Case study: Arval

Tracey Scarr, Arval fleet and road safety manager, is forecasting that the company’s incident rate will stay at 18% this year, having fallen from 40% in 2007.

“It’s okay if the incident rate plateaus,” she says.

“It’s to be expected as we get better at what we do. But the challenge is understanding how much lower the incident rate can go.”

Scarr prefers to focus on the type of incidents that are occurring rather than setting a target for the rate to drop by.

This year the cost of incidents is 50% lower – a fact which Scarr attributes to drivers having fewer serious accidents.

There have also been year-on-year reductions for the number of own fault accidents versus the number of third-party fault accidents.

The ratio has fallen from the industry benchmark 70/30 (driver fault/third party) three years ago to 55/45 (driver fault/third party).

However, there is still work to be done.

Parking incidents are still occurring despite fitting parking sensors as standard.

Scarr thinks there may be “a degree of complacency and reliance” on the sensors from some drivers and she will be reminding them not to rely on the sensors completely.

She has also identified that accidents have occurred when drivers have been in different vehicles.

“It’s not necessarily the cause of the crash, but it suggests that we may need to do some work on vehicle familiarisation,” says Scarr.

She also doesn’t overlook incidents where another driver has been at fault because “our drivers might not have helped the situation”.

“We look at every incident and always talk to drivers to make sure they are okay and to get the driver to reflect on what has happened,” says Scarr.

“If the accident occurred at a junction or a roundabout, was it because we hesitated? Or were we not showing our brake lights enough? Did we stop abruptly?”

The last time Arval’s accident rate more or less plateaued was 2009-2010.

This was down to the harsh winter, according to Scarr. The fleet was on course for a “good year” incident-wise, but the winter saw an increase in ice and snow-related incidents.

To try to address this issue she includes winter driving advice in her driver newsletters.

The reduction from 24% in 2010 to 18% last year was achieved by a “big push” with driver training, which takes place on a two-year cycle.

In the interim Scarr raises driver awareness about road safety through workshops and campaigns.

Next year she is considering putting drivers through monthly e-learning courses.