Reduce your risks, save money and ensure you have all the right tools for a profitable fleet with Gauntlet’s help
Do you know how to get your insurance premiums down, and keep them there?
“As bus and coach specialists we know what insurers want to see and we know what fleet operators need to do to make sure their fleet is more attractive to an underwriter,” says Roger Gaunt, Managing Director of Gauntlet Group.
Gauntlet helps clients manage their risks and has created a suite of services that is designed for any fleet operator to use, “like a tool box to dip in and out of if they need to,” says Roger.
“If we can make sure a fleet is well presented to an underwriter, we’ll get much better terms,” he says. “And if we can make sure that that fleet is profitable for the insurers, then they’re likely to want to keep that client for a long time, and they’re likely to give better terms at renewal.”
What is Gauntlet?
Set up 24 years ago by Roger, insurance broker Gauntlet Group offers relevant and comprehensive insurance and risk management solutions to operators.
The company is there to support the insurance needs of operators, can ensure it gets them the best deals – and has a reputation for fixing fleets.
“In terms of fleet products, some are delivered internally, whilst with others we work with external partners, so as to provide a one-stop shop for fleet operators of any size,” says Gauntlet’s Health and Safety Development Manager Andrew Scott.
“We have a solution for what we like to think are the most likely scenarios fleet operators may face, whether that is a review or a fleet survey, or driver training, which could be online or delivered traditionally.”
Says Tom O’Connell, Gauntlet’s Head of Motor New Business: “It’s about giving operators support so that, operationally, they can be sound.”
“And it’s about protecting their balance sheet from insurance claims. That’s what we’re here to do,” adds Andrew.
Claims management
“In the olden days, claims were really quite low and so managing the insurance premium wasn’t a big deal and managing the claims wasn’t a big deal. Now it’s really significant; insurers are paying out substantial personal injury claims because of the changes to the Ogden rate.”
Adds Andrew: “We find businesses in a range of states of flux. It’s less common to find well-run ones.
“If we see a distressed risk – that’s a poor claims experience, not that well-managed from our point of view in terms of claims analysis and claims trends – we can go in with a range of solutions, and say to an insurer, ‘ok, we’ve got this risk, this is where we’re at. We’re going to work with the client for the next ‘x’ number of months by developing management systems for them, by coaching their staff and by giving them a dedicated service’.
“This means operators can manage their fleet themselves, but have us as a guiding hand.”
This is a way Gauntlet puts claims measures in place to ensure a situation doesn’t “spiral out of control,” says Tom.
“Gauntlet can then show insurers how the solution will be followed through, so we’re not just saying it, we’re actually going to do it and show the evidence all along the way so, when it gets to renewal, everyone is pleased with the results.”
Root of the problem
It’s hard to have effective fleet management if you don’t have the resources needed to do this, or the expertise or time. Operators are busy doing what they need to do and they need someone to direct and advise them and pinpoint the issues.
“We can get into a business, look at the problems and ask ‘what is the root cause?” Andrew says. “This is something many fleet managers need to identify, but struggle to do.”
Spend money wisely
It’s important to not spend money on things which are seen as good risk management, but are, in fact, a waste of money, Roger explains.
He says: “Telematics and cameras are a big topic, but operators can spend a lot of money on the wrong things and not get the results they’re expecting.
“We try to be very direct with our advice and when operators are spending money incorrectly, we’ll tell them, because there’s no point in them continuing to believe they’re going to get a good result from spending their money on something that, actually, insurers don’t value or don’t see as being capable of generating results.”
Using CCTV
There’s only a point to having cameras if they’re positioned correctly and strategically placed for maximum efficiency, Roger says. And then ensuring the information is recorded properly and passed on to the right people in the correct format.
Adding cameras is a big development for coach and bus operators; with the cameras correctly positioned it makes claims quick to resolve because it’s factual evidence.
But it’s not always your own cameras you can rely on. Gauntlet advises gathering surrounding CCTV in the area, or if there’s a roadside accident, finding out whether someone who had a dashcam saw the incident.
“It’s about training drivers to remember to ask someone who stopped ‘do you have a dashcam? Have you got any footage you can pass through to me?’,” Roger says.
Risk management
When asked what element of risk management should be the first priority of investment, Roger says that driver training is the most vital, first and foremost.
“Prevention is the most important thing to invest in,” he says, adding that Driver CPC training doesn’t fully ‘vet’ the driver in aspects such as driving behaviour and accident prevention measures and doesn’t provide any driver profiling. That’s where Driving Monitor comes in.
Gauntlet has introduced Driving Monitor – a web-based fleet risk management tool that can assess drivers’ competency levels.
It’s easy to use with simple steps to follow, and ultimately helps operators meet the company’s health and safety obligations.
Employees will travel through a cycle:
- Step1: Evaluate
RiskMonitor
The really simple-to-use risk assessment module
TrainingMonitor
eLearning from your driver’s desktop
- Step2: Profile
LicenceMonitor
Driving licence info & checks with the DVLA
FleetMonitor
‘Grey fleet’ vehicle data direct from drivers
AccidentMonitor
Accident management data that’s easy to use
- Step3: Monitor
TaskMonitor
Alerting you to critical information on drivers
ComplianceMonitor
Helping you meet your duty-of-care obligation
KnowledgeMonitor
Powerful reporting with insight and positive results.
Driving Monitor is the perfect way for an employer to view the driving standards of all their drivers. They have the ability to view any driving offences committed, and highlight a driver’s weak points, while also seeing where their strengths are.
The system is “built from a driver’s perspective with simple point-n-click hazards on screen,” and collates a range data such as risk assessments, eLearning, vehicle data, accident data, DVLA licence data, tax/insurance/MoT data and training data, into one central driver audit system.
Gauntlet E-Learning
With the help of Gauntlet E-Learning, employers are able to deliver to their employees more comprehensive health and safety training. With a selection of online resources and testing available to take at any time, in any location, it will also reduce administration and hours that could currently be eaten up by training away from base.
Managers can view an employee’s progress and the employee receives electronic records and certificates – which are produced on the completion of each course.
Ultimately, Roger says: “Talk to us early, don’t wait until the last minute or the renewal date. Let’s get talking now.”
