3 Reasons Why Your Fleet's Telematic Modules Should Have Automatic Video Recording Capabilities

Telematics is a rapidly growing field within trucking since they help fleet managers monitor the performance of their drivers while they're on the road. Data such as the number of times drivers are idle, their route, and their speed can all be monitored using these devices, which can either be attached to a driver's smartphone or to the truck's on-board computer.

Modern telematic modules, however, go an additional step further and allow you to constantly record video from trucks on the road. The module will detect potential instances of unsafe driving and upload the associated video to your company's servers for review. Video recording greatly enhances the capability of telematics. Read on to learn about three benefits of adding video recording to your fleet's telematics strategy.

1. Improves Driver Safety

Telematic data from your trucking fleet allows you to easily spot when unsafe driving behaviors occur, such as when drivers brake too hard or when they're exceeding the speed limit. Truckers who frequently violate safety rules can be flagged for extra training or terminated, which allows you to make sure that everyone in your fleet is driving safely while they're on the road.

Adding video recording capability to the telematic modules in your trucks will further improve safety by allowing you to collect additional data about what your truckers are doing while they're on the road. You can use the dash-mounted video camera to make sure that your truckers are always following the vehicle ahead of them at a safe distance, which reduces the likelihood that they will be involved in a rear-end collision. You can also check to see if your truckers are taking corners without accidentally drifting into an adjacent lane, which improves safety while driving in the city.

Video recording capabilities in modern telematic modules aren't just limited to watching a dash camera, either — most of them allow you to monitor an additional camera located in the driver's cab. This allows you to monitor for safety violations like drivers using their cellphones while they're on the road. Any incident that's caught on camera will be reported and uploaded to your fleet's servers, allowing you to review the footage and take appropriate disciplinary action.

2. Enhances Training Capabilities

When you're recording video of safety infractions, it's easier for your trucking coaches to retrain your drivers effectively. Many trucking companies monitor telematic data from their drivers and require their drivers to fill out incident reports whenever they violate any safety standards. However, incident reports can be difficult to use as training material.

A video recording of the incident allows a trucking coach to see what caused the safety violation in detail, which helps them make better suggestions about how it could have been avoided. If a driver is flagged for braking too hard, for example, the in-cab video may show that they weren't paying enough attention to a vehicle changing lanes in front of them — this allows your coaches to immediately spot what caused the safety issue and explain how to avoid it in the future.

3. Allows You to Use Video Evidence in Trials

Finally, a video recording of any safety incident that's encountered by your drivers can also become useful evidence in a court case. If you're ever sued because one of your drivers was in an accident, having video data automatically uploaded to your company's servers provides you with a detailed record of what actually occurred. Video recordings are very helpful evidence to have when you're trying to prove that the other driver's negligence caused the accident, and video-enabled telematic modules will ensure that you'll always have this evidence on hand.

If your fleet isn't using telematic modules with video recording capabilities, you should strongly consider upgrading — you'll be able to collect much more data in order to monitor your drivers' performance on the road, and the video recordings are useful if anyone ever takes legal action against one of your fleet drivers. Contact fleet management services to learn more.