Tracking business costs can be a murky job, especially when it comes to driving. With so many variables and potential accidents on and off the road, it is hard to see where and how money can be saved.
A recent study by Nestle highlights this. The chocolate maker calculated that it needed to sell 235 million KitKats just to cover the costs incurred through road accidents across Europe.
Driving for Better Business, a Government-backed campaign working with Volvo Car UK and Fleet21 to help businesses understand the costs associated with poor driver management, has some suggestions to save money on driving costs, namely by looking at the smaller issues instead of the main factors like insurance and car replacements/repair.
One of the best ways to find what is hurting your business is to audit all drivers’ risk management, insurance, car type and create a policy for safe driving (in and out of work) and of leasing cars to employees, create a "choose-your-own" system for picking the car.
This way, employees know the risks when it comes to driving dangerously even outside of work. Having a choose-your-own system also allows the business to make informed decisions on the safest cars with the latest safety technology installed, alongside low insurance rates and low/zero emissions.
Having a policy and regular employee audits is crucial and could save the company thousands in insurance and accident costs. Also, picking the cars for employees makes the business risk portfolio drop, meaning insurance companies are likely to offer better rates to the whole company.
The policy must extend to higher-ups in the business, meaning executives have to choose a car with similar safety features and not get involved in accidents outside of work. Setting an example is crucial for large companies, who follow the leader’s image.
Even though companies with an already poor reputation might struggle to save money, new businesses that want to be efficient with savings should set up audits and company policies immediately for driving, in order to minimize the amount spent on company cars and insurance.
Volvo’s Co-Pilot scheme offers small-to-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) a safety and risk management program to reduce the risk of road accidents.
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