Employer's GPS Tracking on Personal Car

[NoComment]

Afternoon All,

I'm hoping someone can assist with a query.

I currently work as a salesman for a national company with over 1500 employees. Many of these employees are field based as either engineers or as part of the sales force.

I receive a car allowance paid monthly into my salary as do a significant amount of other people within the business and in addition to this many others have accepted a company car instead of said allowance.

I have recently been introduced to a company GPS Policy and currently my employer is going through a process of installing GPS tracking devices on “All company vehicles and vehicles belonging to employees who are in receipt of a car allowance.”

In addition to this the statement also includes the following paragraph “The Company reserves the right to withdraw car allowance from employees that refuse to have a tracker fitted in their personal vehicles”

As an employee who currently receives a car allowance I was wondering if my employer can legally withhold my car allowance if I do decide to decline the tracker?

Many Thanks for any advice

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• Edited to correct grammar*

Edited by NoComment on Thursday 28th June 14:19

[NoComment]

Thanks for the reply. In answer to your questions...

72EuropaTC said:

I would want to ask the company:

(a) confirmation that the device can be switched off/disabled out of working hours i.e. when *my own car* is being used for *my own* private purposes

The device monitors 24 hours per day 365 days per year. There is no way to disable it.

It does have a private journey button that you are able to press at the start of any private journey. Once the ignition is turned off however you will reappear on the system at your current position so I fail to see how this ensures information is private as they have your position when you press the private button and your position when the ignition is turned off. All this would keep private is your route and the speed that you travelled.

72EuropaTC said:

(b) if such a device was installed in my car, that the company would pay all costs for removing the device when the time comes and for any repairs to make good - i.e. drill holes etc. A portable device would be much better.

I'm assured they will.

72EuropaTC said:

(c) any implications re insurance and confirmation that the company bears any change in cost

No benefit to me.

72EuropaTC said:

(d) if there was an option to swap a car allowance and use of my own car for business purposes for a company car instead

None starter due to the depreciation of the car. I'd be about £2k out of pocket if I handed the car back.

I honestly see no benefit to me in having the tracker fitted and feel uncomfortable that my employer can see where I am 24 hours a day.

In addition to this my girlfriend is uncomfortable in the knowledge that this would be happening when she is using the car also.

Are they within their right to withhold my car allowance should i refuse it?

Thanks Again

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moleamol said:

I work for a tracking company and when you flick the private switch on ours it completely deactivates the tracker until you enable it again. How big is the fleet? I can pass you my details for your TM if you like.

Fleet size about 900 company vehicles plus a few hundred with car allowances, they've already started rolling out the solution to the engineers at the moment so unfortuntely you've missed out!

Cheers

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davepoth said:

If it's your own car you are free to do whatever you like with it - and that would include adding a switch to the power cable for the GPS tracker.

Fair point but I'd rather avoid installing the thing if possible.

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Deva Link said:

I would imagine so. An then you wouldn't be able to do your job, so I suppose they'd have to sack you.

What reason are they giving for fitting the tracker - the usual one given is health & safety 'duty of care' related. You can expect a lot of hassle if you ever exceed a speed limit once its fitted.

No real reason that I can see for sales however I can see why it's of benefit to the service side of the business. I've OCR'd a copy of the statement below for you to see.

GPS Policy Statement

It is ************* intention to fit all company vehicles and vehicles belonging to employees who are in receipt of a car allowance with a GPS tracking device.

This initiative will increase efficiencies, and drive down the cost of insurance of the ************* fleet. It may also potentially reduce the cost for those employees who pay their own insurance. In other businesses, installation of these devices has reduced accidents by 25%.

As an example of one of the efficiencies to be achieved is via real time visibility of an engineer's location, which will greatly assist Resource Planners in the Service Call Centre to route calls more effectively. Another benefit of this initiative is the ability to submit mileage claims online, making it a simpler process for everyone.

The chosen supplier ofthe tracking device is Tom Tom. This system is non-invasive and will not 'cause any damage to vehicles as there is no connection to the vehicle's electronics: just power, earth and ignition. The devices provide data as to where all vehicles are during working hours including; miles travelled, start and finish times at each location and driving behaviour (speed, harsh braking and harsh steering). Staff will be encouraged to improve their driving for their own safety and for fuel efficiency.

As an employee you will have access to the system's website to view your personal data and will be able to check your business and personal mileage. Additionally, Management will have access to the data relating to their team and will be able to utilise the data to assist with performance management. Data captured, where necessary, may be used to support disciplinary or capability procedures, but this is not the purpose of tracking.

Employees' personal data is confidential and will be treated in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.


-*********** respects an individuals' right to privacy, and this was a key consideration in the purchase ofthe system. There is a privacy button in the vehicle, which can be activated when driving on personal journeys.

The GPS policy should be read in conjunction with the staff handbook (Section 3) for the full details regarding driving on company business.

The company reserves the right to withdraw car allowance from employees that refuse to have a tracker fitted in their personal vehicles.

Employees in receipt of a Company Car allowance must return a signed copy of this document by email to *************

I agree to have the tracking device fitted into my personal vehicle.

