Finding new drivers for your fleet can be time consuming and costly, which is why you probably want to keep around the ones you already have (assuming they’re reliable). In order to do so, consider these tips to make them happy and willing to stay with your company:
1. Offer rewards for good driving
Driving a car or truck safely can extend its life, and we know you want your drivers to treat your fleet vehicles with respect, so offer a reward for good driving. Every month or so, select the employees with the best driving records and treat them to lunch or a half day of work.
2. Keep your vehicles maintained
When a fleet driver steps into an old or unkempt vehicle, his/her first thought is probably that you don’t care about their well-being. Keep your vehicles maintained and your drivers will feel safe driving them.
3. Give them paid sick time and vacation
Everyone needs a break (especially if they’re ill) and when drivers don’t have paid sick time or vacation days, they probably won’t take the breaks they need. In turn, this could negatively affect their productivity, which means your company’s productivity could also take a hit.
4. Communicate
Each day, you’re probably doing something very different than your fleet drivers and you may not communicate with them much. Communication is important, however. It helps your drivers feel like they’re part of the team and their thoughts are being heard.
5. Make fueling up easy
Your drivers don’t want to have to veer off their course just to find an acceptable gas station. Instead, give them a fleet fuel card from Fuel Express – they’ll have the freedom to choose from over 320,000 fuel and maintenance locations across the country.
6. Don’t overwork them
When one of your fleet drivers arrives back from a 17-hour delivery trip, choose someone else for the very next 17-hour trip. The last thing you want to do is overwork your drivers – overworked drivers can cause accidents and slow your productivity.
7. Take care of problems
If one of your drivers has an issue, encourage them to share and be sure to take the appropriate action as soon as possible. You’ll help promote communication and make sure the problem doesn’t get worse.
8. Reassure them of our support
Driving alone can be difficult and/or scary – especially if something goes wrong in the middle of the night. Give your drivers peace of mind; with fleet fuel cards from Fuel Express, your drivers will get toll-free support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
