Fleet managers today need to run their operations with optimum efficiency, especially when it applies to mission-critical challenges such as high fleet operations costs, recurring repairs and frequent vehicle downtime. 

OBD II Vehicle Diagnostics allows managers to remotely monitor vehicle performance, engine malfunctions and driver behavior to improve vehicle reliability, security and reduce costs. A classic example is the running of Formula 1 cars where in OBD II is at its full display.

These solutions deploy the same basic telematics technology but are packaged and implemented in innovative ways to be marketed. In the US, solutions based on OBD (On-Board Diagnostics) like dongles have become the preferred option. The driver simply connects the dongle to the OBD connector. The term refers to the interface that vehicle repair shops use for reading information when they are servicing vehicles.

These telematics- enabled dongles are relatively cheap with no installation cost. A number of innovative insurers are starting to launch solutions based on smart phones. These devices have the requisite computing and storage resources, data connectivity as an intrinsic function and they also incorporate satellite navigation, which records the mileage, and an accelerometer that measures acceleration, braking and cornering.

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