Strategies for reducing fleet costs

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In our conversations with fleet managers, we often hear: “How can we reduce our fuel costs—and what can we do to operate more efficiently?” Since you’re reading this, you can likely relate. Saving on fuel and boosting efficiency go hand in hand. So below, we outline six ways to reduce fleet costs—while also increasing safety.

Monitor driving behaviour

Driving habits like speeding and hard acceleration can lead to excessive fuel consumption, not to mention safety risks. Monitoring driving behaviour is a big help in reducing fleet costs while improving overall safety. Here are three action steps to take:

Build a strong culture of safety: Does your fleet have a driver safety programme in place? Well-trained drivers are your frontline against accidents. A strong culture of safety reduces the odds of incidents, not to mention vehicle downtime, which only hamper a fleet’s efficiency. Safety brings the extra benefit of lower insurance premiums, adding to your cost savings.

Use an integrated fleet management system: You must be able to assess patterns in driving behaviour and provide drivers with actionable feedback. The OptiDrive 360 feature in Webfleet provides real-time insights on speed, coasting and other habits that affect fuel use. It also sends predictive alerts to drivers on the road so they can immediately correct inefficient or unsafe behaviours.
Stay on top of drivers’ hours: Well-rested drivers tend to work more safely and fuel efficiently. The question is, how can you easily keep track of working hours and rest times? Try fleet management software that notifies you when drivers are required to take breaks. By preventing breaches, you avoid fines and promote safer, more fuel-efficient driving.

Optimise your route planning

Higher mileage equals higher fuel costs. Productive fleets can’t avoid racking up mileage, of course. But driving unnecessary kilometres will burn through fuel. As will sitting in traffic. Unforeseen construction, heavy traffic and weather can all play a role in higher fuel use, due to idling or unexpected detours.

With a fleet management solution like Webfleet, you can reduce fleet costs by optimising your route planning. Here’s how to do that:

Analyse live traffic and weather data:: Bypass fuel-guzzling traffic jams and unsafe driving conditions
Keep your vehicles on the best routes:: Know whether your trucks meet height and weight restrictions for certain roads, helping drivers prevent costly bridge strikes, safety incidents and unexpected detours
Give customers reliable ETAs:: Deliver more, faster—all while increasing customer satisfaction with your services

Learn more about reducing fleet costs with route optimisation.

Practise predictive tyre management

Roughly 20% of commercial tyres on the road are significantly underinflated. Slow leaks and improper tyre pressure result in a 2.5% increase in fuel use. Regularly checking tyre conditions helps you avoid fuel waste, safety issues and vehicle downtime.

In other words: staying on top of tyre management is an effective way to reduce fleet costs. Predictive tyre management starts with:

Using a Tyre Pressure Monitoring System, or TPMS:: Get real-time checks on tyre conditions, with alerts to abnormal pressure or temperature levels, enabling you to address issues before they lead to downtime or safety issues
Choosing the right tyres for your fleet:: Rolling resistance and mileage performance influence your fuel consumption, so choosing the right tyres can make a big impact on your cost-saving potential

Automate maintenance tasks

When kept in top shape, vehicles last longer and use fuel more efficiently. Maintenance issues that go unnoticed or put off will eventually result in breakdowns and potentially higher repair costs. Scheduling in regular maintenance means you sidestep productivity losses while cutting fuel and repair costs.

By using Webfleet, you can set maintenance tasks based on real-time mileage information rather than a set period of time. Vehicle diagnostic and engine trouble codes are sent instantly to the fleet manager, who can take quick action to solve issues. Plus, a maintenance task is automatically scheduled as soon as a vehicle reports a trouble code. Other benefits of automating maintenance include:

Receiving reminders for vehicle servicing and inspections
Protecting drivers from roadside breakdowns and safety risks
Avoiding reputational and/or financial losses in the case of accidents involving poorly maintained vehicles
Providing excellent customer service, improving business relationships
Saving time on administrative processes
Extending vehicle lifetime with preventative care

Discover more about proactive vehicle maintenance.

Encourage fuel-efficient driving

Drivers are one of the biggest fuel economy influencers and by improving their performance, meaningful results can be achieved. One aspect that is often overlooked is driver training. The key is to educate your drivers on aspects like:

Fuel usage when idling
Speeding
Harsh cornering and braking
Not lifting off the accelerator when nearing junctions
Shifting gear late in the rev range

In-vehicle navigation devices can be a major support. With Webfleet’s range of PRO Driver Terminals, for example, your drivers receive in-vehicle feedback and advice directly, empowering them to adopt more fuel-efficient behaviours.

Recharge your electric vehicles (EVs) for less

Adopting an EV fleet requires a different approach to energy consumption than a combustion vehicle fleet. Knowing where and how to charge will be the key to saving costs for your business in the long run.

Charge point price variations can make a huge difference to fleet running costs. Saving just a few per kWh, across multiple vehicles that make long or frequent journeys, can add up to thousands of pounds a year. Prices across public rapid charging networks can also vary considerably. These tips will help you tackle charging costs.

Try third-party apps:: It’s not easy to know where to find the most cost-effective charging station on the road. Third-party apps equip drivers with tools to find the best recharging options in their area.
Consider time of day:: Drivers tend to charge EVs during peak hours upon returning to the depot. To save costs, avoid charging during the day and switch to an off-peak tariff to charge vehicles overnight whenever possible.
Understand the charging curve:: Using a rapid charger to charge your EV beyond 80% can significantly reduce the charging speed. So, be aware of your vehicle’s charging curve. If your driver is waiting to hit 100% charge, this could have a direct impact on your operational efficiency.

Learn how to get the most value with your EVs.