Signed

Date

Thanks

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[NoComment]

HeatonNorris said:

Under the circumstances I'd want to be giving up my allowance in favour of a low tax company car.

There is absolutely no way I'd let an employer fit a tracker to my private vehicle, even if they were paying me a car allowance.

Unfortunately not an option,the car is only 2 years old and is financed over 5 so I owe more than it's worth currenty. I'd be out of pocket by approximately £2k if I did this.

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HeatonNorris said:

What on earth possessed you to finance a business vehicle over 5 years!?

We can use vehicles up to 5 years old, with my allowance and mileage claim by the fourth year the car has really paid for itself. When the finance ends I just replace the car.

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gmasterfunk said:

Tell them the lease company won't allow the electrics to be interfered with....

Or what about telling them its not your car its your wife's and she doesn't give permission, its a car allowance, you only have to have access to a car for work you don't have to own one (is this correct? - if you lease I would presume so?),

would that work?

This is the sort of angle I was hoping I could take, what if the V5 was in someone elses name and I was to pay them for the use of their car?

I would have access to the car and I would be insured for business class 1 as required by my employer. I would be happy for my employer to fix a tracker to my personal vehicle and would sign the letter allowing a tracker to be fitted to my personal vehicle...but I wouldn't actually have one.

Would they still be able to withold my allowance if the owner of the vehicle I used refused to allow this?

Thanks

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MrAdaam said:

NoComment, do you happen to of heard of this today at an SQL training day at Witham St Hughes?

Bloody coincidence if not as that is pretty similar process to what I overheard some field engineers talking about today over lunch...

Looking at your location we could possibly be working for the same company.

Regards

NoComment

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Pommygranite said:

Anyone else missed this? Whats she up to?

Haha of course, but the point she is making is that she deserves her privacy the same as anyone else does. Why should my employer have visibility of where she is at any given time.

As I have already stated the privacy button hides only the speed travelled and the route taken. That to me is not privacy.

As an example what if I decided to look for alternative employment and set up an interview at a competitor's premises?

I could press the privacy button when starting my car and arrive at my destination however as soon as my ignition is switched off I'm visible again as I can't press the button until the ignition is turned on.

I'm also miffed that during weekends and evenings I have to press this button before every journey as would anyone else that has access to the car. Surely It would make more sense to inform the car that it's a business journey that your about to undertake?

My girlfriend and our children have a right to privacy, not just from my employer but from me and everyone else. My son for one I know would not be happy when using the car in the knwoledge that I was able to see where he had been or was at any given time.

There is just a blatant disregard for privacy here for the sake of micromanagement.

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swerni said:

bulldong said:

swerni said:

I have a car allowance and couldn't care less if someone put a tracker on my car.


If it's a company wide policy, they are going to do it anyway so getting stressed over it is pointless

What are you concerned about?
You banging the bosses wife or fiddling the mileage?

That is exactly the attitude that has lead to a continuing erosion of civil liberties in the UK ie the right to go about your daily business without people watching you.

It's not about "I'm not doing anything wrong so why should I care" it's about why should someone have the right to see what I'm doing when I'm doing nothing wrong?

Im sure you wouldn't like it if the govt or your employer said they were going to put a camera in every room in your house, which is only slightly more invasive to personal privacy than tracking your car during personal use, and then said "well if you're doing nothing wrong why are you bothered about us watching you?"

Jesus another conspiracy theorist

Do you have any concept of how much data is collected on all of us on disparate and incompatible systems every day of the week?
For the most part, all the data they store ( or in many cases don't) is utterly useless.

What has a company putting a gps tracker in a car that they are paying for have any relevance to camera's in my house?

I can see the upside of the GPS as it would make my expense claims and tax return much easier.

I would suggest the OP picks the battles he can win, unless of course he has something to hide.

The company do not pay for my car they simply pay me a contribution towards the cost of it, I would imagine if they did pay for my car it would be their name on the V5 and they would be paying the finance.

[NoComment]

TwigtheWonderkid said:

Fitting a tracker in the employee's own vehicle, regardless of car allowance, is outrageous.

People say "what have you got to hide?"

Maybe the OP frequents red light areas. In his own car, in his own time, what business is it of his employer.
Maybe the OP's wife is in a mental hospital following a breakdown. And he visits her in the evening and doesn't want this info shared with his employer.
Maybe the OP wants to drive in his own car to an interview with his current employers biggest rival. He doesn't want them asking what he was doing at their premises.
Maybe the OP has a family member in jail. He wants to visit but doesn't want his employer knowing he's visiting a prison.

Basically....it's none of my fking business why the OP doesn't want his private movements tracked, and it's none of his employers business either.

I'd be speaking to an employment law expert if it were me.

Exactly!!

Thanks

[NoComment]

The truth is I'm not bothered about my employer knowing my whereabouts during working hours as I'm at work. I object to my employer and TomTom knowing where I am or another member of my family is outside of my work hours.

I'm certain I'll need to change my driving style to accommodate the introduction of this as I tend to sit on motorways (weather and traffic permitting of course) at around 95 - 100 leptons.

A simple power switch would save a lot of hassle as many of you have pointed out and I think this is the course of action I'll follow when the time comes.

Thanks for everyone's input

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