Staying compliant with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulations is one of the most crucial aspects of any fleet manager’s job, particularly for large fleets with many vehicles. The ELD mandate requires that fleets install an electronic logging device (ELD) in all of their vehicles to keep track of driver hours of service.
There are many reasons why maintaining compliance is essential. It saves money on fees and supports the effective by ensuring drivers stay on the road instead of being taken out of service, but it also keeps drivers safe, which is why these regulations exist in the first place. Compliance can seem challenging, but ELDs like Azuga’s can make it easy to maintain compliance with these regulations. Find out how Azuga’s ELD works.
What Do Azuga ELDs Do?
Azuga ELDs, or Azuga electronic logbooks, take all the guesswork out of tracking driver hours. Fleet managers can avoid violations with alerts when drivers are close to their hours of service limits. If a violation does occur, the fleet manager receives an alert as well. Azuga’s electronic logbooks also have conflict detection, so if there are inconsistent or incomplete logs, the system will detect and alert managers to resolve the issue. Therefore, managers can ensure there are no errors and drivers submit DVIRs on time. Back office reporting allows fleet managers to make proactive decisions to avoid hours of service violations.
How Do Azuga ELDs Reduce Compliance Violations?
First of all, electronic logbooks reduce errors by eliminating paper logs and simplifying the reporting process. Automating this process also eases responsibilities on administrative staff, freeing them up to do other tasks.
Secondly, drivers are always aware of how much availability they have left, allowing them to manage their time successfully. If they ever come close to a violation, an alert will notify them to take action to fix the issue. These alerts can be configured to each business’s needs to associate to violations, certifications, DVIRs, or more.
Thirdly, the information is easy to access for a roadside inspection. When a driver pulls over for a DOT inspection, they don’t want to be digging through six months’ worth of paperwork. It’s much easier to have all of the information they need right on their screen, easy to pull up and display. Computerized logs also make the auditing process easier, as everything needed is right there in the system, and they won't need to waste time searching through paperwork.
Fleet managers have the advantage of viewing driver availability in real-time. This feature allows them to plan routes easily and manage driver time effectively, so they don’t run into any violation issues with scheduling. Managers can view comprehensive reports that include driver logs, violations, driver time, mileage summaries, driver availability, and more. All of this information is automated to avoid wasted resources and administrative time.
Why is it Important to be Compliant?
A fleet’s number one priority should always be driver safety, and the purpose of the ELD mandate is to keep drivers safe. When the rule was introduced, it was estimated to prevent 31 deaths and 2,217 truck crashes annually. Due to the increase in trucking volume since implementing the rule, it is difficult to say whether this goal has been accomplished. Even so, keeping drivers awake, focused, and alert is unquestionably safer than letting them drive for too long.
Breaking compliance can also be highly costly to businesses. A payout for an ELD violation can range anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000, depending on the severity of the violation. The average payout is $2,867, and this can add up very quickly if a fleet has multiple vehicles that are not in compliance.
Even worse, a vehicle can be placed out of service. Vehicles placed out of service can be off the road for up to 10 hours or even days if the violations continue. This lost revenue, combined with fines for violations, will cost businesses greatly.
Finally, violations lower a business’s CSA scores. A CSA score is a compliance, safety, and accountability score determining how risky a motor carrier is on a 100 point scale. The higher a fleet ranks, the riskier they are. Having a high score can lead to a negative reputation in the community, losing customers and partners.
Conclusion
With Azuga’s ELDs, there’s no excuse not to be compliant with FMCSA guidelines. It’s easier to maintain compliance than to risk your business’s success and reputation by remaining non-compliant. Find out more about Azuga’s logbooks and determine a solution that works for you by reaching out to the experts at Azuga today!
