aBr MOVE October 2014 Oct 2014 | Page 57

Fleet and Fleet Management Regent targets improved efficiency and driver wellness Insurer to launch truck driver award in 2015 As fleet and transport companies seek greater value for their insurance spend, it is becoming increasingly important for insurance firms to provide services that go beyond the standard. R egent commercial vehicles national manager The company also provides a free driver assessment and Wayne Rautenbach says Regent Insurance has training service, which makes use of telematics data gath- been guided by the need to provide a holistic pack- ered through its Risk Services bureau. age of services that recognises the importance of improving efficiencies as well as risk management. While the data provided by telematics is valuable for route planning, speed management and administration of schedules, fleet managers have not used the information to its full potential to improve driver performance or manage operational costs such as fuel and vehicle maintenance. Our experience has shown that fleet owners can make dramatic improvements in terms of insured losses, vehicle performance and operational efficiency by incorporating driver wellness and training in their telematics systems.” Regent’s driver wellness offering includes personal driver and “We offer tailor-made driving programmes for the insured addressing both driving skills and on road attitude. Our unique training is based on the assessments and understanding of our insured fleet telematics data collected,” Rautenbach says. In the past six months more than 300 drivers have been assessed and Regent has held 43 three day defensive driving courses. co-driver accident cover, an accidental death benefit, as well In the long term, Rautenbach says the company hopes this as a hospitalisation benefit. will help to reduce the 14000 deaths on South African roads every year, many of which are caused by human error involving trucks. From 2015, Regent will sponsor a Truck Driver of the Year award aimed at encouraging safe and efficient driving practices by truck drivers. This will be the first independent competition of its kind in South Africa. “If we can provide an added incentive for truck drivers that will help them to improve their performance on the roads while at the same time helping our clients to manage their running costs, then we will certainly jump at the opportunity to do that,” Rautenbach says. october 2014 • logistics in action • 55