How to Stress the Importance of Parking Lot Safety for Drivers

Fleet managers know that parking lots are full of dangers for vehicles. Unfortunately, your drivers can be quick to forget that potential maintenance problems are lurking between the white lines. This negligence is a big part of why so many auto collisions occur in parking lots. According to a study performed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 14 percent of total accidents occur in areas designated for parking. That’s why it pays to put extra time and effort into stressing to fleet drivers why they should pay attention to their surroundings when driving in and out of parking lots. A bit of extra parking lot safety instruction could help decrease accidents in your fleet and the maintenance costs that come with them.

Educate drivers on the nuances of parking lot risks
Sometimes the easiest way to emphasize to drivers the importance of safe driving in parking lots is to sit them down and go over the facts. Scheduling an extra training session will allow you to refresh your employees on company policy regarding behavior in parking lots and outline some of the most common causes of parking lot accidents. Automotive Fleet warned that drivers should stay especially wary of threats like maneuvering during windy days, parking too close to other vehicles and the sudden appearance of a pedestrian. Unfortunately, applying these common senses strategies on a daily basis is harder than it might seem.

Ultimately, parking lot safety comes down to remaining focused behind the wheel. Making controlled turns, accelerating carefully and braking with care will all assist fleet drivers in staying clear of parking lot dangers. Encourage drivers to keep a careful eye on their surroundings at all times when entering and exiting parking lots to minimize the chance that a can occur. Remind to avoid idling in parking lots as well – unnecessary time spent in a parking lot means more potential risks for fleet vehicles.

Use telematics to track idle time and reckless driving
Simply explaining the merits of safe parking lot driving may not get your message across to some of your drivers. That’s why it doesn’t hurt to add a little accountability into the mix. Integrating telematics system into your vehicle fleet provides you and your staff with the means of tracking and analyzing driver data collected in real time. The information can also be used to ensure that drivers stick to pre-assigned routes and properly report their fuel consumption.

This information can be used to determine when and if drivers are participating in unsafe parking lot driving or wasting company fuel while idling at a rest stop. Using this information to isolate good and poor parking lot performance, and dole out penalties for unsafe driving, is a straightforward strategy of encouraging your fleet drivers to take care in parking lots.

Create incentives for good parking lot performance
Improving parking performance isn’t all just about dinging drivers for their mistakes. You can also make inroads toward better parking lot driving by offering rewards for meeting company wide improvement goals. These benchmarks can be made tangible thanks to the data provided by fleet telematics, so drivers will know that they are working toward an objectively measured goal. Incentives could include paid time off, company apparel or gift cards.

Finding the right way to motivate drivers to take parking lot safety seriously is well worth the time and energy. Eliminating the downtime and repairs associated with fender benders and small collisions will be a huge perk for your fleet company.