Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions has launched a mobile phone application (app) to help manage end-of-life damage and reduce costs for company cars.
The application, which works with BlackBerry, Android and iPhone devices, features an end-of-life contract damage manager.
An employee using the system will be prompted six weeks before they are due to return their car to take photos of any damage using the technology’s functionality with the help of a copy of the BVRLA Fair Wear and Tear guide.
The Hitachi Capital team then assesses the damage and determines whether a smart repair or body-shop repair is advised prior to de-fleet to prevent employers incurring expensive de-hire charges.
Additional features include online service booking and an accident management reporter that helps drivers capture photos and data around damage, the scene, location, witnesses and any third-party details.
It also gives drivers a complete tyre-finder service to enable employees to have a tyre replaced or repaired at any ATS Euromaster centre nationally.
Mike Belcher, head of sales at Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions, said: “Our aim was to introduce a mobile [application] that not only provides our [employer] customers with all of the driver functionality that exists in the marketplace today, but also tackles end-of-life damage, which [is a] key issue.”
Hitachi Capital has also devised a grey fleet app designed to help employers build an overview of their organisation’s grey fleet. This enables drivers to input data such as their car’s registration number, MOT, insurance and servicing details.
Drivers receive a text message once a month to encourage them to update their mileage information and annually to remind them to renew their insurance and MOT.