Fleet Management Services Can Help Delivery Services and Their Drivers

The call of the open road is enough of an allure to some that they’ll switch career gears and find themselves covering thousands upon thousands of miles behind the wheel. There’s also good news for those considering this field: According to mid-2018 statistics from The Washington Post, there were approximately 51,000 openings that the industry as a whole would need filled if it wanted to operate correctly. Readers who view themselves as delivery and truck drivers in the making may have found a calling, but it never hurts to learn a little bit more about the industry and career path before committing. This knowledge can range from driving techniques from veterans to working with your employer’s commercial fleet services provider to get the latest training. We’ll cover these topics and more in this blog post to help those considering a career as a driver gain a bit more insight.

The first step: A commercial driver's license (CDL) is something every prospective truck driver is going to need to hold in their hand. Some who are new to the industry may think that obtaining their CDL license is only required for driving tractor trailers. That’s not always the case, as organizations that offer fleet management services will be quick to note that the CDL license is also required for delivery driver gigs in smaller “box” trucks, too. DMV.org points out that the testing process varies from state to state but in the end, you’ll be able to “operate certain types of vehicles that are off limits to regular drivers.”

What not to do: According to Smart-Trucking.com, reducing the likelihood of an accident during your first year should be near the top of your priority list. “Do your very best to avoid accidents. They will show up on your driving record (also known as a ‘DAC’ report, according to the article]. Many incidents are preventable and unnecessary,” the website states. In the event of an accident, your employer’s fleet accident management provider may step in to handle the logistics. These entities are responsible for dealing with insurance companies, appraising damage and coordinating work with repair shops.

Who you’ll be working with: While you are most certainly the only one behind the wheel of your delivery truck, that doesn’t mean you won’t be in contact with dispatchers and other experts who handle commercial fleet services. There are quite literally so many moving parts to these types of operations that an individual trucker can expect to hear from fleet management services when it comes to logistics, planning and getting the goods in the back of your truck to where they need to be – and doing so on time.