Top tips for construction companies investing in vehicle tracking
(09/09/2009)

The business model for vehicle tracking has become established with third party leasing companies providing finance for contract agreement periods of, in most cases, up to five years. Vehicle tracking technologies have heralded a revolution in fleet management, boosting the efficiency and profitability of thousands of construction companies.

For those businesses dealing with reputable providers, this model has proved extremely popular, proving particularly tax efficient and negating any cashflow difficulties. It can, however, have serious financial and business repercussions if a vehicle tracking company fails, or is no longer able, to provide their service.

According to start-up business research by Barclays, 18 per cent of all new businesses fail within their first year, and 50 per cent fail within three years. Industry experts suggest that failure rates within the telematics sector are likely to be even higher.

“The problem with the rapid growth of any industry sector, or technology, is that it will attract unscrupulous business looking to make quick, easy money at the expense of unsuspecting and badly advised customers,” says Tony Neill, Executive Vice President, Navman Wireless.

“The critical message is do your homework before investing large sums of money,” adds Tony. “Failure to do so could lead to severe financial consequences.”

To avoid becoming the latest victim of unscrupulous providers however, Navman Wireless has put together its top-ten tips for those businesses planning on introducing a vehicle tracking system:

1. consider whether a provider is reputable – ensure it’s financially secure, has a health set of accounts, and a trading history of three years or more

2. don’t assume all suppliers are the same. Ask suppliers, for example, how the system and fleet is hosted is hosted – make sure it’s hosted in a safe, reliable and secure environment

3. ask to see working systems when investigating potential suppliers and test out the software. If a company has any faith in its product, it should have no objections to leaving customers with live access to its system

4. ask for customer references – and speak to the references

5. ensure a preferred provider is up front about any installation charges – installation should be inclusive

6. find out if, in addition to the fixed costs, there are additional monthly charges – there shouldn’t be

7. ensure the provider has a dedicated R&D resource, rather than this being outsourced to a third party, and find out if the system you opt for can be upgraded during the contract period

8. ensure a preferred provider offers free software and mapping updates

9. ask suppliers if they source the various system elements from third parties. Select a provider that takes technical responsibility for every aspect of the system’s operation

10. select a provider that offers a system warranty that last the length of the contract