Fleet vehicles are common in many industries and they allow companies to perform services out of vehicles marked with the company's information. A small or large fleet of vehicles needs to be maintained on a regular basis to preserve the quality and resale-ability of the vehicle.

One of the biggest problems with fleet vehicles is the abuse they incur from multiple employees driving them. Most employees will respect the company's vehicle and drive it within the guidelines set forth, but there are some employees who will not pay attention to policies and cause unnecessary damage to vehicles.

When it comes time for a company to sell off their fleet, the vehicles must be in decent condition or the company will lose money on them. Not sure how an employee's disregard for your vehicle affects the price? Here are a few ways how:

Vehicle Maintenance and Repairs

If your fleet vehicles are not making it to the shop when they need to, the vehicles are sustaining damage. Maintenance checks such as fluid flushes and oil changes are required to keep the vehicle running smoothly. Repeatedly missed service appointments can lead to engine and transmission problems prematurely in the vehicle. 

It is vital that the company has a policy in place to ensure that all of the vehicles make it to the automotive shop to have their regularly performed maintenance.

No Smoking Allowed

People smoke and there is nothing you can do about their lifestyle choice, but you can put a policy in place to prohibit smoking inside of your fleet vehicles. Smoke inside of the vehicle will devalue the vehicle when it comes time to sell.

In addition, the smoke can leave a yellow film on your vehicle's windshield, seats, and dashboard, making it less desirable for other people to drive and work out of.

Too Many Miles

If your fleet vehicle has too many miles on it, you will receive less than the value of it. Of course, your fleet vehicles will gain a lot of mileage depending on how far they travel and how often they are out on the road. You can put a policy in place that required rotation of the vehicles to ensure each one gets the same amount of wear and one vehicle is not overused.

If you believe that your employees are driving the vehicle more than they should be, consider installing a GPS software to track the mileage and location of the vehicles.

Keep Your Fleet Vehicles in Good Condition

To keep your company's fleet vehicles in great condition, you need to make sure that you have policies in place that address when the vehicle needs to receive its service, how often the vehicle should be driven, and of course, guidelines to prevent interior damage of the vehicle such as no smoking. If you put these policies into place, you will find that your fleet vehicles fetch more money when it comes time to sell them and you will spend less on overall costs to replace parts on the vehicle that wear down due to improper care.

Talk to automotive specialists and fleet servicing companies, like Parkway Wrecker Service, for more information.