Operator resolves dispute ‘beyond doubt’ with real-time vehicle tracking

Expressway Coaches, the Rotherham based luxury coach operator, avoided an attempted insurance fraud by making reference to its routeMASTER vehicle “trip replay” and proving beyond doubt that their vehicle was never in the vicinity of the alleged incident.

Vehicle “trip replay” is a feature of the AGM Telematics vehicle tracking used by Expressway Coaches to view the journey history of each coach in their fleet, going back to when they were first installed.

“We installed the system about two years ago” says company director Peter Regan, “mainly so we could track the whereabouts of each vehicle with greater accuracy. We hadn’t anticipated this type of application but clearly it is a bonus: When the false claim was made against us, we were able to quickly resolve the situation by sending a PDF of the actual minute-by-minute time sheet to the insurance company. No question, this saved a great deal of time and expense which otherwise may have been spent in attempting to prove our “innocence”.

Expressway Coaches provide a wide range of services which sees their 18 luxury coaches in new locations every day. From school runs, airport transfers and day trips in the UK to fully managed holiday excursions throughout Europe, the fleet is constantly on the move.

“These days we no longer need to try and contact drivers on their mobiles, because we can see where they are on the screen. This enables us to call ahead with accurate ETAs, monitor any traffic snarl ups, and of course, to keep a record of exactly where and when our drivers are at any given time.”

Furthermore, with a quick reference to routeMASTER’s detailed management reporting suite, each coach can be monitored to check for excessive idling, over revving or other driving issues. This helps when reviewing individual driver performance and to keep running costs down.

Peter also refers to a recent case when a third party agent disputed the punctuality and scheduling of an Expressway Coaches continental excursion and threatened to withhold payment. Once more, AGM was able to provide an immediate and detailed history of each coach during the journey proving that Expressway Coaches were not at fault and the dispute was quickly resolved.

“Every stop, driver break and connecting journey between services and ferries was itemised and presented with great satisfaction!” adds Peter. “We have been in business for over twenty years and quite frankly, we don’t know how we managed without AGM’s routeMASTER vehicle tracking before! We highly recommend the routeMASTER system and AGM to others for their excellent products and customer service.”