscious drivers, the feeling is not so positive. This is good news also for the companies thinking of adopting a system such as Frotcom. In fact, in the same study, Arval found that the number of both small and medium/large size companies which have telematics systems – vehicle tracking and fleet management systems – is bound to continue to increase. Frotcom always recommends that the company inform upfront the drivers of the implementation of the new system, explaining how it works and what it does (and does not). This normally reduces misconceptions and increases acceptance.