Category: Fleet News

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic has been far-reaching this year. Businesses across the UK have endured forced closures, limited trading opportunities and lots of uncertainty. As a result, fleet managers have faced a lot of stress during COVID-19.

With the situation unlikely to be resolved anytime soon, there’s a need to consider how businesses can successfully operate within the ‘new normal’ of COVID-19. Here we offer some simple advice on vehicle safety and how to manage your fleet against this challenging  backdrop.

Minimising the impact for your business

Effective fleet management during COVID-19 needs to take into account the disruption the pandemic has caused. This means fleets need to be more flexible in the way they operate.

Planning is crucial to success. With more people making use of online deliveries, that means more traffic and longer queues or delays when filling up vehicles. It can therefore pay dividends to plan journeys in advance to avoid congested areas. Our Pump Locator service, available through our free Drivers Club mobile app, can also help managers plan ahead to ensure they are getting the best deals to save money on fuel.

Meanwhile, clear communication is also essential between managers and drivers. Fleet managers need to be able to inform drivers quickly and easily. This could be about changes in delivery schedules or procedures for visiting clients. It’s also important to know who has been using each vehicle and when.

Vehicle maintenance during COVID-19

Managing your fleet in an efficient and cost-effective way is essential at the best of times, but even more so when faced with the uncertainty of COVID-19. Essentials to remember include:

• Step up cleaning schedules: Vehicles should be deep cleaned after every use. This is especially important if they are to be used by more than one driver.
• Inspecting tyres: Tyre laws haven’t changed in recent months. Vehicles must still comply with all measures of roadworthiness. This includes maintaining minimum tread depth of 1.6 mm for all tyres.
• Carry out daily checks: Vehicles should undergo a thorough inspection every time they are used. This should include things like checking lights, brakes, mirrors and oil levels. A full vehicle checklist can be found at Gov.uk.

The use of tools like our MyDriveSafe app can make completing daily vehicle checks easy. It gives clear visibility for managers and drivers alike that the right checks are being carried out.

Government advice on MOTs

Significant support for businesses has been offered throughout the pandemic so far. One area where this has been apparent is MOTs.

For smaller vehicles, a six-month MOT deferral was put in place for vehicles with MOTs expiring between 30th March and 31st July 2020. For HGVs, trailers and other large commercial vehicles, the government has extended MOTs by 12 months.

Keeping drivers safe during COVID-19

It’s not just vehicles that businesses should be looking after in these difficult times, but drivers as well. All companies have a duty of care to their staff and, against the backdrop of a global pandemic, this is perhaps now more important than ever.

A key element of driver safety is to remind individuals about the basics of social distancing, regularly washing hands and disinfecting their vehicles to reduce the risk of infection. Here are some key pointers that can help to boost hygiene for staff:

• Disinfect high-touch areas: Focus on door handles, steering wheels, gear sticks and other high-touch areas of your vehicle.
• Wash/disinfect hands: Keep antibacterial wipes or gel in your vehicle to allow you to disinfect your hands quickly and easily. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, when possible.
• Keep apart from others: Maintain a two-metre distance from others when possible.
• Reduce vehicle occupancy: Limit the number of people within a vehicle. Close proximity to others will increase the chances of passing on infection.
• Wear a mask/disposable gloves: When leaving your vehicle, wear a mask covering your nose and mouth and cover your hands.
• Promote contactless payments: You can reduce their risk of passing on or contracting coronavirus by using contactless payments when making payments. Access to a fuel card account can also ensure you’re not handing over cash when filling up vehicles.

Finally, fleet managers must remember to educate drivers on any changing guidelines. It’s essential that people know what is best-policy behaviour in order to protect themselves and others.

How to control fuel costs

Uncertainty for businesses due to the impact of COVID-19 remains extremely high. As a result, it’s important to keep a close eye on expenses. One way to reduce your monthly costs is to take advantage of discount fuel.

Signing up for a fuel card account can offer significant savings every time your drivers fill up. Use our handy guide to compare fuel cards to determine the product that’s right for you. At Fuel Card Services, we provide a wide range of fuel cards – including all of the biggest brands, Shell, Esso, BP, etc. We provide flexibility and cost reductions for our customers.

You can save up to 10p per litre on the cost of fuel with us. Meanwhile, complementary services like vehicle and asset tracking through our Tele-Gence service and accurate reporting of your mileage expenses through MileageCount can further streamline your fleet.

The hay fever season is upon us once more and with grass pollen levels rising, many sufferers will be reaching for the antihistamines to calm their symptoms.

