{"id":122,"date":"2024-03-19T10:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-19T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/?p=122"},"modified":"2024-03-18T11:09:44","modified_gmt":"2024-03-18T15:09:44","slug":"reducing-lot-damage-is-no-accident","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/?p=122","title":{"rendered":"Reducing Lot Damage is No Accident"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Despite advancements in vehicle technology, like backup cameras and driver assistance systems, including forward collision warning systems (FCS), accidents happen. But do they need to? On the roads, 94% of accidents result from human error. On the dealership lot, it is probably closer to 100%. I\u2019m perplexed when I hear an expense came from lot damage, not because technology should have prevented it but because there are many ways to avoid accidents, where the repair cost ends up in the policy or vehicle expense account, and in the case of a Customer\u2019s vehicle\u2014your reputation. Lot damage is preventable if you make it a priority.
1) Angled parking: <\/strong> Angled parking results in turns that are gentler than perpendicular parking and require less steering, so angled parking is easier and requires less time to park a vehicle. Time saver and money saver! Angled parking requires less space on the lot because of one-way driving; it doesn\u2019t need enough room for two vehicles to pass. Observe how easy it is the next time you are in a parking lot with angled parking versus maneuvering an F150 into a perpendicular spot designed for a Pinto. If you restripe your parking lot, don\u2019t forget one-way arrows, designated pedestrian crossings, and include parking space numbers to easily locate Service vehicles.
2) Safety Accessories<\/strong>: Speed humps slow traffic down. The advantage of speed humps over speed bumps is there is less of a jolt for the vehicle traveling over them. Speed humps measure from 2\u201d\u20144\u201d at their peak. Since your folks shouldn\u2019t drive over 5 miles an hour, the chance for damage is zero. Purchase humps that can be moved and reinstalled for paving. Install blind spot mirrors at every corner to prevent someone from saying they didn\u2019t see the other vehicle. And don\u2019t forget signage.
3) Add bollards<\/strong> to prevent the risk of damage to buildings or equipment from vehicles. Padded covers or flexible posts for your Service and Body Shop can minimize minor dents and scratches. (I use swim noodles on the edges of shelves so I don\u2019t have to make another trip to the Body Shop when I park in my garage.)
4) Written Policies<\/strong>: All this protection won\u2019t help if your folks are driving distracted. If employees are texting or talking on the phone while driving on your lot or under the \u201cinfluence,\u201d you are bound to have accidents. Have a written dealership policy, reviewed by a lawyer that spells out your driving policies and holds the guilty party responsible for the repairs.
5) For your Employees who drive your vehicles on the roads\u2014parts delivery vans, shuttle drivers, pick up\/deliver drivers, and salespeople; enroll them in Fleet Defensive Driving Courses. Online training could protect your employees and vehicles better than the hope that the employees remember what they learned in a driving course (10 \u2013 30 years ago) \u2014 if they even had formal training. You may also save money on insurance, and in the case of an accident, your commitment to training shows that you take safe driving seriously, perhaps reducing your liability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Safety is everyone\u2019s responsibility, but management must be committed to keeping everyone safe and reducing the chances of accidents.
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Despite advancements in vehicle technology, like backup cameras and driver assistance systems, including forward collision warning systems (FCS), accidents happen. But do they need to? On the roads, 94% of accidents result from human error. On the dealership lot, it is probably closer to 100%. I\u2019m perplexed when I hear an expense came from lot […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[14,37,38,40,39],"class_list":["post-122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","tag-best-practices","tag-dealership-accidents","tag-dealership-lot-damage","tag-dealership-safety","tag-lot-damage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=122"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":135,"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122\/revisions\/135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.profits4dealers.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}