Side jobs are among the most prevalent challenges in the delivery and service-based industries that rely on fleets of vehicles. Drivers can use trucks and vans to complete quick side jobs for cash on their way home and fleet operators can have a tough time tracing these activities. GPS tracking based fleet management can help end all that immediately.
How Can GPS Tracking Help?
Using a GPS-based fleet tracking system can help you in the following ways:
- Accounting for every stop and start
- Monitoring vehicles when drivers take them home or after hours
- Verifying that lunch breaks are not side jobs
Real-time tracking and location history records enable you to instantly identify whether a vehicle is being misused for personal use or side jobs.
Why is it Important to Check Side Jobs?
There are many ways side jobs can hurt your business. This includes:
- Increased Risk: When a driver takes a fleet or work vehicle off the site or route without your knowledge, they put your vehicle and company at risk. The kind of risks include accidents, mechanical issues, and theft.
- Increased Liability: If your vehicle gets into an accident, your driver gets hurt, or gets a traffic violation ticket during their side gig, it will be your company that is held liable for insurance claims, fines, or lawsuits. Accidents can cause your insurance premiums to increase, which will need to be borne by you.
- Impact on Brand Reputation: Using a company vehicle for side jobs increases the chance of a driver speeding or engaging in erratic and irresponsible driving. Such driving behavior on the road can affect your brand’s reputation. Besides, any delays in service can affect customer satisfaction.
How to Detect Side Jobs?
The following information can help you determine if your drivers are using your vehicles or assets for extra or personal use:
- Stop Locations: If you notice stops outside the service area or at a point that doesn’t correspond with your customer address, the location can indicate unauthorized vehicle usage.
- Monitor Input: If your vehicles have additional equipment such as a plow, boom, or light bars, you can monitor their input to determine unauthorized usage.
- Off-Hour Usage: As mentioned above, if you notice vehicle stops outside your regular business hours, it can mean that the driver is engaging in side jobs.
Using GPS tracking systems can make it much easier for you to detect such activities. When your employees work off hours with your resources, it can also create issues within the workplace. Such activities can not only affect the service quality offered to your customer base, but also increase wear and tear on your vehicles and assets.
You can take even more steps, beyond the use of fleet tracking systems, to stop or prevent your drivers from making unauthorized usage of your resources. This includes hiring trustworthy people and offering ideal pay and benefits.
It is further recommended to set up a policy for your drivers for working off hours. This involves outlining the consequences of engaging in off-hour work using your company’s resources.
Advanced GPS Tracker & Fuel Sensor
When you need the perfect GPS tracker for your vehicle, ESCORT TD Online offers all the features you will require. It features a GPS/GLONASS module integrated into the capacitive fuel sensor’s design. It can help you track your vehicle’s route and real-time location. It features a Nano SIM card slot that enables cellular connectivity.
Conclusion
Using GPS technology to track your assets can help eliminate guesswork or assumptions. It should equip you with the telematics data required to make the right decisions. Side jobs can affect your business in many different ways. The right technology solutions and practices can help you gain greater control over your business operations to make it more efficient and productive.