While fleet owners see safety as a priority, most of them also view it as a source of cost rather than a source of income, according to a study by Researchscape International, an independent research firm and sponsored by Motive, a truck safety technology company.
A survey of 1,100 fleets found that 95% of them said safety was a priority, but when ranking their priorities, they said their top three were: increase revenue, minimize costs, and then improve safety.
“Our real takeaway from this for fleets is that if you focus on safety, if you don’t think of it as a cost center but actually as something that can generate revenue, you can achieve all three goals. really focusing on safety. said Abhishek Gupta, Senior Director of Product and Head of Fleet Management Products at Motive.
“One of the key things you get when you invest in a safety program is the reduction in accidents,” he added. “Second is the cost savings from accident reduction, and third is the ability to use those savings in a variety of ways, including giving your drivers higher bonuses and stricter retention plans. If you think of security more as a piece of profit, something that can actually bring you revenue rather than a cost center, you can really change your organization’s priorities through the use of security.”
When asked to rate their safety investment in 2022, 51% of fleet owners said they invested the right amount, 9% said they invested a little or a lot more, 32% said they invested a little under, and 8% said they invested a lot less. When asked when they plan to implement new security features, 71% said it would be in 2023, 18% said it would be in 2024, and the remainder said it was 2025 or later, or not at all.
Respondents were also asked about what security measures they took, indicating that they most often:
- Assessment and comparative analysis of driver safety – 46%
- Driver incentive programs – 45%
- Driver training programs – 42%
Cockpit warnings of unsafe behavior were also rated at just under 40%, and dashcam usage at just over 30%.
The survey asked questions about the benefits that fleet owners see from the introduction of dash cams: 57% cited driver transparency, 54% reported fewer unsafe driving behaviors, 45% cited insurance savings, and 43% reported fewer accidents.
“The ROI on investment in DVRs is quite significant,” Gupta said. “That’s the point where you’re talking about saving, almost making a profit of 4 to 10 times more, depending on the cost of the accident, compared to what you have to pay for them.”
Investment in AI for crash prevention has helped fleets reduce crashes, according to the survey. 19% of smaller fleets (less than 20 vehicles) reported avoiding at least one accident; 58% of medium-sized fleets (up to 99 vehicles) reported avoiding one to four accidents; and 21% of large fleets (100 or more vehicles) avoided 10 to 14 accidents.
“As you grow in size, these benefits continue to grow,” Gupta said. “For a small business, one accident can be the deciding factor in maintaining your business or continuing to grow your business so you can become a midsize fleet. quite significant for the driver retention problem.”
Insurance companies are realizing the value of partnering with truck security service providers to promote devices and provide discounts, as Motive recently did with Sentry Insurance.
“The impact we want to have here is that mindset change is really important,” Gupta said. “Companies have the tools at their disposal to achieve this.”
