Two drivers, eleven addresses and one courtesy car in the wrong place
Many work providers expect you to collect the damaged car from the customer's home or work and deliver it back once repaired. Some expect a courtesy car to be dropped at the same time. On a busy day, two drivers and a trade plate cover a spread of addresses, and each visit needs the right car, the right keys and a customer who is actually there.
The day is arranged by front of house over the phone. The driver gets a list on paper. By mid-morning a customer has rung to say they will be at their mother's instead, a courtesy car needed for the second drop is still at the valeter, and the driver is sitting outside an empty house.
Runs are planned around phone calls, not around the map
Collection and delivery sits between the office and the road. The office knows what needs doing; the driver knows where they are. There is rarely a single plan both can see, and the customer's availability is agreed in a call that nobody else hears.
- Time slots are agreed loosely ('sometime in the morning') and forgotten.
- The order of visits is decided by the driver, who may not know which jobs are urgent for a work provider.
- Courtesy cars, trade plates and keys need to be in the right place before the run starts.
- Handovers at the customer's address are not recorded the way they are at the counter.
A worked example: a delivery of a repaired hatchback and the collection of the courtesy car the customer has been using are at the same address. If the courtesy car collection is not on the driver's sheet, the driver leaves the hatchback, is picked up by a colleague in the shop van, and someone has to go back for the courtesy car another day. One missing line turns into an extra trip.
What disorganised runs cost
Wasted trips cost driver time and fuel, and they push the next customer's car back. A repaired car that sits on site because the delivery could not be arranged adds to your key-to-key time. Customers who waited in for a driver who did not come tell their insurer, and damage disputes about cars collected without a proper check are hard to settle.
Front of house also carries a lot of it: every change of plan is a round of calls to the customer, the driver and the valeter.
How we build a collection and delivery run planner
- Jobs needing collection or delivery are listed automatically from your management system when a job is booked or marked ready.
- Customers get a text with available time slots for their area and pick one, or front of house books it on their behalf.
- The planner builds each driver's run in a sensible order, taking in courtesy car swaps and returns, and shows which cars and keys must be ready before leaving.
- Drivers see the run on their phone with addresses, contact numbers, what they are dropping and what they are collecting.
- At each address the driver records the handover: photos, mileage, fuel, customer signature, and any courtesy car taken or left.
- Customers get a text when the driver is on the way. Changes during the day are updated on the plan so the office and driver see the same thing.
| Part of the run | Today | With the planner |
|---|---|---|
| Agreeing a time | Phone call, loosely noted | Customer picks a slot by text |
| Order of visits | Driver decides | Planned run, priorities shown |
| Courtesy car swap | Remembered, sometimes | Listed on the driver's sheet |
| Handover at the door | Rarely recorded | Photos and signature on the phone |
A day on the road that goes to plan
Drivers start with a run and everything they need for it. Customers know when to expect them. When something changes, the office moves a slot and the driver's phone updates. Every car collected or delivered has a record of its condition and who signed for it.
The office spends the morning on other work instead of being a switchboard between drivers and customers.
Signs your runs need planning
- Drivers arrive to find nobody home.
- Courtesy car swaps are missed on deliveries.
- Repaired cars wait on site for a delivery slot.
- Handovers at customers' addresses are not recorded.
- Front of house spends hours coordinating drivers by phone.