Over the past five years GPS vehicle tracking systems prices
have dropped considerably and business owners are reaping the benefits
of low priced vehicle tracking devices with an ROI of only a few months.
Fleet Vehicle Tracking
can bring numerous benefits to a business from increasing productivity
to reduced costs but before engaging on a long term contract with any
vehicle tracking company, there are some vital facts you should know.
This article will help you make a wise decision.
What is Vehicle Tracking and how does it works?
Vehicle
Tracking systems use a combination of GPS technology, mobile phone
network, internet, digital mapping and Vehicle Tracking Devices with software
to enable business owners to monitor their vehicles exact locations, as
well as a complete set of information that tells what route was used,
when the vehicle was turned ON/OFF, speed and even fuel consumption.
The principles of Vehicle Tracking Systems are quite simple. Using information
sent by GPS satellites orbiting the Earth, a GPS receiver calculates the
vehicles exact location on the Earth's surface and sends the information
via the mobile phone network to a remote server which can then be accessed
by a computer via the internet, all the information is overlaid on a digital
map area allowing you to see the location of each and every one of your
vehicles with street level accuracy.
The Benefits of Vehicle Tracking Systems
Dispatch and allocate new jobs to the nearest vehicles Provide transparency
to your team's whereabouts Improved health and safety Control and reduce
your overtime costs Confirm ETA's and offer enhanced customer service
Control personal vehicle usage and eliminate moonlighting Improve your
route planning Reducing the average speed of your vehicles Lower insurance
premiums Let employees take vehicles home at night Tax reductions Proof
of parking ticket validity
Choosing the best Vehicle Tracking Supplier
With so many vehicle tracking suppliers claiming to be the best, it is
easy make a mistake and choose one that won't fulfil your fleet needs.
Bare in mind that there is no such thing as the best vehicle tracking
supplier. The best supplier is the one that meet your fleet requirements,
offers good customer support at low costs, are reliable and well established.
Watch out for hidden costs!
Hidden Costs - There are a number of potential hidden costs with a tracking system, such as:
* Installation fees
* Monthly subscription fees
* Annual software licence fees
* Separate mobile carrier fees for GPRS data transfer
* Polling Fees (when you want to discover where a vehicle is right now)
* Callout fees for repairs even if under warranty
* Uninstall/Reinstall fees when you want to move the hardware from one vehicle to another
* Software update fees
* Additional software user fees
Ask your sales rep for all of the potential costs of their vehicle tracking systems - in writing! That way if you suddenly start receiving surprise invoices you are on solid ground to contest them.
By following the instructions on this vehicle tracking guide I'm certain you will choose the right fleet vehicle tracking system to keep track of all your vehicles.
About the Author SEO Consultant, blog marketing and social media expert - THUK Media Online Marketing