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The impact of fatalities and injuries related to crashes can be overwhelming. Not only does it compromise fleet safety, but it can also significantly impact operational efficiency and costs. Advanced safety technology exists that helps improve driver behaviour and gives fleet managers more comprehensive control over their operations.
To help reduce crashes within a fleet and increase safety, the most important thing is to reduce dangerous driving behaviours. Before we explore how modern vehicle safety technology improves fleet safety and efficiency, let's look at the negative impact of unsafe driving behaviour.
The negative effects of unsafe driving behaviours
According to the NHTSA, driver behaviour errors cause 94% of crashes. Therefore, it's vitally important to focus on risky behaviour if you want to reduce fleet incidents.
Certain behaviours have been proven to increase the likelihood of a driver getting into a crash, and these include:
- Harsh acceleration
- Speeding
- Harsh braking
When a driver engages in the above, they are driving aggressively and likely trying to get somewhere as fast as possible with no consideration for their safety or others. It also wears out engines much quicker, making them dangerous on the road if they are not maintained properly.
Distracted driving, such as looking at a phone while driving or micro-sleeping, can be just as dangerous as the above behaviours. Sleep deprivation (which is why micro-sleeps occur) can be the equivalent of driving drunk. Being awake for 18 hours straight is equivalent to a blood alcohol level of .05 (0.08 is considered drunk), and being awake for 24 hours straight is like having a blood alcohol level of 0.10.
So, how does in-cab video help make your fleet safer?
An in-cab telematics camera solution (such as Vision) gives you an inside view of how your drivers behave on the road. When used in conjunction with a fleet management solution that includes vehicle safety technology hooked up to the vehicle's engine, this holistic approach gives you much more control of your fleet than ever before.
In-cab video can record whenever a predefined event triggers, notifying fleet managers that their driver is either engaging in risky behaviour (including near-crashes) or has been involved in a crash.
Even if a driver has not been involved in a crash, videos can help identify which drivers are not being cautious enough. That visual evidence can then be used to provide relevant training to drivers and show them exactly why their behaviour is wrong. They might not be aware of certain subconscious behaviours, but seeing them on video makes them more real.
In addition to monitoring driver behaviour (alongside a fleet management solution and other safety technology) and providing a visual training option, the in-cab video also helps settle the aftermath of crashes and decrease or settle insurance claims.
With video you can see exactly what led up to a crash happening. Was the driver participating in risky behaviour? Were they looking at their phone or distracted by a fellow driver? Were they fatigued? Were they wearing their seatbelt as they should? All of this can help you determine what can be done differently in the future to prevent it from happening again.
Video evidence is also the best way to settle any claims made by a third party. It is an objective way to show the sequence of events that occurred and protect your drivers in cases where they were not at fault.
