Those of you working in the home services industry have a good chance of facing numerous challenges in maintaining your fleet of vehicles. As you expand your reach beyond just a city and into multiple cities (or across state lines), managing those vehicles can start to become expensive if you ignore certain issues.
Traveling to thousands of homes per year is going to put a lot of wear and tear on those trucks. When you're solely responsible for your vehicles after investing significant capital, it becomes all the more expensive. Vehicle leasing for home service companies is something that can help your company significantly and here are a few of the ways:
Determining How Many Miles Your Trucks Travel
Several years ago, reports were that most drivers in the fleet industry grossly underestimate how many personal use miles they put into their trucks.
This may happen with your home service trucks, leaving a big unknown on how many miles your drivers are putting in per day. Obviously, this could become risky because non-reported miles means higher gas costs and eventual mechanical breakdowns.
When you make an assumption on what your drivers do, you're really underestimating how much maintenance your fleet vehicles need. However, keeping up with maintenance guarantees spotting problems early and improving your mileage with something as simple as an oil filter.
The Expense of Buying Your Own Fleet Vehicles
Being in the home service industry, you may need overly large trucks, depending on what services you offer. If dealing in roofing repair, you may need a slightly larger vehicle than if running a plumbing business.
No matter the size of your vehicles, buying them is going to cost you thousands of dollars. An initial investment like this typically includes hiring a fleet manager who takes care of everything, including repairs. The problem is, hiring a fleet manager brings additional cost having them on your payroll.
Outsourcing your fleet management already has multiple advantages, particularly if you can outsource on a local basis. A localized outsourcing company helps get your home service vehicles in for repairs sooner without needing to drive long distances.
Advantages to Leasing Your Fleet Vehicles
Imagine being able to find a company not only offering outsourced fleet management, but also leased vehicles. It's important to take both seriously as major money savers so you can use that money for other important things in your company.
Plenty of evidence exists showing how much your home services business can save on maintenance costs when you lease. A while ago, we wrote about how government fleets save up to $2,000 per year when leasing their vehicles.
Whether you choose an open-end or closed-end lease, you'll be able to preserve your capital while using saved funds for growing your business.
Finding a Company With Quality Vehicles and Management
It's not overly common to find outsourced companies offering fleet management and vehicle leasing. If you're searching for such a company, you need to find out what the quality of the vehicles are. The newer they are, the more leasing can help you.
Walk-away leases are also a good option. You may prefer this if planning to invest in fleet vehicles later, yet need trucks now to get your home services business underway. These plans provide everything you need to succeed, other than insurance, fuel, or glass repair. Once the lease is over, you simply turn in the vehicles and move on.
Keep in mind you'll also want the ability to customize your vehicle when you lease, something you can do here at Wilmar, Inc.
Contact us to find out about our own fleet management and leasing plans for your home services company. We even offer leased equipment to help take your business to new levels.
Outsourcing fleet management and leasing your vehicles is a more efficient solution.
