Why your trailer should have a GPS tracker

GPS tracking has become one of the most intuitive ways to keep tabs on your assets, especially if you rely on them for day to day business operations.

That being said, it's important to keep track of your trailer at all times, as it is one of the most valuable ways to transport heavy goods between one point and another. Here are some of the reasons why your trailer should have GPS tracking:

If you have a fleet of trailers and don't want to keep track of them all manually, GPS tracking can help you stay organised and make sure that every trailer is where it belongs, and that it isn't leaving its designated area. Teletrack can notify you via email or text if a trailer has moved beyond its set geo-fence, so you can effectively call the local authorities or — depending on its mobility type — immobilise it remotely.

If you've insured your trailer, and it gets stolen or damaged, you could be out of luck if there's no proof of where it was at the time of theft or damage. In the case you do have a GPS tracker on your trailer, and you have access to it, the data collected and stored on the tracker can help to identify the whereabouts of the trailer during an insurance claim. With Teletrack however, the need to access the tracker is completely removed as the data collected from the GPS tracker is securely sent using 4G and stored on a remote server that can be accessed with the user's own credentials.

If you're using your trailer for business purposes and are deducting its value from your taxes, having a GPS tracker can help prove that the value of the item was used for business purposes rather than personal ones (or vice versa). With a subscription to Teletrack you can also access intuitive maps and travel meters that can assist in calculating car-related business expenses such as the cents per kilometre method.

You'll know who has access to your trailer at all times. If there's someone who shouldn't be driving a particular trailer — or entering any of the compartments in that trailer — GPS tracking lets you know when they do so that you can step in and take action immediately. If you purchase a GPS assigned to our Teletrack platform, you will be able to access the Driver IDs of all your employees, and if one of them attempts to mobilise a trailer without the proper training, you'll be notified about it in a matter of seconds.

If you suspect one of your employees are operating your trailer without due diligence, you can analyse the speed, kilometres and hours of the GPS tracker to find irregularities and take action where necessary. However, if you use Teletrack with your tracker you can access personalised reports that highlight possible infringements, cutting out the time spent reviewing thousands of line data.

If your trailer is being used on a regular basis, you are likely servicing it throughout the year. Remembering to stay on top of the services can be quite difficult, but with a GPS tracker, this process can be significantly streamlined. Depending on the tracker, you get the hours and kilometres of the trailer constantly tracked within the GPS tracker. If you combine the statistics of the tracker with a platform like Teletrack, you can set reminders of upcoming services when a certain rule is met — for example, a service is required every 10,000 hours.

There are various positives to using GPS trackers for trailers, especially when paired with the right telematics platform. Benefits range from maintenance scheduling to fleet monitoring and insurance support.