*Venson survey reveals new usage for the ‘company car’ as people on lockdown take refuge in their cars for peace, quiet and uninterrupted video calls
With a significant proportion of the fleet car drivers staying home under current Coronavirus lockdown rules, a survey from Venson Automotive Solutions has revealed surprising ways people are using their cars. One in three people have openly headed to the car for some peace and quiet (35% of men and 20% of women), while 16% have used in-car solitude for work calls and 8% have created an external office by using onboard WiFi or creating a WiFi hotspot in the car.
24% of respondents have taken advantage of an essential journey by taking a longer route to extend their alone-time (20% of men and 28% of women). While 6% of both men and women have taken to the car on the pretence of a work call but really, just sat and soaked up the quiet, listened to the radio or scrolled through social media and the news on their phone.
Alison Bell, Marketing Director of Venson commented: “Adapting to working from home has unsurprisingly proven to be a challenge as many of us have never done so before, or have only ever completed odd days here-and-there at the kitchen table while waiting for a delivery, a tradesman or looking after a sick child home from school. Never have we been forced to work only from home, either surrounded by the mayhem of our entire family or in complete solitude for the umpteenth day in a row. Those trying to balance providing child-care whilst working will have quickly realised it is not an easy environment in which to work effectively. So, it’s probably not surprising many people are extending their home environment to include the privacy and quiet of their cars – giving ‘company car’ a whole new meaning. Some even, 10% of respondents, are using the boot of the car to store work documents or equipment – but we wouldn’t recommend this as it presents potential issues with insurance cover as well as breaching company data security policies!”
Aside from creating a dedicated office or workspace at home – be that indoors or in the car-office – there are some key steps work-from-homers can take to help them be motivated and productive. These include getting dressed at the start of the day, sticking to the start and finish times of a typical working day, taking regular breaks – as well as getting out and about if not self-isolating – and picking up the phone to speak to colleagues.