DRIVING YOUR BUSINESS FORWARD: HOW TO KEEP YOUR DRIVERS SAFE

What’s the impact of a poorly managed fleet? For starters, it can hurt your bottom line. When you fail to effectively manage your fleet, things like increased maintenance costs and fuel can really add up. But more than that, your company’s safety record can take a hit.

According to the CDC, eight people are killed every day in crashes that are reported to involve distracted driving — which is anything that takes your attention away from driving, including texting, talking on the phone or eating. In 2018 alone, an estimated 400,000 people were injured and 2,800 were killed in distracted driving crashes.

Distracted Driving Awareness Month every April is a nationwide effort to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving and discover ways to better engage your workforce and remind them to focus on the road when they’re driving a company vehicle. Fleet management can play an important role in keeping your drivers on-task, productive and safe, and today’s technology makes it even easier to prevent accidents and keep everyone accountable.

Kick distracted driving to the curb ... Create a distracted driving policy.

Implement a formal policy to give guidance to any employee who drives on company time (not just salespeople or delivery drivers) and outline expectations for safe vehicle usage. That could mean setting boundaries for when employees can use mobile phones, eat food or smoke cigarettes — the most common behind-the-wheel distractions. It should also clarify consequences for failure to comply with your company’s policy.

Kick distracted driving to the curb ... Stay focused on the road.

Texting while driving causes visual, manual and cognitive distractions — not a good mixture for remaining safe in your vehicle. The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) says it takes nearly five seconds to read a text. That’s about the same amount of time it takes to drive the length of a football field at 55mph. A lot can happen in that short amount of time, and no message is more important than your safety. Pocket your phone until you’ve reached your destination.

Kick distracted driving to the curb ... Utilize cell phone blocking apps.

AT&T’s DriveMode is a free app for Apple and Android users, making this an economical choice for companies looking to test-drive solutions for employees. This app silences phone calls and text alerts while driving and delivers an automatic reply to the sender letting them know the driver is unable to respond. Other fleet-specific software to prevent distracted driving include TRUCE Software, LifeSaver Mobile, FleetMode and more. Be sure to research the options available and find one that meets the needs of your safety program.