Successful IFMI Expert Session on the importance of Insurance, Risk & Accident Management
On Wednesday 17th of November 2010, Fleet Europe together with partners LeasePlan, Arval, Fleet Synergy International, ALD Automotive, Mercedes-Benz and PricewaterhouseCoopers, organized the IFMI Expert Session on how to integrate Risk & Accident Management into today’s international fleet management. No less than 20 fleet decision makers from companies including Microsoft, Nokia, Accenture, KODAK, Procter & Gamble and KONE attend this IFMI Expert Session. IFMI stands for International Fleet Managers I
Wim Halsberghe (Fleet Synergy International), who drew up the scope of the theme, made it immediately clear that there is a lack of expertise, experience and knowledge when it comes to Risk & Accident Management in car fleet management. Additionally, the insurance industry is not the most communicative and innovative of industries, so this is not the most easy area within fleet management. Nevertheless it’s an important cost area because alongside the up-front cost of an accident, there are the hidden costs that can be to 3 times higher than the up-front cost.
If you want to develop an efficient Accident Management policy you need to have a clear view on your fleet, the behaviour of your drivers and the number and types of accidents & incidents. To achieve this it is necessary to develop a clear process between all involved parties such as the driver, the assistance company, the lessor, the insurance company, the legal and HR teams within the driver’s company. The goal of this process as explained by Tero Tapala (Arval) and Marc Van Eck (ALD Automotive) is to optimize processing speed and to reduce vehicle downtime and repair costs, to recover the lost money rapidly and correctly, to guarantee protection of the asset by a correctly implemented repair and finally to minimize the discomfort for the driver and any third party. And whether you choose an international umbrella approach or a more centralized, local approach in a bundled or unbundled process, both Tero Tapala and Marc Van Eck agree that Accident Management cannot be successful as a stand-alone process.
Desired risk level The start of a successful Risk Management program starts with prevention. This became clear during the presentation of Saskia Harreman (LeasePlan International). You have to identify,evaluate and prioritize the risk, identify suitable responses and select preventive measures before finally implementing them. Afterwards you have to monitor the implemented measures and organize consistent reporting communication. This exercise demands a joint and integrated process. But changing the risk attitude and behaviour of business drivers is not always as simple as that. Jan Willem Bolderdijk of the Univeristy of Groningen explained that every person has a certain desired level of risk, including when driving, and that this desired level of risk is different from the risk perception of the driver. So not every driver will react similarly to the same safety, risk or prevention measure. According to Jan Willem Bolderdijk, a mix between stimulating actions and dissuasive interventions generate the best results in decreasing this desired level of risk. As a fleet manager you can do this by introducing gain interventions (focus on money measures), normative interventions (reputation influence) or hedonic interventions (aspects of comfort and fun). It’s up to you what you do, but reputation influence seems to be an effective intervention, in the view of Jan Willem Bolderdijk.
Savings generator The monitoring and controlling of business drivers and their cars can be followed up by using tools. Unfortunately, there are not a great deal of tools available in this area, and even where they are available they lack a pan-European or global coverage. But, according to Bart Vanham (PricewaterhouseCoopers) this is a fast growing area and if used correctly it can be an efficient facilitator. Whether you improve the driver behaviour or the condition of the business car, in both cases substantial savings (fuel consumption, insurance costs, CO2-footprint) can be made, while at the same time protecting the driver, the car and the image of the company. This was clearly demonstrated by Janos Kis, from Coca-Cola Hellenic, who explained his safety and risk management strategy to the audience and proved that paying attention this matter can make a difference. It’s clear that this IFMI Expert Session proved that Accident & Risk Management demands and deserves great attention, even if it’s not the most developed and well known area within fleet management. And of course not every company has the same strategy or background, but the basics of efficient processes are the same: measurement, prevention, action, monitoring. Because every accident is an accident too much.
The next IFMI session will take place in the Spring of 2011. We will keep you informed.
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