How To Choose The Right Vehicle for your Fleet

Compromises May Be Ahead

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It can be a hard task to ensure you choose the right vehicle for your business fleet. You will need to assess all the different criteria of your business and check that the vehicles you opt for tick all the boxes. In some cases, this might mean some compromises, and it’s crucial to know what areas you can and cannot compromise on.

Other things you’ll need to think about include your budget, whether you intend to buy or lease, and how competent the team is to drive the vehicles you are considering. With all this in mind, it can be hard to know where to start. Read on for some tips about how to choose the right business fleet vehicles.

Use and Operation

The first thing to think about is what the vehicles will be used for. No matter whether you own or lease, no matter whether you buy used or new, no matter–to some extent, at least–what your budget is, the one thing that you need to understand right from the start is what the vehicle will be used for. A car used to attend business meetings and see clients will be an entirely different prospect than a truck used to haul goods across the country, for example.

When you have the right vehicles, not only will your business look more professional, but you’ll be a lot more productive. Giving your employees the right tools to do their jobs is also important. It will help them feel valued. When they feel valued, they will work harder.

Focus on the size, style, and capabilities of the vehicle rather than having a specific make and model in mind. Remember that you can make some modifications and add things to your vehicles to increase their functionality. Many businesses with large hauls will need to purchase an artic lorry trailer for their articulated lorries, so don’t worry about running out of space. You’ll find it’s much easier to choose well if you give yourself flexibility. 

Additional Extras

Once you have determined the right kind of vehicle for your business needs, you can start looking more in-depth at the exact vehicle you might want. Of course, you’ll still benefit from being flexible at this point, but you can start to narrow your ideas down. After all, you’ll have to decide on your ideal vehicle at some point.

Somethings that you can consider at this stage are any additional extras that might be useful. A GPS system could be ideal for tracking vehicle use, for example, or perhaps heated seats if you work in a cold climate. Maybe you need a vehicle that can tow heavy loads, or perhaps a DAB or satellite radio would be a great option to make your team happy. What will fit with your budget? What will benefit your business the most?

Safety, Insurance and Accidents

Choosing the right fleet vehicles must also be linked to safety. It would be terrible to pick a car or truck without having reviewed its safety record or understanding its accident history (assuming you’re buying a used vehicle).

It’s wise to ask as many questions as possible about the safety of the vehicle and speak to your insurance company to get a quote before committing to buying anything. In some cases, the cost of insurance will be very high, and it might be better to pick a different vehicle to save money.

When it comes to safety, you can never be too careful. Do your homework, have insurance in place, know the contact details of a truck accident attorney, and check your team’s driving ability on a regular basis to keep everyone safe.

Author: Electric Vehicles Magazine