A hygienically clean company car is important, not only for subjective well-being, but also for health. Since the corona pandemic, the issue of hygiene has come into focus in all areas of social life. This is also noticeable in the vehicle fleet, and not only in pooling fleets. In this article, we will give you tips on how to clean your company car quickly and safely, so you can drive to your next customer appointment or to the office feeling better.
The importance of hygiene in the fleet
The cleanliness of the fleet is not only important for the fleet manager, but also for the company car driver himself. However, this does not primarily refer to a shiny body, but rather to the hygiene of the car’s interior. For many company car drivers, the company car is a kind of second driving office. Especially on long journeys to customer appointments, the company car is both a break and a workplace: e-mails are answered, appointments are coordinated, and a short break for a meal is taken along the way.
No wonder that so dirt residues remain in the car. When it comes to their own company car, many drivers here are usually lenient. However, as soon as it is a pooling vehicle that is shared with colleagues, the situation is different. Cleaning the service vehicle is an unpleasant task, but in a pooling fleet it is a necessity to protect not only oneself, but also one’s fellow man.
How to disinfect your company car
First things first: there is no such thing as one hundred percent protection against viruses and germs. Nevertheless, a few simple steps can significantly minimize the risk of infection and improve hygiene in the fleet. If you regularly clean your vehicle thoroughly, keep a minimum distance of 1.5 meters from your fellow human beings, observe cough and sneeze etiquette, and regularly ventilate closed rooms, you are already making an important contribution to reducing the spread of harmful viruses. If you feel sick, you should avoid going to the office and work from home instead. For short errands, use the walk and leave your company vehicle.
- Cleaning out the vehicle: A thorough cleaning starts with cleaning up. First, remove all unimportant items from the car – empty coffee cups, paper and trash of any kind, as well as important documents. You should also remove the tablet or similar from the interior.
- Vacuuming and wiping: Now you can start the actual cleaning. Remove crumbs and dirt from between and on the seats with a damp cloth or use disposable gloves. Also, wipe the surfaces with a damp cloth and some detergent.
- Spraying with disinfectant: This is followed by spraying the trolley with disinfectant. To do this, carefully spray the disinfectant spray on all surfaces in the car with which you have the most contact. These include, above all, the steering wheel, the gearshift lever, the center console, all handles in the interior and exterior, the buttons, the glove compartment, the rearview mirror, the sun visor as well as the seat belts and, what is often forgotten, the gas cap. In addition, consider which other surfaces you often touch with your hands and disinfect them as well.
Not every cleaner is suitable for the vehicle. Therefore, before you buy, check what cleaning products you can use for your vehicle. Most sanitizers are now so mild that they can be used on a variety of surfaces without hesitation.
You should treat a particularly high-quality equipment, such as leather seats, with care.
Here you can mix neutral cleaner or a mild hand dishwashing detergent with a little water and wipe the leather slightly damp. If you are unsure which cleaning agent you can use for the company vehicle, we recommend testing it in an inconspicuous place or consulting the person responsible for the fleet.
Special case: eliminate corona viruses
Against highly contagious coronaviruses, experts advise using disinfectants with the suffix “limited virucidal”, “limited virucidal plus” or “virucidal”, which are also suitable for risk groups and effectively remove them. Thorough cleaning of the company car, whether the own or the pool vehicle, is an important measure that reduces the risk of infectious diseases and thus makes working in the fleet safer. If you want to check whether the thorough cleaning of your vehicle is also carried out regularly, you have the option of storing cleaning appointments in your fleet management system.
This way you can ensure more hygiene in the fleet:
- If you feel ill and use a pooling vehicle, clean it extra thoroughly after use or tell the fleet manager to disinfect the vehicle.
- Use a software solution for your pooling fleet to have a better overview of the utilization as well as the usage history of the vehicles.
- As a fleet manager, you should always make sure that the company cars in the fleet are not only externally in a clean and immaculate condition, but that everything inside is hygienically clean as well.
