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What is a fleet audit and what is it for?
As mentioned above, the aim of a fleet audit is to optimise the management of your vehicle fleet (fleet management) so that it costs as little as possible and is as efficient as possible.
An audit involves gathering information on the vehicle fleet, measuring the compliance of fleet operations against your company's processes, procedures and policies. To ensure that all the rules are complied with, an audit will also study your company's needs and ensure that your vehicle fleet becomes more efficient.
Any fleet audit will assess:
- If the company stores fleet information correctly.
- Whether the company complies with its processes, procedures and policies for operating its fleet.
This assessment is generally carried out when a company or local authority wants to reduce the operating costs of its fleet.
In the case of an electric car audit, in addition to the usual points, you will also need to put a figure on the cost of the electric car.autonomy of the vehicle, but also its recharging and recharging points.
After all, the number of electric cars in your fleet will continue to grow. In recent years, there has been a real desire on the part of the government to reduce the CO2 emissions of cars.carbon footprint companies to protect the environment. This commitment is reflected in a number of regulations that will come into force over the next few years.
For example, from 2022, it will be mandatory to include 10% of clean vehicles in all fleet renewals involving more than 100 vehicles. So we need to start thinking now about choosing partners who are experts in electric vehicles, to make this transition easier.
To find out more : everything you need to know about the vehicle fleet.
Why carry out an audit of vehicle fleet ?
An audit of your vehicle fleet can be carried out for a number of reasons. It may be essential in the event of restructuring to make savings, or in the event of a change in the number of vehicles in your fleet.
A clear view of your vehicle fleet
Carrying out an audit of your vehicle fleet will give you an overall view of your fleet and the possible levers for optimisation. The aim is to understand how the fleet is operating at any given time and how much it is costing the company. A fleet audit involves analysing your fleet and comparing it with best practice.
A new financial or structuring objective
An audit of your fleet of vehicles can also be used in the event of an increase in your vehicle-related costs that you do not understand. The aim is to carry out a fleet audit to reduce costs. The first step is to optimise the fluidity and operability of the vehicles, so as to reduce costs in a second phase.
The other reason for an audit may be due to a large number of recently acquired vehicles, a change in the fleet or a change in the company's needs, in which case the audit is part of a structuring plan. This is necessary, for example, when a company is rapidly increasing its number of vehicles.
Taking action for the environment
The reasons for the audit may also be different, for example following the introduction of the WLTP or the Mobility Orientation Act (LOM).
What's more, with the increasing number of regulations concerning clean vehicles, companies want to know how they can make their fleet cleaner or reduce their number of vehicles. Or simply, in line with their CSR, Some companies want to reduce their carbon footprint by making the ecological transition of their business.
In this case, it is necessary to calculate its carbon footprint before we start putting the solutions into practice.
How do you carry out a fleet audit?
The fleet audit can be carried out by your fleet manager, but for a more qualitative and serious result, it is safer to turn to a consulting firm. What's more, some fleets require special expertise, such as fleets made up of electric vehicles or made up entirely of green vehicles.
For fleets with electric vehicles, Beev can help you by offering its expertise in this field. For example, you will need to use special management software for these vehicles. For more information about our consulting services, you can request a free diagnosis. Our Beev experts will support you throughout your project.
Our checklist for carrying out your own fleet audit
Carrying out an audit of your vehicle fleet is a complicated and time-consuming process, so we've put together a checklist of points to cover.
- Fleet policy
- Review the fleet safety policy
- Check health and safety policies
- Vehicles
- Examine comments on the condition of vehicles
- Examine vehicle defect forms
- Review vehicle monitoring procedures
- Review the forecast vehicle replacement plan
- Analyse fuel consumption
- Drivers
- Assessing drivers
- Inspecting insurance agreements
- Check the operator's licence
- Check the operator's licence
- Third party
- Examine third-party service providers
- Fleet Safety
- Assessing safety
- Operational
- Examine the inventory
Are you still struggling to complete your audit despite our checklist? Contact us and we'll put our skills to work for you.
What do you need to know about fleet audits?
Who commissions the fleet audit?
When carried out by an external service provider, the audit can be commissioned by different types of people.
Requests generally come from specialist departments who are aware that there are areas for improvement or who need help with a refresher course, often finance managers for example," explains Maxime Sartorius, CEO of Direct Fleet.
The sponsor is an operational rather than a strategic position: it is often someone from management, general services or the quality department, who needs a global vision. In practice, a purchasing director or finance director will be more focused on costs, by renegotiating contracts but also by deploying a more concentrated catalogue, for example by reducing the number of vehicles in an HR category from four to two," explains Arnaud Perrin, director of Ressource Consulting.
The fleet manager or HR department will pay much more attention to the range of vehicles available for the driver and to how smoothly the system can be managed.
It should be noted that it is very rarely the fleet manager who requests an audit, as he or she does not necessarily have the power to commission this type of assignment, which is more the responsibility of his or her N+1.
Any deadlines to consider?
A fleet audit requires an investment of time. "It takes at least two to three weeks to complete, bearing in mind that most audits last between four and eight weeks. In practice, the time taken depends on the size of the fleet. The more vehicles, the more suppliers and data. However, data collection will be easier in a large fleet if it is well structured and managed.
Conclusion
In conclusion, carrying out an audit of your vehicle fleet is a complex process, but one that is necessary for good fleet management of your company's vehicle fleet. It will allow you to adapt your fleet to your new needs and ensure that the vehicles are managed correctly and that there are no errors in the fleet management of your vehicle fleet. We recommend that you carry out an internal audit (i.e. carried out by the fleet manager) every year, and external audits (i.e. carried out by a consultancy firm) whenever your fleet or your company has undergone major changes since the last external audit. For example, there may be an increase in the number of vehicles in the fleet, or a change in the brand's requirements.
