” I don’t know how many thousands of dollars it could’ve cost us if we didn’t have a ClearPathGPS dashcam to prove the accident wasn’t our fault, but I’m certain we dodged a bullet.
John Coins Manager
Customer Quick Insights
John Coins, Manager of Linehaul Services and Regional Sales, shares how Transmark, a long-time user of ClearPath’s GPS fleet tracking solutions, is further improving their operations and protecting the company’s interests with ClearPathGPS dashcams.
First… an intro to the delivery experts at Transmark
For businesses across the Northwest, Transmark Cartage Services has become a trusted partner for reliable supply-chain logistics solutions—including cartage, drayage, linehaul services, home delivery, and military delivery.
On any given day, the company’s dozens of freight vehicles will be transporting everything from consumer goods to military supplies, to high-end medical equipment across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska.
Q: Before we dive into your Dashcam experience, can you update us on how you’re using ClearPathGPS? And the impact GPS trackers have had on Transmark’s business?
The ClearPathGPS fleet tracking system has been a key part of every station’s daily operations. Our station managers all have the ClearPathGPS real-time map up all day on a big monitor in their offices, so they can see exactly where every vehicle is and what progress they’re making.
Real-time data insights from the GPS trackers have been invaluable for customer service. When a customer calls us and asks for an ETA on a shipment, or just wants the peace of mind to know our driver is still on track, our team can tell them immediately exactly where the vehicle is and when to expect it.
The GPS trackers also help us spot problem employees. We caught one driver who was going home for a couple of hours every day by looking at his vehicle’s GPS data. That was obviously useful info to have, so we could deal with that employee.
Company: Transmark Cartage Services
Industry: Linehaul/Cartage/3PL
Fleet: 40 Vehicles
Location: Pacific Northwest
Q: Dashcams were not originally part of your fleet tracking initiative. Can you share how you got started with them, and what did your rollout process looked like?
We had been using ClearPath’s GPS trackers for years when I first heard about the dashcams. I ran the idea by our owner, and he wanted to give it a try. So, we decided to start slowly, just trying the service on a single truck.
As we saw how easy it was to go into the app and pull dashcam footage from that vehicle, we all realized the value of having this level of visibility in case any of our drivers ran into any trouble. So, we started ramping up the rollout to the rest of our fleet.
Turns out that was a smart decision because having those dashcams installed helped us more than once.
Q: Can you give us a couple of examples of how the dashcams are helping your business?
Soon after we started ramping up our rollout, somebody tried to pass one of our trucks on the right as our driver was turning into a driveway. That other driver tried to blame us. But fortunately, we had the ClearPathGPS dashcam footage on our side.
We showed the insurance companies the video, and they agreed the accident wasn’t our fault at all. Transmark didn’t have to pay anything to the other driver’s insurance company. I don’t know how many thousands of dollars it could’ve cost us if we didn’t have a ClearPathGPS dashcam to prove the accident wasn’t our fault, but I’m certain we dodged a bullet.
Another use case, which was unexpected, was when we were asked by the Sherriff’s office to pull a video from one of our dashcams to help with a hit and run case. Turns out two vehicles crashed in front of one of our trucks and the person at fault left the scene. We were able to quickly retrieve the footage and send it over to them which we were delighted to assist with!
Q: How did your drivers react to the dashcams?
At first, I could see many of them were nervous. I think a lot of them were thinking that we could literally go in and watch them live in the middle of their day. But I told them, ‘No, it’s to protect you and us in situations that might come up.’ When we explained it to them that way, a lot of them said, ‘Oh, okay. That makes more sense.
Q: You said you’ve ramped up your dashcam rollout. What’s the status now?
Now we’re getting close to 100% implemented across the whole fleet. That’s dozens of vehicles across five stations in four states. In fact, now our policy is to order dashcams from ClearPath even before we take possession of a new delivery vehicle. That way, we can be ready to install it as soon as the truck arrives—so we’re not going even a day without that valuable layer of visibility.
Q: Part of the success of our customers is ensuring they’re getting the guidance and support they need. Can you tell us about your experience working with the ClearPathGPS customer support team?
ClearPath’s customer support has always been amazing. Whenever I call, I get somebody right away. And if they can’t resolve my issue within the first couple of minutes, they always get right back to me with an update on their progress.
In fact, even when the support team fixes the problem and updates the ticket I submitted, someone on the team always takes the time to call me and let me know they’ve solved the issue just in case I didn’t see the update right away. The team is very helpful and always excellent about communicating and keeping us informed.
Thanks, John, for the insights on your success with the ClearPathGPS platform, your experience with dashcams, and for Transmark Cartage Services being a great customer!
At ClearPathGPS, we are focused on helping our customers improve their operations and bottomline. Our top-rated GPS fleet tracking solutions provide real-time data insights and tools needed to more effectively manage the vehicles, people, and assets businesses send into the field everyday. Can ClearPathGPS help your operations get better results? Let’s find out – request a demo or contact us today.
