Optional equipment may increase the cost of new trucks, but David and Tanis Jamar, owners of J Bar Enterprises in Burnet, Texas, believe some add-ons are crucial for their business.
“We installed driver-facing and road-facing cameras in early 2020,” says Tanis Jamar, to serve a couple of purposes.
The cameras help curb employees’ bad driving behavior, as well as offer an incentive for improved driving. A bonus of $600 is available quarterly for perfect driving. Infractions like speeding, not stopping at signs, etc., are noted through Lytx fleet software and reduce the bonus based on a point system.
In addition to the cameras, Lytx allows J Bar to set alerts for things such as harsh braking and speeding. And it monitors other details about the driver, covering everything from seatbelt usage to looking at phones or eating while driving.
The road-facing cameras help prevent fraudulent insurance claims. For example, when a J Bar driver was accused of running into an expensive mailbox with architectural stonework, the camera captured the truth that a neighbor backed into it.
Another time the Lytx GPS tracking proved that none of J Bar’s trucks were in the area where an accuser said the spare tire flew off a truck and hit their car.
“More and more, as society sues over anything, it makes sense (to have cameras) especially with these heavy trucks. It’s worth the money to invest,” Jamar says.
To learn more about J Bar Enterprises, look for a profile story in the October issue of Portable Restroom Operator.
