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Three Tips for Using Telematics to Keep Drivers Safe This Winter

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Speeding. Harsh stops. Rapid acceleration. Cornering. Fleet managers are likely familiar with these buzzwords related to driver behavior, but what is the real impact of not fixing the way employees operate company vehicles?

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, driver error causes 94% of all vehicle collisions. Along with the physical and psychological consequences that accidents cause all parties, they can also have far-reaching financial liabilities for businesses if company drivers are found to be the negligent party.

Driving in winter weather amplifies these risks, and without the proper precautions, a company’s drivers may cause a fatal accident on icy or snow-covered roads if they speed when running late, make harsh stops when distracted, or rapidly accelerate in traffic.

We know the basic rules of thumb for driving in winter weather: Slow down, leave extra distance between your vehicle and the one in front of you, turn the wheel into a skid. But for employees who drive company vehicles, there is an added layer to safer driving in winter weather: telematics. Telematics are devices that gather and send data from the vehicle to fleet operators, providing insight into drivers’ actions and their safety, and other information like the conditions of the vehicles and roads.

Here are three tips for using telematics to keep drivers safe during winter weather:

  1. Closely monitor driver speed

Usually, companies set real-time speeding alerts with some room for driver error. Leaving this room for drivers includes setting posted speed alerts that do not trigger unless the driver is traveling at least 10 miles per hour over the posted speed limit, or setting high speeding thresholds in general where the alert only hits if the driver is going above 80 miles per hour.

A best practice during winter months is to set these thresholds much lower and become more stringent on violations. For example, setting the posted speed limit violation threshold to 2 miles per hour over the posted speed of the road can ensure that drivers are staying close to the limit and taking their time getting to their next stop.

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  1. Stay alert on maintenance demands

Telematics solutions can monitor for various vehicle maintenance needs, such as oil life and tire pressure, in real time and notify the fleet manager when maintenance is needed.

Batteries die faster in cold weather, especially when they sit for extended periods. By using a telematics solution, fleet managers can receive alerts when batteries drop below a specific voltage. Setting this alert serves as a reminder to start the vehicle or investigate to prevent a dead battery.

This knowledge can save a fleet thousands of dollars in unnecessary maintenance costs and improve safety for drivers by reducing the number of faulty vehicles.

  1. Proactively coach drivers to navigate tough road conditions

Speeding, rapid acceleration and harsh braking should always be avoided, but these actions are particularly dangerous in winter weather environments. By harnessing GPS telematics and predictive analytics, fleet managers can catch patterns of unsafe driving behavior before it results in a serious accident. Rather than rely on general training for all drivers, fleet managers can provide one-on-one evaluations that focus on each driver’s pain points using real-time alerts, reactive reports and driver scorecards.

Enforcing a business safety culture backed by actionable telematics data can ultimately help companies ensure the safety of their employees and the public in real time. No business wants its drivers to be put in harm’s way on the road, but safety also makes good business sense.

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Company vehicles are driving billboards, and along with the potential to put the public in harm’s way, it will ultimately hurt the bottom line if the brand is associated with accidents, fatalities and poor driving habits.

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Preventing Burst Water Pipes

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Unrelenting frigid weather often means frozen water pipes – one of the biggest risks of property damage. In fact, a burst pipe can cause more than $5,000 in water damage, according to IBHS research.

Structures built on slab foundations, common in southern states, frequently have water pipes running through the attic, an especially vulnerable location. By contrast, in northern states, builders recognize freezing as a threat and usually do not place water pipes in unheated portions of a building or outside of insulated areas.

Freezing temperatures can be prevented with the installation of weather stripping and seals. This offers two major benefits: keeping severe winter weather out of a structure, and increasing energy efficiency by limiting drafts and reducing the amount of cold air entering.

These areas should be inspected for cold air leaks to determine where sealing is needed:

  • Windows and doors
  • Vents and fans
  • Plumbing
  • Air conditioners
  • Electrical and gas lines
  • Mail chutes

IBHS recommendations:

  • Provide a reliable back-up power source, such as a stand by generator, to ensure continuous power to the building.
  • Interior building temperature can be monitored by a central monitoring company to ensure prompt notification if the interior of the building reaches low temperatures during after hours, power outages or idle periods.
  • Recessed light fixtures in the ceiling below the open area that is directly under a roof, such as attic space, should be insulated to prevent the release of heat into the attic.
  • Check to see if there is any visible light from recessed light fixtures in the attic.
  • If there is, they are not adequately sealed or insulated. Sometimes, especially in low sloped roof buildings, the space above a suspended ceiling located below the roof may be heated and cooled like the occupied area below.
  • If that is the case, there is no need to insulate above the suspended ceiling or seal the ceiling’s penetrations.
  • Insulate all attic penetrations such as partition walls, vents, plumbing stacks, electric and mechanical chases, and access doors that are not properly sealed.
  • Ensure proper seals on all doors and windows. Depending on the building or room size, fan tests can be conducted to ensure room and pressurization tests.
  • Seal all wall cracks and penetrations including domestic and fire protection lines, electrical conduit, other utility service line, etc.
  • Sprinkler systems should be monitored by a constantly attended central station to provide early detection of a sprinkler pipe rupture due to freezing.
  • Insulation and/or heat trace tape with a reliable power source may be installed on various wet sprinkler system piping. This includes main lines coming up from underground passing through a wall as well as sprinkler branch lines.
  • UL-approved gas or electric unit heaters can be installed in unheated sprinkler control valve/fire pump rooms. If backup power is provided, the heaters should also be connected to this power source.
  • A monitored automatic excess flow switch can be placed on the main incoming domestic water line to provide early detection of a broken pipe or valve when the space is unoccupied.