What you need to know about getting a vehicle tracking device is that it’s one of the smartest things you can do for your personal car or your company’s vehicles. Installation doesn’t take long, and neither does regular testing.
But what real value does vehicle tracking bring to your life or your business?
Cartrack does a deep dive on what you should know before getting a vehicle tracking device, including questions you should ask the provider you opt for.
Knowing a little about vehicle tracking will help you during the quote & order process. There are some important questions to ask before deciding on a tracking provider, and since there are many options available, what should you be asking when you call in?
We’ve compiled a list of questions to ask your vehicle tracking provider before committing.
Vehicle tracking is about more than just retrieving your vehicle. It's also a way to keep your family safe on the road in case of a hijacking. For this reason, we take tracking seriously; since criminals are finding ways to bypass GPS vehicle trackers.
Cartrack has designed a backup tracking method that helps us locate your car if criminals use illegal jammers to scramble the GPS signal on your device. The Cartrack Tag transmits using an independent radio frequency, and jammers don’t work to scramble this signal.
So why not ONLY use the CT Tag for tracking vehicles? If it’s immune to jamming, shouldn’t we simply scrap GPS vehicle tracking and use RF trackers instead?
The short answer is NO. The CT Tag needs other CT tags to work, because it uses a transmitting process called, “triangulation” which depends on other CT tags to provide your vehicle’s location. This is great when your car is in a town or city where other tags exist, but not ideal when your vehicle is out alone in open spaces.
For this reason, having both is ideal for making sure we can always track your vehicle and attempt to recover it.
The installation of your device is a process worth preparing for. We spoke to 2 service agents working within the Cartrack tracking device fitment department, and here’s what they said they wished customers knew before scheduling a car tracker installation.
You will start paying a monthly subscription from the day when your tracking device is installed. This means that if you took the contract out on the 3rd, set your debit date as the 28th, but had the tracker fitted on the 16th, you’ll pay a pro rata amount for the 16th to the 28th in addition to the forward-month billing for the 28th to the 28th of the following month.
Remember to set aside the following possible fitment times for installation of your device:
Monday to Friday (not including public holidays)
Saturdays
Sundays
You might need to take a few hours off work to have your tracking device installed. Technicians are more than happy to come to you to perform the installation, but we’ll need you to be semi-present, which means you’ll need to make the time for us to do so.
Once the device is tested, our technicians need to test it. This means we can’t do the installation in an underground parking area. Also, the location of the device in your car is secret, so we’ll need to do it in a spot where passersby can’t see where the device is being fitted.
Tracking your vehicle with Cartrack South Africa opens up a range of other benefits for motorists. As our motto states, “Cartrack: Putting you back in control.” You gain this control by having all the tracking information you need on your phone via the Cartrack app.
But this app has other features besides being able to view your car’s location on a map. We also offer you extra protection through our add-on applications that work hand-in-hand with your vehicle tracker.
Discuss any of these with one of our consultants when ordering a tracking device for your personal vehicle:
For a small extra fee, your regular tracking service can be complimented with Protector, Cartrack’s roadside assistance service. This includes medical help while you’re out on the roads of South Africa, as well as breakdown assistance & towing if you’re stuck on the side of the road.
How it works: If you’re stuck on the side of the road, open your app and navigate to Protector. Then simply choose either the roadside or medical panic button, and we’ll contact you in a matter of seconds.
Your tracking device does more than just provide your vehicle’s location. It also has sensors that detect when you’ve been in a collision. Even a minor fender-bender can be detected, which helps us know when you might be in a dangerous situation.
How it works: You can add the numbers of loved ones on the app. If you’re in a collision, those loved ones will receive an SMS alerting them to the fact. Cartrack’s control room will also be alerted, and we’ll call to check on you and help where we can.
Because your vehicle is now trackable, we can add extra notifications that keep tabs on where it’s parked and whether it stays there. If it moves without your authorisation, you’ll get an alert sent to your phone, giving you a chance to contact us and start the vehicle recovery process.
How it works: A communication connection is made between the vehicle and the app. So if the car moves without your phone being in the same vicinity, we’ll know that something is off and contact you to see if we should take action.
Instead of having a manual logbook, you can use our automatic digital logbook within the Cartrack app to categorise your vehicle expenses. You can separate business from personal and help you comply with SARS when it comes to car maintenance, fuel costs, and anything else pertaining to your vehicle.
How it works: Your trips are automatically tracked and recorded, so you simply mark each one as either business or personal. This is then automatically archived and formatted for tax purposes, and includes fuel, distance traveled and any other vehicle-related costs.
Companies love vehicle tracking for completely different reasons. A tracking device forms the foundation for multiple operational perks that are helping companies compete well in an ever-changing market. Fleet software needs tracking to function. So vehicle recovery is often seen as a side benefit to a range of other operational advantages.
Because your kilometres are constantly being tracked as accurately as possible, a number of fuel-saving data points can then be used to make your fleet more efficient. Some fleets have seen savings of up to 25% after implementing fuel tracking software, which works through other software applications that rely on vehicle tracking and fuel accessories.
Location tracking is integral to monitoring drivers, their vehicles and how both behave on the road. Driver behaviour without tracking is left without context, so GPS tracking devices form the basis for this important fleet aspect. What follows is better, more focused coaching, and higher levels of accountability.
The combination of a tracking system and CAN bus accessories from Cartrack help fleet managers to gain control of their maintenance responsibilities in a way that’s groundbreaking. Pairing this combination with AI makes it even better, because vehicle health is always displayed in real time, so service schedules are streamlined and always proactive.
When tracking devices help you to see where all your vehicles are at once, you can queue your drivers more efficiently. This doesn’t only help you make more deliveries in less time, it also saves you from unnecessary overtime and drivers who sit around doing nothing for long periods of time.
Vehicle tracking is only a means to an end. The real reason you want to track any vehicle is for safety—the safety of your person, and the safety of your wallet. Choose a vehicle tracking service provider that puts your safety ahead of everything else.
Not only will we do everything we can to get your car back in case of theft, we’ll also dedicate our control room to safeguarding you and your family on the road.
Learn everything you need to know before committing to a vehicle tracking device subscription and what features to expect from a reputable provider.
