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Curious what is helping keep commercial vehicles collision-free?
If you answered fleet telematics, give yourself a pat on the back.
A truck accident lawyer might disagree, but we’d like to think most fleet operators have fleet telematics solutions. The problem is they may not know it.
Between thousands of crashes occurring annually, ranging from fender benders to deadly crashes, there has never been a bigger push for technology that can help fleets prevent collisions. In 2023, 5,472 individuals lost their lives in collisions involving large trucks based on NHTSA statistics.
Telematics is starting to make a difference, though. Equipped with features such as real-time driver monitoring and predictive maintenance notifications, telematics is empowering fleet operators to vastly reduce their risk of collision.
When collisions do occur, however, they can cause serious harm to everyone involved. Many truck accident victims find themselves reaching out to a truck accident lawyer to help them understand their legal options. Truck accidents involve many parties, which is why victims often work with a law firm that focuses on truck accident legal services.
The best option? Prevent them from happening altogether.
Here’s how fleet telematics helps operators prevent collisions from happening.
What you’ll discover:
- What Fleet Telematics Does
- The Features that Impact Safety
- How to Stop Common Collisions
- Fleet Operators Are Investing Why
What Is Fleet Telematics?
Fleet telematics is a term used to describe GPS, onboard diagnostics, and wireless communication technology that allows for vehicle monitoring. Essentially, think of it as your own set of eyes on your fleet. A telematics system can monitor where vehicles are located, their speed, harsh braking events and driver behavior.
Not only can telematics systems identify where vehicles are at any given time, but the data collected can be fed back to fleet operators so that they can take action. These systems have come a long way in the past 10 years.
Today’s fleet telematics systems feature:
- GPS location tracking
- Speed monitoring
- Harsh braking detection
- Driver fatigue monitoring
- Predictive maintenance alerts
Telematics helps monitor a driver’s behavior as well as a vehicle’s health to help prevent future collisions.
How Does Telematics Help Prevent Collisions?
Let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of how telematics can help prevent collisions. According to new data from SambaSafety, 72% of fleets found that using telematics in addition to driver training programs reduced crashes and claims.
Telematics Helps Monitor Drivers in Real Time
Did you know that a telematics system will record when a driver speeds, brakes hard or accelerates too quickly? Monitoring driver behavior helps operators know how their drivers are behaving when they’re on the road.
Fleet managers can use this information to:
- Recognize which drivers may be at risk of causing an accident
- Train drivers when unsafe behavior is detected
- Hold drivers accountable for their actions
- Reward safe drivers with incentives
This allows managers to take care of the problem before it becomes a collision.
It Helps Prevent Fatigued Driving
Driver fatigue plays a key role in many commercial vehicle-related collisions. Telematics can monitor how many hours your drivers have been on the road.
There are even systems out there that utilize AI to detect driver fatigue through a camera that monitors the driver. When driver fatigue is detected, your fleet manager can be alerted.
Not only will the manager can be alerted, but so can the driver. Giving drivers a notification that they are driving while tired allows them to take a break before they might collide with something.
Helps Identify Preventable Maintenance Issues
You don’t want your vehicles to break down on the road and cause an accident. Telematics can identify problems before they happen.
By catching issues early, you can get your trucks serviced before they break down. Preventive maintenance helps reduce the chance of your vehicles breaking down and causing a collision.
Real-World Statistics on How Telematics Improve Safety
Don’t just take our word for it that telematics helps improve safety. Fleet operators have been using telematics for many years. In fact, over 90% of fleets say that telematics is a part of their driver safety program. Telematics helps improve safety by preventing collisions, but that’s not the only way telematics can help fleet operators.
Telematics Can Help Exonerate Drivers
When collisions do happen, telematics and dashcam footage can help prove that your drivers were not at fault. Not only can telematics prevent collisions, but it can help you legally if a collision does occur.
Features Fleet Operators Should Be Using
When searching for the best telematics fit for your business, ensure the provider offers these solutions.
Video Telematics
Driving behavior is one of the most important aspects of keeping your fleets safe on the road. Video telematics can help fleet managers see what happened before or during a harsh braking event or collision. Dashcam footage can not only help your fleet, but can help prove that your drivers were not at fault.
Speed Monitoring
Did you know that speeding is involved in most deadly crashes? By using telematics, you can monitor how often your drivers are speeding and who they are. Some telematics systems even allow you to connect to a vehicle’s engine to restrict how fast a vehicle can go.
Crash Avoidance Detection
One of the most intelligent features that should be used with telematics is crash avoidance detection. When equipped with sensors, vehicles can detect possible collisions before they happen. While equipped with safety features like automatic emergency braking and forward collision warnings, telematics can enhance a vehicle’s safety features by alerting drivers when they may collide with something.
The Future of Fleet Safety
Fleet safety will only continue to grow as more technologies are developed, such as:
- AI-powered driver risk scoring (which drivers are more likely to be in a crash)
- Weather and traffic updates that can identify hazards along a driver’s route
- Vehicle-to-vehicle communication
Who knows? There may be fully autonomous big-rigs on the road in the next 10 years. Fleet operators that take advantage of these new features will be ahead of the curve when it comes to safety and insurance costs. [Ed. Note: Demonstration autonomous trucks are already on the road with some companies having already applied for approval for commercial service.]
Wrap Up
While collisions may never be 100% preventable in the commercial driving world, telematics can help reduce the chances of one happening. Fleet telematics allows operators to monitor their drivers as they drive, catch drivers who may be driving while tired, and prevent maintenance issues that could cause your drivers to collide with something on the road.
If you want to start preventing collisions, consider fleet telematics as your first step.
