Nigel Grainger brings together a related set of skills that all fleets require, to greater or lesser
degrees, but which may not have the staffing or the skills to fulfil those needs.
Bringing his wealth of experience in all areas of fleet management he offers a bespoke service through his company Fleet Risk Consultants, providing you with a cost effective fleet that complies fully with your 'duty of care' requirements.Why you really SHOULD read the manual.
Last week I attended the scene of a minor collision within the confines of a car park. The incident was caused because the driver of one of the cars had failed to apply the handbrake in accordance with the instructions provided by the manufacturer.
The trouble with modern cars, which generally are now fitted with disc brakes at the rear, is that when the vehicle is parked with hot brakes and the handbrake applied without being fully tightened, when the brakes cool down the handbrake then releases and the vehicle will roll freely.
This is what happened in the case last week, the lady had parked her car facing down a small slope and it rolled down into another vehicle. It was obvious after the incident that the handbrake was still applied, but obviously not correctly. The really silly thing is that it was an easily avoided incident.
As I explained to the lady, if she had left it in gear (Reverse in this case) the car would not have rolled down the hill at all as the gearbox would hold the car stationary. This is the case will all vehicles and is why I always leave my car in gear, just in case.
As we are always saying here, read the handbook and know the rules.
Nigel Grainger
Senior Consultant
Fleet Risk Consultants