Protecting your fleet’s tires is vital to business success for freight companies. Failing to keep tires intact can easily spell disaster, with every drive potentially leading closer to danger. Even so, danger and damage can be avoided by ensuring your trucks are intact.
The Department of Transportation estimates that there are about 500,000 trucking accidents each year.The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety also stated that large trucks contributed to 10% of total fatalities occurring in 2011.Though rates are dropping, these figures show that it’s still important for freight companies to be concerned about the quality of their vehicles. Here are a few of the top tire issues to avoid and to keep your trucks safe on the road.
1) Proper tire inflation is key; if they don’t work, you don’t drive. Did you know that 22 percent of tires are reported to be underinflated? Companies ought to check their tires weekly (at the very minimum) to determine which vehicles are fit for the road.
2) Hidden problems throughout your vehicle may also contribute to tire damage and hurt the truck overall. Wear and tear, improper alignment, bad brakes, unbalanced wheels and more can negatively impact truck performance.
3) Not matching the right tires for the right function you’re performing will be another factor that causes damage. Pairing your tires to the condition you’re vehicles are traveling in is imperative for successful trips.
4) Inspecting your trucking fleet is a surefire way to discover any potential problems and avoid any bad consequences. It allows you to see the condition of everything firsthand, letting you know whether you need to do a recall, order new tires, buy new trucks or purchase any updated equipment.
Your freight company can’t operate safely without fully functional tires. Keep drivers safe and vehicles on the road by monitoring tire pressure, ensuring proper alignment, watching for wear and tear, and selecting the proper tires for each truck.
The freight factoring experts at EZ Invoice Factoring can help provide instant cash flow for freight carriers to keep up with sudden repairs, truck maintenance costs, fuel costs and other operating expenses. Freight factoring is a debt-free solution to keeping drivers on the road despite extenuating circumstances that often disrupt cash flow.
