Today's telematics systems are helping reduce claims reporting times to insurers from the traditional average of 30 days to in some cases to 1 day. That is why more and more businesses are fitting our recommended telematics devices in their vehicles as they look to reduce their fleet risk and reduce insurance costs. These devices can do more than record useful data about driver behaviour and are changing the way insurance claims are handled. We take a look into this important technology and why you should consider installing these into your vehicles. Telematics is sometimes described as a ‘silver bullet’ for fleet risk management. With telematics technology constantly developing and costs decreasing, more and more vehicles are being fitted with telematics devices. However, many fleets are still choosing not to adopt telematics, and of those that already have, many are not seeing their collision and claim rates decrease. Click Here to see more information What to do with the data Many legacy telematics systems have relatively crude measurements of some driver behaviours, such as acceleration, braking and threshold speed, while the more modern ones add cornering, speed against the posted speed limit, and fatigue, to the useful data generated. However some systems do more than this and have real time notification via GPS. Click here to see a real example of our system in operation However, when they implement telematics, organisations are often not ready for the data generated, even when this is via agreed exception reporting such as driving above the posted speed limit. Those that are ready for the increased data are not always clear on how to use this information.   The importance of acting on telematics data Let’s explore a common example. An organisation implements a driver behaviour telemetry solution that includes a ‘speed vs speed zone’ measurement. It is implemented on day one and when the data is analysed the next day, a high proportion of drivers have generated ‘speeding exceptions’. 3 things to consider before implementing telematics:

1. Make sure that all policies and procedures are in place and aligned.
2. Ensure an on-road safety culture is practiced and a communications strategy is in place.
3. Regular engagement with staff is crucial and line managers should make sure that they receive consistent feedback. Management are obliged to do something about this data – doing nothing would not be a great defence if faced with a health and safety, or worse, a corporate manslaughter charge.

3 things that you will achieve through installation of telematics:

1. Reduced claims cost
2. Improved Driving
3. Reduced Premium spend

So we recommend that you consider the new type of cameras that are on the market that link directly to your insurers claims department. We will supply and fit state of the art front facing vehicle CCTV providing 1st hand and irrefutable witness evidence to help ensure claims are settled on a fair basis. We can demonstrate that our recommended system can at times reduce claim notification down to 1 day. The industry average is 30 days so this is removing a huge amount of unnecessary cost. Click here to find out more

It is an unfortunate part of being a commercial vehicle operator that in the event of an accident the finger of blame is usually pointed at the commercial vehicle, often unfairly with our system the vehicle CCTV provides early notification of an accident gives your insurers claims team the best possible opportunity to defend spurious and exaggerated third party claims.

Telematics not a cure-all

Driver behaviour is a relatively sophisticated risk management tool, but it is not the ‘silver bullet’ that some people claim. There may be other good operational reasons to implement telematics, but if you are looking to manage and improve driver behaviours, you should make sure all the fundamental building blocks are in place, the on-road safety culture is addressed and your line managers have the skills, tools and appetite to engage with their staff to help make them safer on the road. This approach is especially helping haulage and courier companies reduce motor insurance premium costs.

To find out more and how we can help you reduce claims cost in the long term and provide you with a quotation then please contact one of our consultants today.

01245 449062 info@ascendbrokingold.co.uk

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