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Road transport operators are scared of admitting that the use of technology, such as vehicle tracking, can help save them significant amounts of money.That's the claim from Tony Neill, vice-president Europe, Middle East and Africa at telematics provider Navman. He says: "It takes a brave person to admit that they could be saving 20% of their running costs [through using technology].

"You have still got transport managers who say 'I know everything that's happen-ing with my drivers', but  how can they?" He adds: "There's still a view as well that they would rather have a bad driver than have to go out and find a new one. "They would rather focus on the cost of fuel, or tax-ation, or whatever other piece of legislation rather than actively changing their own behaviour or that of their drivers."

He says it will take customer pressure and increasing visibility of the supply chain to create the critical mass necessary to achieve full market penetration. According to Navman, at the moment only around 12% of operators make use of telematics. He adds: "The cheapest Navman package is 70p per truck per day. Irrespective of fleet size, how can you not save that [by using the technology]?

"We are selling a product that saves you money - you'd think that with margins so tight in the haulage sector they'd want the savings. However, it seems to be the reverse - firms take longer to make a decision and spend the money."