Of the many hats fleet managers wear every day, managing regulatory compliance is arguably the heaviest. With so many bases to cover, it’s easy to overlook a regulatory update, forget to log an entry, or miss a maintenance date – and get fined for it.
It happens all the time. Just look at the results of the latest Europe-wide road police control operation, where almost 1 in 4 trucks checked were found in breach. Similarly, almost 20 percent of the vehicles inspected in North America as part of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) 2023 International Roadcheck inspection had at least one violation of such basic rules as driving times, tire conditions, or insecure loads.
Avoiding fines is, of course, a very good reason to step up your compliance efforts. But, with the right tools, compliance can also boost your fleet’s performance. So, let’s look at what fleet compliance entails, what you can do to stay on top, and how technology can help.
Regulations can vary depending on the industry or the type of goods you are transporting, your company’s location, and even the countries through which your vehicles travel. In this guide, we’ll focus on some key areas are common across the board:
There are strict rules governing your drivers’ working hours., In the US, for instance, hours-of-service (HOS) rules limit drivers to 11 hours of driving within a 14-hour period, followed by a mandatory 10-hour break. Meanwhile, European Union regulations stipulate a maximum of 9 hours of driving per day when a part, or all, of the journey is in more than one EU country. Failure to comply can lead to hefty fines or your drivers getting pulled off the road mid-journey.
To ensure these rules are respected, many countries have enforced the use of a government-approved digital device that automatically records driving times and other trip data, such as the electronic logging device, or ELD, used in Canada and the USA. In the EU, the only legally recognized device for recording service times is known as a smart tachograph. The European Commission has in fact mandated that, from December 31st, 2024, all international road transport vehicles weighing 3.5 ton or more must upgrade to the latest smart tachograph version 2, regardless of their current tachograph type.
Roadworthiness is essential to road safety, and you have a legal obligation to properly service and maintain your trucks and trailers to ensure they meet international and local safety standards. This includes never missing mandatory periodic technical inspections and annual roadworthiness tests, as well as equipping vehicles with the required safety features – such as an electronic braking performance monitoring system (EBPMS), a safety feature used in the United Kingdom to monitor and assess braking performance during everyday operation. It also means keeping a close watch on pre- and post-trip inspection reports and promptly acting on any issues with brake performance, tire pressure or damage, load and weight violations, and more.
Also required: besides holding the necessary licenses and permits for carrying certain goods or driving special types of vehicles, your drivers should receive regular in-service training to update and improve their skills.
To remain compliant – and to ensure you and your drivers can prove it in case of an audit or roadside check – you must meet several documentation requirements as well as keep an accurate and up-to-date record covering a wide range of areas that typically include:
Regardless of where you operate, there are bound to be some rules regarding the way you collect, store, and process any confidential data you may have on drivers and customers. If you do business in the EU, for instance, you’re no doubt aware of the General Data Protection Regulation – the notorious GDPR. Any organization that collects and processes personal data of individuals within the EU must comply with GDPR regulations, even if the organization itself is located outside the EU.
If you’re transporting dangerous goods, you will also be subject to a complex set of international safety protocols including detailed descriptions and certifications of the goods being transported, clear instructions for handling emergencies, as well as proof of training for the employees that carry them.
At the same time, certain types of customers will have their own compliance requirements to meet, and you have a contractual obligation to fulfill them. For example, transporting sensitive goods such as food or medicine requires adherence to temperature control and sanitation standards, while high-value goods need stringent security measures to prevent theft and damage.
Although the specifics may vary by location or type fleet, fleets in both North America and the European Union are increasingly subject to regulations aimed at monitoring and controlling carbon emissions. In addition, certain large fleets may be required to track and report emissions as part of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS). Similar initiatives exist in several US states – for example, fleets in California are often required to demonstrate compliance with greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.
Getting and staying on top of fleet compliance can be frustrating, but the good news is that there are tools and strategies that can help you manage it effectively.
Here are three good ways to start:
Laws and regulations change frequently.
It’s important that you stay up to date with any changes that may impact your operations and regularly revisit and adapt your compliance and safety policies to reflect those changes.
->Tip: Follow industry news, join professional networks, and keep an eye out for relevant events and training to get the latest information.
Safe is better than sorry. So don’t wait for something to break before you fix it. Invest in periodic training programs for your drivers, prioritize regular vehicle inspections, and monitor driver activities to quickly spot and address potential safety issues (don’t forget to incentivize and reward compliant drivers).
-> Tip: From time to time, conduct internal audits to identify any gaps in your processes and tighten those up.
Latest advances in technology and artificial intelligence can help make your compliance efforts a breeze while maximizing your fleet’s performance. Use a fleet digitalization tool to eliminate manual, labor-intensive tasks – from record keeping and reporting to maintenance schedules, regulatory updates, and more – and reduce room for human error.
-> Tip: Not all tools are created equal, so do your research and choose a comprehensive, scalable, and future-proof solution that can adapt as market needs evolve – so you won’t have to change technology down the line.
Compliance, when done right, is a major contributor to your fleet’s success – and fleet orchestration is here to make it easier than ever. How? By infusing a whole new level of intelligence to automation as we know it today.
SCALAR, our AI-powered fleet orchestration platform, is on the cutting edge of this technology. It combines world-class decision optimization algorithms and machine learning capabilities to predict, plan, dispatch, monitor, and problem-solve en route. Using edge computing technology for advanced precision and near-zero latency, it is designed to calculate the best possible combinations of drivers, vehicles, routes, trips stops and more.
All this, while meeting the latest regulations on service times, asset health, road safety, emissions, reporting, and data storage – helping you to:
To learn more and receive tailored advice on how SCALAR can help you master compliance with minimum effort and maximum efficiency, talk to one of our orchestration experts today.
Share
