AA Business Services: van downtime costs £1,172 a day as VOR becomes 'critical' risk
A new AA Business Services 'Yellow Paper' finds UK businesses lost an average of six-and-a-half days to vehicle off-road time in the past year, with ageing fleets, poor roads and technician shortages cited as causes.
AA Business Services has published a new report in its 'Yellow Paper' series, Keeping Business Moving: Minimising Downtime, Optimising Performance, warning that vehicle off-road (VOR) time has become a critical business resilience issue for UK fleets.
According to the report, as reported by Fleet World, UK businesses experienced an average of six-and-a-half days of VOR disruption over the past year, with downtime costing an average of £1,172 a day for every van out of action.
The AA also found that almost half of fleets face financial penalties when vehicles are unavailable for a week or more. The report attributes downtime to ageing fleets, poorly maintained roads and shortages of technicians, and points to predictive maintenance and connected vehicle technology as tools for preventing and managing VOR.
AA president Edmund King said vehicle downtime "has always been a challenge for businesses, but the scale and complexity of today's operating environment means it's fast becoming a critical business resilience issue," adding that understanding VOR is key to prevention.
James Starling, director of AA Business Services, said: “Fleet resilience is a key competitive advantage in the current environment,” adding: “That’s why the most proactive and robust fleets are tackling issues before they occur. The fleets that thrive over the next ten years will be those with a VOR plan to improve operational resilience across the board.”
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