THERE will be a change in the risk management of company car and van fleets as lockdown eases it has been predicted.
Fleet management processes will need to reflect the new reality of increased homeworking from staff.
Peter Golding, managing director of software company FleetCheck, said that the change in risks would be greatest in those SME firms.
“In the real world, a lot of fleet management happens in an informal manner. If damage occurs to a vehicle, the fleet manager is likely to notice it in the car park and if a driver is perhaps too ill to drive, you might know purely from the way they look when they are standing in front of you.
“Increased remote working removes these casual interactions. It means a tightening up of fleet management processes to ensure that drivers and vehicles are safe, even if you very rarely see either of those variables in your risk management.”
Golding added that if workers were now more geographically distanced, the garages previously used may no longer be convenient, resulting in the need for new supplier networks.
“The same might apply to buying everything from tyres to windscreens. This may have a knock-on effect in terms of how these suppliers are paid and more.”
Ralph Morton is the leading journalist in the leasing broker sector and editor of Broker News, the website which provides information and news for BVRLA-registered leasing brokers. He also writes extensively on the fleet and leasing market in both the UK and Europe.