However, one motoring organisation has warned anyone who also needs to drive to check their medication before taking it in case it causes drowsiness.

Common medicines may impair driving

GEM Motoring Assist said some common hay fever remedies can have a sedative effect, potentially making drivers groggy and unable to react to hazards in time.

Chief executive Neil Worth added: “It’s important to check with your GP or pharmacist, and to read those warnings contained on the labels of the medicines you plan to take.”

He also pointed out that the same laws cover over-the-counter remedies as apply to illicit drugs when it comes to impacting driving, meaning those caught ‘under the influence’ of antihistamines could face heavy penalties.

GEM has published a new leaflet called Medicine, Drugs and Driving to help anyone unsure about where they stand on taking particular remedies, which is available now.

Meanwhile, IAM RoadSmart also suggests that people who usually suffer from hay fever might want to take extra precautions before getting behind the wheel, including regularly changing the pollen filter of their vehicle and wiping down dashboards and other fixtures.

According to the NHS, 20 per cent of us suffer from hay fever, with the UK and Sweden having the world’s highest number of sufferers.

Tom Cosway, brand representative at Fuel Card Services, comments: “Hay fever is a very common ailment, but it can be really serious for drivers. We recommend that everyone should heed this advice – and we hope the ‘season of sneezing’ proves short for those of you currently suffering.”

With much of the high street closed since March, personal care appointments have also fallen by the wayside – and that includes trips to the optician.

However, GEM Motoring Assist has urged drivers not to let this be an excuse for getting behind the wheel with deteriorated eyesight if they feel their vision has altered for the worse.

Strained eyes? Don’t drive

The road safety organisation said anyone with even minor concerns about their eyesight needs to ‘do the responsible thing’ and avoid driving.

“Please don’t put yourself and others at risk. Instead wait to have a proper eyesight test before you get behind the wheel,” advised GEM road safety officer Neil Worth.

The comments come after the furore last week surrounding the prime minister’s aide Dominic Cummings, who sparked outrage when he admitted he had driven 26 miles to a local landmark in order to check his vision upon recovering from apparent COVID-19 symptoms.

It prompted a host of motoring groups to speak out and urge other drivers not to undertake journeys of any length as a way of ensuring accurate eyesight.

According to GEM Motoring Assist, poor vision is linked to more than 3,000 serious road accidents each year. It has long been campaigning for a stricter eye test for drivers than the current one brought in back in 1937.

This only requires motorists to read a number plate at 20 metres and does not test peripheral vision, depth perception or focus.

Tom Cosway, brand representative at Fuel Card Services, comments: “None of us have had our eyes tested recently and while the majority will still be within the recommended two-year timeframe, others may not. We would implore those people and anyone who has noticed a decline in acuity during lockdown not to drive.”

Fleet managers across the UK should take note of the latest research from What Car? showing how many of the latest infotainment systems could pose a threat to driver safety.

According to the publication’s findings, there are a host of vehicles on today’s market that make use of overly-complicated systems that could be a cause of distraction for drivers.

Distraction poses a serious risk to road users

Editor of What Car? Steve Huntingford said: “Distracted drivers are a factor in a growing number of road accidents, so it’s important to choose a car with controls that are responsive and easy to use while you drive.” 

What Car? tested 20 of the UK’s most popular models and assessed their infotainment systems for the amount of time that the driver needed to take their eyes off the road in order to carry out a range of basic tasks, such as changing heating settings, reconfiguring sat-nav directions or retuning the radio.

Here are the results in terms of the highest levels of distraction:

• MG ZS with 8.0-inch touchscreen
• Fiat 500X with 7.0-inch touchscreen and Uconnect Live
• Skoda Citigo-e iV with colour screen and phone holder
• Peugeot 508 SW with 10.0-inch Connected 3D Navigation and voice recognition
• Lexus RX with 12.3-inch multimedia display

Top of the list, offering the lowest levels of distraction, were the BMW 3 Series with Live Cockpit Professional, Mercedes-Benz CLA with 10.25-inch touchscreen, and Porsche Panamera E-Hybrid with Connect Plus and Porsche Communication Management.

“The best systems provide physical buttons and voice control, while those that are most distracting have sluggish touchscreens and require too many steps to carry out commands,” Mr Huntingford concluded.

Ellie Baker, brand representative at Fuel Card Services, comments: “Distracted drivers pose a danger to both themselves and others. Fleet managers should therefore take these findings into account when considering their next purchases and the impact that vehicle choice can have on driver safety.”