Ways to protect your fleet during hurricane season
Ways to protect your fleet during hurricane season
The Atlantic hurricane season lasts from June 1 through November 30. In recent years, hurricanes left businesses with increasing damage costs. What can fleets do to protect drivers and valuable assets?
To start, Fleet Managers should stay up to date and have a reliable source for weather updates and forecast predictions.
It is known that the impact of hurricanes impacts fleet navigation, fuel access and interrupts supply chains. It is a best practice to have extra fuel saved ahead of time. If your facility has an onsite fuel storage tank, make sure it is topped off before the storm arrives. If that is not possible, supply drivers with a couple portable fuel canisters. It is important to proactively complete any needed maintenance and repairs because service locations will likely be closed, and parts may not be available for a few days after a hurricane.
Hurricanes often create a situation for people and businesses where there is no room for error. For business owners, this means knowing where your vehicles are. Telematics programs are crucial and can be an incredible asset to your fleet when preparing for storm impact.
Companies should also consider if they qualify or can use relief resources provided through Manheim, a Cox Enterprises division can access Cox Employee Relief Fund (CERF) which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides financial assistance to team members with unexpected needs resulting from a disaster.
Other ways to protect your fleet, ahead of being prepared is to connect with your Enterprise Fleet team and vendors like Geotab and WEX to source tips including moving vehicles to higher ground, driving out of the impact area or finding secure locations to store vehicles during the inclement weather event. Save the phone number and email for your local Enterprise Fleet Management Client Strategy Manager. For vehicles on an Enterprise maintenance programs, save the phone number for our National Service Department (NSD), 1-800-325-8838. NSD can help you set up a tow service, locate a service vendor that is open for business, or help answer any maintenance and repair questions.
Finding ways to secure communication with drivers and operators in the impacted zone can help employees stay safe. It is recommended to have a list of personal phone numbers and email addresses for employees and drivers in the event normal business communication channels are disrupted.
Companies should also be aware of the present and continued danger in the post-inclement weather area. Flooding, downed powerlines and other impacts can result in delays to service and recovery efforts. Do not drive into standing water. In some cases, it only takes a few inches of water to stall an engine, cause expensive damage, strand a driver in water, and cause floatation of the vehicle. If the water is moving with current, this can be extremely dangerous.