Chudleigh-based Lightfoot helps leading home entertainment business eradicate dangerous driving, putting it on target to cut CO2 by 1,000 tonnes

Hughes, the country’s second largest provider of home entertainment and kitchen appliance rentals, and the UK’s fourth largest specialist electrical retailer, has succeeded in putting an end to dangerous driving in its fleet thanks to Lightfoot’s trail-blazing in-cab driver coaching technology and rewards platform.

Rolled out across its fleet of 200 vans and 20 cars, Lightfoot’s dashboard-mounted device, combined with its rewards app, has cut harsh acceleration in the Hughes fleet by 56%, harsh breaking by 30% and harsh cornering by 24%. In so doing, Lightfoot’s driver-focused tech has reduced vehicle wear and tear costs in the Hughes fleet at the same time as increasing mpg by 6%.

Lightfoot has also cut vehicle idling by nearly a quarter, helping to dramatically lower unnecessary emissions and fuel use. Based on current CO2 reductions, Hughes is on target to remove nearly one thousand tonnes of CO2 from the earth’s atmosphere over five years, equivalent to the amount of carbon captured by over a thousand acres of forest each year.

Dave Stokes, Group Procurement, Fleet and Properties Manager at Hughes, commented: “Lightfoot was initially recommended to us by Activa, whom we lease our fleet of cars and vans from. They outlined how Lightfoot engages drivers in a new and different way, which promotes a smoother, safer style of driving at the same time as personally and routinely rewarding drivers for carrying out their daily duties in a more efficient and responsible way.

“By creating a driver-first approach, aided by Lightfoot’s ‘always-on’ visual and audible driver coaching and nudge psychology, our drivers are encouraged and enabled to keep in the sweet spot of their engine. That not only helps to reduce overall costs to our business but allows us to meet our occupational road risk management obligations, aiding the safety of our drivers and other road users.

“Today, our drivers operate their vehicles in a completely different way to pre-Lightfoot. They effectively self-manage. They understand the benefits of improving their driving style, and they have a personal interest to be better because that enables them to access great prize draws.

“All they need to do is maintain Lightfoot’s Elite Driver status, which unlocks weekly draws on the app including the chance to win up to £200 in The Drivers’ Lottery. That’s proved a game-changer for us. It’s why 95% of our drivers now achieve Elite Driver status every week. When we started out, that figure was just 24%.”

Dave Stokes added: “Today, our drivers enjoy a less stressful driving environment, making their days easier and more efficient. The by-product is fuel savings of 6%, a lower carbon footprint, reduced downtime for maintenance, lower wear and tear on brakes and tyres and less need to hire in temporary vehicles to cover maintenance issues. It’s a real win-win for all concerned and has proved incredible value.”

Lisa Temperton, Sales, Marketing and Customer Services Director at Activa Contracts, who introduced Hughes to Lightfoot, added: “Ensuring our clients are working with the best operators in the industry is really important to Activa. We have been working with Lightfoot for many years now and were their first partner in the fleet finance/management sector. It’s great to see our client continuing to benefit from Lightfoot, years on from that introduction.”

Martin Kadhim, Co-Founder of Lightfoot, commented: “It’s great to see the Hughes success story and the positive transformation in their drivers. Now, with Lightfoot in place, Hughes is saving the business money at the same time as enhancing the welfare of their drivers and reducing their impact on environment. By implementing Lightfoot’s self-managed solution, those in the driving seat are driving change for the better one mile at a time and getting regularly rewarded in the process. It’s what sets Lightfoot apart as a game changer in fleet management.”

Pioneering a new standard and way of measuring efficient driving, Lightfoot’s technology has been developed in partnership with the Institute of Advanced Motorists and leading driver-behaviour experts at Bath University. It uses advanced, real-time engine analytics which take account of different factors such as load and road gradient to provide live, in-cab coaching, helping drivers improve both efficiency and safety, and rewarding them for being better.

Through real-time feedback and nudge psychology, drivers intuitively become more aware of their driving style, helping them to be less aggressive, smoother and safer drivers. A verbal end of journey score, based on their driving performance, reinforces good habits and links to the driver app where those achieving and maintaining Lightfoot’s Elite driver status can unlock access to prize draws, including cash rewards from The Drivers’ Lottery.

The outcome is that Lightfoot helps fleets cut harmful emissions and fuel costs by up to 15%. It also lowers at-fault accidents by up to 40%, and reduces wear and tear costs by as much as 45%. 

Considered revolutionary in the fleet management and telematics worlds, Lightfoot’s disruptive approach to reducing accidents has been adopted by some of the largest companies in the market, including Virgin Media, Dixons Carphone, and South West Water.

To find out more about how Lightfoot can transform your fleet for the better, visit www.lightfoot.co.uk