More car recoveries reported electronically

Tuesday 20 May 2014 Growing numbers of recovery companies are receiving reports for car recovery as electronic messages on a smartphone or tablet. At present, this affects ten companies who together represent 25% of total national volume. These operators make use of the Electronic Incident Management Reporting System (EMI) developed by Stichting Incident Management Nederland.

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In 2013, five recovery companies took part in a pilot scheme with the new reporting system. Various teething troubles were eradicated. Ideas were also collected for better adapting the system to operations in large and small recovery companies. Since April 2014, EMI has been available for all IM recovery companies. The system was developed for iOS and Android platforms and besides the necessary investment in one or more smartphones and the accompanying data bundles, it is free of charge.

Recovery companies can decide for themselves how they introduce the system to their operations. At some companies, reports are received on an iPad on the planner's desk and on the smartphones of all employees who call the telephone services. They pass on the recovery reports to the correct drivers and are responsible for deregistration. For operators with no planning department, the system makes it possible to rapidly deal with car recovery reports in the recovery vehicle or at home.

Users have responded positively to the electronic car recovery reporting system. Reports are received rapidly and need not be written down. Information is sent to the driver at the push of a button and the same applies for deregistering the recovery. At the recovery driver's discretion, deregistration can even be transmitted from the incident location. As a consequence, the overall burden on the planning department has been reduced. It has also become simpler to process car recoveries that have to be organised outside the office.

The builders of EMI are currently working on implementing a number of specific user wishes. These include supplying a desktop version and the addition of a button that makes it possible to pass on the car recovery reports to the recovery operator's back office system. These upgrades are due to be rolled out during the course of this year.

Starting in April 2016, use of the system will be made compulsory.