The BusinessCar Fleet Technology Awards – otherwise known as the Techies – are back for 2018. Now in their tenth year, the awards recognise the leading products and services from all areas of the business car market – including fleet management, remarketing, daily rental, telematics and maintenance.
The BusinessCar editorial team have put their judging hats on and chosen winners across ten categories, covering everything from apps to the vehicles themselves. Technology from car manufacturers, suppliers to the fleet industry or fleet operators were all eligible.
With so much innovation and advancements in technology these days, judging was no easy feat but we’ve selected a winner for each of the ten Techies categories including the coveted Editor’s Choice Award to represent which new tech we think should be at the top of your fleet wish list in 2018.
App
Jaama – MyVehicle
This app has been significantly enhanced this year after being launched in 2017, working in conjunction with the Key2 fleet management system. Features include drivers being able to flag vehicle defects as safety issues, taking them ‘off road’ in Key 2; the retention of a historic record of vehicle defects; drivers being able to photograph critical defects; the combining of non-urgent defects into one maintenance job, reducing downtime; an audit of checks with nil defects being stored; and individual checklist items being configurable as mandatory so drivers must choose a yes or no response.
Risk management
The Driving Doctor
This technology is really quite unique. Especially the way in which it assists the fleet owner in addressing and augmenting legal responsibilities such as duty of care, driving for work obligations, audit trails, corporate manslaughter legislation and mitigation of court action, and enhances corporate social responsibility and reputation management, which are all very pressing issues for fleets at the moment, and something that a lot of them don’t really know too much about.
Innovation
The Miles Consultancy – Mobility+
What is particularly interesting about this entry is that the system is able to analyse data to make mobility recommendations for each individual driver on a fleet. They can advise fleet managers on which drivers should be eligible for a company car and who could benefit from being in electric vehicles and who could be car sharing. This sort of insight would be like gold dust for a fleet trying to cut costs where possible.
Green
Arval – SMaRT
We were impressed by the way that the system is bespoke to individual fleets and aligned to their business needs, ensuring that they are running the correct cars and performing in a way that is as green as possible. It’s more than just a solution to stop heavy acceleration and braking like other entries. SMaRT actually assesses the whole fleet too so they can see what they’re aiming for and how to become even greener.
SMR
Allstar Servicepoint
Allstar Servicepoint is an online platform designed to make the management of service, maintenance and repair as easy as possible for businesses, often SMEs. From fuel card company Allstar, and using technology provided by Epyx – both Fleetcor companies – it is claimed to offer average savings of 30% on work at thousands of franchised and independent garages. It gives access to an expert support team able to advise on whether work recommended by a garage really needs to be carried out and whether the price is reasonable. It also uses auto industry data to validate labour and parts quoted, and provides a single consolidated, HMRC-compliant monthly invoice, along with vehicle maintenance reports. The online platform allows businesses to manage all work, approving or declining recommendations made by garages, with all costs based upon pre-agreed rates.
Remarketing
APPraisal
APPraisal aims to avoid conflict between fleets and leasing companies over end-of-contract vehicle damage charges. Developed by Cap HPI for Ogilvie Fleet, it allows drivers to ‘self-appraise’ their vehicle. Any damage can be reported and the fleet can be advised on the best course of action for repair or return. The app uses video technology to assess any damage. It auto-populates ‘quick fill’ information and includes a reminder checklist of key items that are commonly forgotten on return. Should a driver be interested in purchasing a vehicle at the end of the contract, the app can provide a valuation, quickening the defleet process.
Leasing and Contract Hire
LeasePlan – Carnext.com
LeasePlan’s CarNext.com website is an unusual and welcome addition to the contract hire sector, offering a channel for the company’s defleeted lease cars to reach the used car market.
LeasePlan’s wide range of cars gives used car choosers plenty of choice, and allows them to compare the prices of different funding methods, and can add additional services, such as maintenance plans and extended warranties. It speeds up the defleeting process and, in other European markets where CarNext launched earlier, it has seen significant increases in the demand for used car leasing.
The process isn’t entirely digital, as prospective customers can take vehicles for test drives, and we liked the transparent maintenance history and the option of returning a car that turns out to be unsuitable within 14 days with no questions asked.
It can give fleets an affordable alternative to new car leasing, as well as deliver a speedy B2C channel for ex-fleet vehicles.
Telematics
VisionTrack
Combining telematics with the latest camera technology, quality video and its innovative internet-of-things (IoT) platform, VisionTrack provides an all-encompassing package for fleets. It helps prevent incidents while detecting fraud, preventing loss of earnings, reducing insurance premiums, saving time and thousands of pounds in proven liability cases and speeding up claims. The IoT platform is device agnostic; it can connect to any third-party system. Most recently, it partnered with TomTom to power its video telematics offering. It enables the incorporation of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) cameras, which detect fatigue, smoking and mobile phone use with real-time alerts, reminding drivers they’re being.
Fleet Management
IFM – OSCAR365
Upgraded in 2018, OSCAR365 makes it quicker and simpler to see information across customers’ fleets. The new i-Select system, developed with Cap HPI, is the first of its kind, allowing vehicle selection and comparison on any vehicle in seconds. Everything is based on each client’s own vehicle policy and choice list. It can restrict certain fuel types, and limit cars and vans above CO2 limits. It recognises the types of vehicles a driver is looking at and makes recommendations within their car policy for other models of a similar spec or lower CO2. It shows technical specifications and optional extras and allows drivers to compare vehicles against others, helping them find the best vehicle with the lowest emissions, and each vehicle’s whole-life cost making shortlisting easier. IFM’s new app synchronises actions with OSCAR365, making it easier for drivers to book their vehicle in for servicing or repair, provide mileage updates, make vehicle inspections. It also provides GPS tracking for breakdowns, enabling the AA to locate you easily and quickly.
Editor’s Choice
APPraisal – Ogilvie Fleet
Developed with the know-how of Cap HPI for Ogilvie Fleet, APPraisal tackles a highly contentious area between contract hire companies and their fleet clients. Fleets are resentful if they feel they have been overcharged for damage at the end of a vehicle’s term, while leasing companies need to recover any costs beyond accepted wear and tear. Advising fleets on whether damage needs to be repaired before defleeting avoids any nasty surprises, and APPraisal makes this simple, clear and accurate. The depth of value in the product is why we’ve decided to award APPraisal the Editor’s Choice Award, as well as the Techie for Remarketing.