Okay so imagine this for a second: a business is growing, orders are rolling in, everyone’s buzzing, and someone says, yeah, it’s time to add more vans. Maybe that someone is you. Well, as you know, you need to weigh out your options when it comes to fleets. But all in all, this is just exciting, it’s a good step in the right direction. And yeah, it sounds so simple in theory. Just grab a couple of vehicles, toss in the keys, and boom, you’re scaling.
Except no. It never works like that. It’s always nice in the beginning, then the real stuff hits which basically means that this isn’t what anyone thought it’d be. It’s like with a personal car, where sometimes, bad things happen. And yeah, fleet expansion always comes with these little “surprises” that eat money faster than fuel ever could, and half the time people only notice them when it’s already too late.
So, think of personal car issues, and then multiply it by ten, or, well, whatever the amount of your fleet is.
Insurance Costs Hit Different When it’s a Fleet
And it’s already too much usually for a personal car, same can be said for just one single business car. And yeah, sure, insurance sounds boring until the invoice shows up and everyone’s jaws drop. Expanding a fleet isn’t just ticking a box that says “add vehicle.” It’s this whole maze of insurance categories, rules, odd fees, and tiny conditions that feel like they were written just to confuse people.
You Need Maintenance (and a Good Vehicle)
Yeah, out of all of these, this should be addressed now because this part hits hardest. A fleet isn’t just shiny metal. Yeah, obvious enough here. But you do need to keep in mind that it’s constant upkeep, parts availability, repair downtime, and the stress that comes with choosing the wrong seller. Just keep in mind that maintenance schedules sneak up fast, and suddenly everyone’s figuring out how to keep the entire fleet running without breaking the bank (good luck to that).
Plus, it’s the vehicle and even the brand itself that you need to watch out for. Ideally, for fleets, you don’t want to get secondhand and instead it’s better to buy brand new, like going to a VW Caddy dealer because you’re still getting the space/ storage you need for a fleet, but a brand new vehicle is always going to be the safer option too.
Payload Mistakes will Absolutely Come Back to Bite
Okay, so this one happens constantly. But what exactly? Well, a business buys a van, loads it up like it’s invincible, feels great about getting work done, and then the suspension starts making those tired noises (it eventually happens). At first, there’s denial, like, yeah, maybe it was just a heavier day than usual. But no. The van really wasn’t built for that kind of load. These mistakes come back pretty fast to bite you, and it’s absolutely unfathomable how expensive this all is, too.
