An employee driving abroad on business – whether in a fleet vehicle or in his or her own car if it is used for business purposes – presents an employer with additional Duty of Care responsibilities. What do risk management specialists advise?
Did you know it is a legal requirement to keep your headlights on at all times in Latvia? Or that in Canada alcohol can only be carried in the boot of the car? These are just a couple of the handy hints from Drive Safe, a new international road safety initiative from National Car Rental. Drive Safe is designed to help business and leisure travellers drive safely in over 40 countries in Europe, Middle East and Africa, as well as the United States and Canada.
Newtown Holdings revealed a change in the ownership structure and the addition of fleet management and control as “a third pillar to the service offering” alongside rental and contract hire.
David Edwards and Mick Harrison, who worked together at TNT and Hays Logistics, have become shareholders of a new company, Newtown Fleet UK. Their advisors were Eversheds and KPMG.
IN RESPONSE TO fleet demand for software solutions, Jaama has further expanded its software development department. Niel Corns has joined the Midlands-based fleet software and road safety specialists as a software developer. After graduating from Staffordshire University with a degree in software engineering, Corns most recently worked for Microtrading as a software developer and graphic designer.
Corns said: “I am delighted to have joined such a progressive company as Jaama. Although less than two years old, Jaama has brought a raft of new online software developments to the fleet market to further improve management reporting and control.”
With the increasing use of in-car toys among fleet drivers, Tony Meredith discovers there is a darker side to this new technology
The company car driver is the king of the gadget. Most fleet drivers possess some kind of in-car technical toy; a sat nav system, speed camera detector or a PDA harnessed to the dash. But there is a downside to all this electronic wizardry… their driving could be getting more dangerous! Sales of iPods and portable satellite navigation systems rocketed last Christmas, marking the emergence of the in-car gadget. Although there have been a wealth of ‘must have’ car gadgets in the past, today’s latest technological marvels have really captured the imagination of drivers. But the alarming fact is that these same gadgets can divert the driver’s attention away from the road.
OTHER software companies can provide similar services and these include Wiltshire-based Exentra Transport Solutions, which offers its smartanalysis system. It has similarities with VDO-Siemens TIS-WEB in that it is a web-based system. Smartanalysis was developed using Microsoft .NET technology and provides operators with software for their office-based computers. ‘It is estimated that only 20-25% of all operators currently undertake detailed analysis of tachograph charts,’ comments Steve Fisher, a director of Exentra Transport Solutions. ‘The days of paying scant attention to complying with regulations is coming to an end as the advent of digital makes enforcement by VOSA and the police much easier and faster.’
YOU might be surprised to learn that there is no specific legislation stating that the licences of those who drive for work must to be checked.
According to Jason Francis, managing director of fleet software and occupational road safety experts Jaama. Key2 Vehicle Management software is instrumental in ensuring that companies put safety first. In the event of a serious and perhaps fatal crash involving an occupational driver, police officers will be looking for evidence of why the vehicle was at […]
FLEET software company Jaama has announced details of a further three health and safety seminars. The company says the events are aimed at small and medium-sized companies who want help in co-ordinating and implementing occupational road risk strategies. The paid-for seminars are being held at Brands Hatch on May 16, Bristol, on May 17 and […]
Fleet management software boosts efficiency, saves time and money for the busy fleet manager, but some still prefer their old paper-based system.