Employer Risks When Employees Use Company Vehicles for Personal Use

Businesses are liable for company cars any time employees use them. Even when they are using them for personal use. Your company is also responsible for ensuring the vehicle is properly maintained and that the person driving your vehicle is adequately licensed to drive said vehicle. If an accident occurs when employees use company vehicles, the liability could be catastrophic if the company doesn’t take the appropriate steps to reduce risks and properly insure the vehicle and drivers.

Now that you know how important the risks are to employers who allow employees to use company vehicles for personal use, the key is to protect your interests. These are a few things you can do to accomplish that.

1. Establish clear and concise policy about personal use of company vehicles.

In addition to establishing company policies about vehicle use (observing speed limits, driving safely, etc.) the policies also need to be very specific about the following:

• After-hours use of employer vehicles.
• Personal use of employer vehicles.
• Who is allowed to drive employer-owned vehicles (for instance children and spouses of employees should not be allowed to drive these vehicles).
• Maintenance requirements related to employer-owned vehicles and who is responsible for what.
• Alcohol and medication policies related to the operation of employer-owned
• Personal insurance requirements for employees driving employer-owned vehicles.
• Requirements for employees to present vehicles for inspection by company approved or hired mechanics routinely (by date and/or by mileage).

The more details covered, in black and white, within the employee vehicle use policies, the better protection it provides your business if an accident occurs when employees are driving on company time and their own personal time, if applicable.

2. Invest in GPS Tracking for Company Cars

GPS company car tracking can be highly beneficial to organizations providing company cars to employees. Not only does it help to ensure that employees are where they should be at various points in the average day, it provides many other benefits worth considering as well, including:

• Real-time alerts when company vehicles are used during designated “sleep” hours.
• Notifications for erratic driving that indicates sleepy driving, distracted driving, intoxicated driving, speeding, aggressive driving, and other anomalies.
• Faster response times to precise GPS coordinates when accidents, injuries, or breakdowns occur.
• Automated maintenance scheduling to ensure vehicles are properly maintained and mechanically sound.

These two steps alone may not prevent all potential accidents in employer-owned vehicles, but they can greatly reduce the number of accidents your organization experiences, saving your time, money, and a large amount of aggravation along the way.

If you’re looking to add GPS tracking to your company cars, call us here at LiveView GPS at

1-888-544-0494.

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