4 March 2016

‘Unsafe' company drivers turn consumers against businesses

Almost two-thirds (65%) of British motorists are less inclined to do business with companies whose employees drive unsafely or discourteously, according to new research.

The findings suggest that telematics has a huge opportunity to support British businesses by helping them improve driving standards and create better public perceptions, it is claimed.

The survey, which addressed more than 1,000 British consumers, found that van drivers were the least likely to be considered the safest or most careful road users, with only 3% of respondents selecting them in that category.

High performance and sports car drivers (4%), taxi drivers (8%) and truck drivers (8%) were also in the bottom four.

Activa Contracts has a partnership with Ashwoods Lightfoot® to give customers access to the UK’s leading in-cab driver behaviour system, which is already fitted to thousands of company cars and light commercial vehicles.

The new survey was conducted on behalf of TomTom Telematics and vice president marketing Taco van der Leij said: ‘I think business owners may be surprised by the results of this survey and the extent to which poor driving standards can impact on their companies.

‘Telematics technology can play a key role in helping companies tackle issues around driving standards by providing employees with access to the appropriate training, guidance and technological aids.’

He continued: ‘While telematics has traditionally been the focus of fleet managers and operations directors, this survey clearly shows that it should also be on the radar of the marketing department. By improving how they are perceived on the road, businesses can establish themselves as responsible brands worthy of consumer trust.’

When it came to the most polite and courteous road users, van drivers were again bottom of the list, tied with drivers of high-performance and sports cars (both 3%). They were closely followed by SUV drivers (4%) and truck drivers (5%).

At the other end of the scale drivers of small and compact cars were considered the safest on the road (27%), closely followed by drivers of saloon cars (23%), while bus and coach drivers came in third with 17%. Small and compact car drivers also finished top when it came to the most polite and courteous drivers on the road, taking 26% of the vote.