A third of fleets (28%) say there’s no requirement from their insurer to fit vehicle tracking and dashcams, despite evidence of the many benefits of such systems.

Crystal Ball MD Raj Singh

That’s according to Crystal Ball, which says insurance companies should acknowledge the value of vehicle tracking and dashcams in reducing accidents and costs for businesses.

It’s published research of more than 200 businesses, indicating that fleets of all sizes are seeing huge safety, security and cost benefits from vehicle tracking and dashcams, but insurance companies are neglecting to reflect these advantages in their premiums.

In the study, 66% of fleet managers said telematics reduced theft, 60% cited an improvement in driver behaviour and safety, and 55% said systems improve workforce productivity.

“Certainly, a large number of fleets said that reducing insurance premiums was a reason for installing vehicle tracking and dashcams,” said Crystal Ball managing director Raj Singh.

“But I find it incredible that a third said their insurance firms don’t specify these systems as part of the risk management strategy when all evidence shows definitively that they reduce accidents and risk, improve safety and help to bring clarity and determine liability when incidents occur – all of which drive down in-life fleet costs and therefore protects against increases in premiums.”

Singh also wondered why insurance firms often specify that young drivers be tracked to get lower premiums, but this isn’t the case for other road users.

“The insurance industry has proved that younger drivers are safer when they are tracked. Yet while it is happy to work hand in hand with them to reduce costs, it seems that there is less enthusiasm when working with fleets. It makes no sense. Is it because they are happy to take the higher charges from businesses than from individuals?” he countered.

The firm’s inhouse fleet vehicle tracking and dashcam solution delivers cloud-based video recording and can provide fleets with full visibility and security to manage claims in the event of an accident.

“With the costs of working so high now, we would like to see insurance companies being more proactive with fleets and helping them to reduce their premiums. Clearly one way to do this is to incentivise businesses to install vehicle tracking and dashcams.

“We’d welcome greater dialogue with the insurance industry about this issue,” Singh stated.