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Using telematics in the towing industry provides most of the benefits telematics provide in other industries. Other than tracking the location of where your tow trucks are headed, tracking your tow trucks using ELD solutions ensures your tow trucks get to their service areas in the shortest amount of time possible. In cases of large accidents, this could potentially save many other cars from traffic and let people get to their destinations with the least amount of disruption possible. But most importantly telematics play an important role in tracking the PTO in a tow truck.
Tow trucks use a mechanism called the Power Take Off (PTO). The PTO in a tow truck is a way to divert power from the engine of the truck to the towing mechanism attached to the truck. In order to provide this power, the truck is left idle to keep the engine running and transfer the power to the equipment. The same mechanism can be found in trucks installed with a dump truck bed or a garbage truck with a compactor or even shredders on smaller trucks. Ideally, when using PTO, the vehicle should not be moving as doing so will place stress on the engine and cause expensive motor damage. This is where telematics come into play.
Tow trucks are always called to the worst scenarios. From little accidents to fatal car crashes, tow trucks battle through wind and rain to get to the scene as soon as possible. In this line of work, driving fast under severe weather conditions and undesirable road conditions makes it dangerous for tow truck drivers. With the help of telematics, fleet managers can update their drivers with the most recent weather or road alerts.
Knowing that their trucks are installed with technologies, drivers also drive with a peace of mind. The towing industry is facing a problem with a shortage of drivers, making driver retention an important issue fleet managers face. Safety measures with telematics as well as developing driver programs that reward safe driving and discourage bad behaviors encourage your drivers to stay with you for the long haul. Read more about ways to appreciate your drivers in this blog post here.
Tow trucks are expensive and so are the accidents it gets into. When a heavy tow truck runs into a passenger car, the damages to it may cost up to tens and hundreds of thousands for insurance. Dash cameras ensure that you will have video proof of everything that happened. Whether it was your driver’s fault or the passenger vehicle’s fault, you potentially save a lot of money in insurance with a simple dash camera installed. To see Fleethunt dash cameras, click here.
Tracking the PTO of your vehicles not only ensures the safety and well-being of your vehicle, but it also provides detailed reports on PTO usage as well, making it easy for you to manage and monitor the use of PTO among your vehicles.