Managing costs is a crucial business objective for fleets, especially when handling accidents.
The faster fleets can get drivers back on the road, whether via a replacement vehicle or smart repair process, the lower the financial impact on the business.
This blog post will explore how a reliable accident management partner can facilitate a process that limits the impact of downtime, reducing costs.
The cost challenges of accident management
Manufacturers face numerous cost-related challenges throughout the accident management process.
One of the primary pain points surrounds downtime, and how a fleet copes with this determines the financial impact on the business.
Extended vehicle downtime can play a significant role in fleet performance, impacting revenue. For example, a fleet can complete fewer deliveries if it has fewer vehicles on the road.
Some other common cost management challenges following incidents include:
- Repair and replacement vehicle costs
- Deployment to bodyshops with low capacity
- Deployment to bodyshops that lack expertise for the required job
- Dealing with the result of repairs taking longer than the estimated completion date (ECD)
- Poor management of and low visibility into the repair process
- Parts supply chain delays.
These challenges can significantly influence the impact of accidents and the financial implications of the resulting downtime on the fleet.
Strategies for managing accident-related costs
Managing costs without compromising the quality of accident management services is crucial for many fleets to thrive.
To achieve this, fleet operators can rely on an accident management provider. It’s essential to choose the right partner in order to realise the following benefits.
- Access to a comprehensive repair network. A reputable partner will offer high visibility into the repair process and can provide an extensive repair network able to handle the jobs
- Assurance that FNOL will be streamlined, accurate and empathetic. Delays in incident reporting and capturing incident information quickly can impact the entire claims journey and the related costs
- Vital contact between parties will be outsourced. The accident management partner will take responsibility for contact between themselves, the fleet manager, driver and the third-party insurer if it’s a non-fault incident.
What does an effective process need to do for Fleet Operators?
Once an accident occurs, the process kicks in from the receipt of FNOL when the driver contacts the provider’s call centre or via a digital channel. For fault incidents, third party intervention services should start at this stage.
Then, if required, vehicle recovery will be deployed while the level of damage and liability is ascertained and, depending on circumstances, an appropriate replacement vehicle will be deployed for the driver.
Based on this information, vehicles are then deployed into trusted repairers with the necessary skills and capacity to handle the repairs.
If vehicle damage is minimal, there's the option of an express, smart or mobile repair. However, more extensive damage will require booking into an approved bodyshop.
Then, the accident management company's role is to provide clear insight into the repair process and ensure the repairs are meeting the estimated completion date (ECD) and costs are managed. If not, communication is key so the fleet in question can manage its workloads and requirements.
How do accident management companies keep costs low?
Firstly, speed of deployment plays a crucial role in minimising costs. Certain costs are heavily related to keeping downtime low, so the faster an accident is reported and services are deployed, the faster vehicles can return to the road. An accident management company will provide easy routes for FNOL, whether via digital or traditional telephone channels.
A third party intervention service can also help to significantly reduce costs. These services intercept a fault accident claim by contacting the other party involved, offering to repair the vehicle and provide a replacement at no extra cost. If this offer is accepted, the provider can control costs by managing repair and hire needs within their network.
An accident management company's repair network is vital in keeping costs low. They inevitably have more volume to send repairers so therefore are able to negotiate better rates than an end user.
A trusted, extensive network of repairers means there's more chance of deployment into a bodyshop with the skill and capacity to complete the job rapidly and to a high standard. For example, only certain bodyshops may be able to deal with electric vehicle (EV) repairs.
Repairs are authorised by the accident management company and an ECD is provided by the bodyshop. By having an extensive and varied network of trusted repairers, including mobile and Smart repairers, accident management companies keep extensions to ECDs to a minimum.
Then, once the repairs are completed, attention turns to ensuring the repair bill matches the work that's been carried out. Here, the accident management company ensures no additional charges have been billed.
The impact of time to report on fleet costs: Control your costs with Motor Assist
How your fleet operates will influence how much impact time to report has on your costs.
Working with a provider like Motor Assist allows you to significantly reduce fault claims costs by streamlining your claims capture process, enabling a higher rate of third-party claim capture achieved through our third-party intervention service.
Want to see how we achieve these cost savings, the areas in which you'll save, and an estimated figure of possible claim savings?
Head to our free, on-page calculator by clicking below. Don't miss out on these huge potential savings for your business.
