Tracking device on company car

Moreard

Folks,

I'm pretty sure my employer has a tracking device fitted to my company car. This has raised the following questions for which I'd like some input:

1. Should I have been informed of this when I was given the car?
2. What can / cannot be done with this data?
3. Is this legal?
4. What do these devices look like and where in the car are they normally located? (Pics would help)
5. How can they be disabled / destroyed?
6. Should I confront employer or get solicitor on the case?

Thanks in advance.

cianclarke

Trackers aren't as small as they look like in the films, they're a decent size and easy enough to spot - maybe the size of the larger matchboxes, little bigger.
Where it's been fitted depends on the type, and if it was professionally fitted on purchasing the car or added as an afterthought. First spot to check is under the bonnet - it'l look like the box of a third party alarm or the likes, you'll spot it. Probably won't have many/any markings.
Another spot is the rear luggage rack if it's a hatchback, or somewhere near the top of the boot - possibly inside the trim of the boot.
Finally, try just inside the front and rear bumpers. The devices will normally need to see the sky through something thin, ie not the whole of the car - keep this in mind.

Bulmers

anyones i've seen are usually behind stereo, also just down inside of steering colume, if u have an adjustable steering wheel, tilt if down and u might see flashing led on the box.

Had one on a previous company car..knightmare..they say it's for insurance etc but really used to track people, when they start/finish, where they are.

Management usually get 3 email reports / day on vehicle location..then again could have just been the crowd i worked "briefly" for....

-Chris-

Can I start by asking why you think you're being tracked?

Then I'd say that yes, it should be disclosed to you. I would accept a tracker on a company car if it was on during the day and off during the evening/night - I accept that there are many benefits to fitting trackers to certain company cars & vans, but it should never infringe on your privacy!

guil

i cant see a problem with it, is a company car not given solely for the purpose of work i know they dont say ya cant use it for personal use but how can ya go against someone for wanting to protect there property and keep insurance costs down

DublinWriter

Moreard wrote: »

5. How can they be disabled / destroyed?

There are various devices you can buy to jam tracking signals.

Is this a company car that you take home in the evenings, or leave at your place of employment? If the former is the case then you should be paying BIK tax and should be allowed to use the car for personal use outside of working hours.

As for the legality aspect and going to a solicitor? Forget it, save your time and money and look for a new job instead.

Fatloss08

company car , they can do what they like

my company have them and i can see em like gps on the net

i know where they are at all times , we use them as we have people on sites and we want to make sure their there until end of business

so u can cheat , if they speed were notified , if they leave early were notified etc

They have them in my place for the truckers.

The truckers are either very clued in or the devices have a high failure rate because they are frequently broken!

-Chris-

guil07 wrote: »

i cant see a problem with it, is a company car not given solely for the purpose of work i know they dont say ya cant use it for personal use but how can ya go against someone for wanting to protect there property and keep insurance costs down

There's a fine line between protecting your assets and (potentially) snooping on your employees.

I believe that if you pay BIK on your car that you shouldn't be track-able outside of working hours.

Fey!

AudiChris wrote: »

There's a fine line between protecting your assets and (potentially) snooping on your employees.

I believe that if you pay BIK on your car that you shouldn't be track-able outside of working hours.

From the company point of view, I'd look on it as protecting my assets. And if it's a signwritten vehicle being driven at warp speed, I'd want to know about it so that I could reprimand the driver in order to protect my business' image.

The business may also be using it to keep tab on mileages and expenses fiddling.

Bear in mind that if you destroy it, you're destroying someone elses property, and they may take a very dim view of that.

guil

AudiChris wrote: »

There's a fine line between protecting your assets and (potentially) snooping on your employees.

I believe that if you pay BIK on your car that you shouldn't be track-able outside of working hours.

whats BIK

Hotwheels

I can see this would make a nice topic for Joe on Radio 1...
Regardless you are entitled to be informed (in writing as well) if this type of device been fitted to the vehicle. Questions I would be asking are, who has access to it? Where is the data stored,? What is it been used for? How long is it stored for? What security measures are in place to safe guard it?
And you are entitled to a copy of your data, it is after all information about you.

All too often the auld chestnut abuse/speeding/fraud is rolled out, in order to justify further erosion of persons (employee) rights.

Random

guil07 wrote: »

whats BIK

BIK = Benefit in Kind.

You lose tax credits based on any non monetary benefits to your job is how I understand it. www.revenue.ie can probably help you more.

positron

Could this of any use to OP?

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3623

Mods, please do delete this post if that yoke is illegal...!

towel401

DublinWriter wrote: »

There are various devices you can buy to jam tracking signals.

most tracking devices these days use the regular GSM mobile phone networks. and probably GPS as well. you can get a GSM/GPS jammer but if you jammed GSM your own phone probably wouldnt work either. less it was set to use 3G where possible.

the thing probably has an antenna as well.

towel401

positron wrote: »

Could this of any use to OP?

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3623

Mods, please do delete this post if that yoke is illegal...!

nice site might get one of those phone blockers. highly illegal but i don't give a crap.

stratos

Most of these tracker units use the mobile phone system to track vehicles. GPS won't work in underground car parks or big cities where tall buildings shadow the gps signal. However the mobile phone network is available in these areas. So a gps blocker won't affect it.
Most units are fitted covertley. I don't know if this legal or not, usually done during a routine service. The thinking is its the employers vehicle he can fit any equipment he wants without informing the driver. Unions anyone ?

towel401

if you jammed the GPS it would work but constantly send out the same coordinates. and maybe a flag that says the coordinates are invalid.

stratos

the unit uses the connected gsm mast for tracking, gps is not used at all so blocking the gps signal won't affect it. As gps is not used for tracking.

towel401

stratos wrote: »

the unit uses the connected gsm mast for tracking, gps is not used at all so blocking the gps signal won't affect it. As gps is not used for tracking.

depends on the type it is. some of them can send coordinates back through satellites. but those are very expensive.

Moreard

Just to give a bit more background information :

I do pay BIK
It is an executive saloon car not a van or car van
It is from a fleet management company so it is not the property of my employer hence no asset protection issues
I do not work by the clock although I do work a regular day i.e. I do not have to somewhere from 9-5.
I've nothing to hide but don't like the idea of some IT geek or pencil neck manager being able to scrutinise my whereabouts during my "free" time.


If such data is being held about me what rights do I have? Would the Data Protection Commissioner have a role? Could they audit my employer, maybe shake him up a bit?

Really I just want to find this thing, break it and wait and see what happens.

cyclopath2001

Moreard wrote: »

I've nothing to hide but don't like the idea of some IT geek or pencil neck manager being able to scrutinise my whereabouts during my "free" time.

If you want privacy, use a car you own. Just as there is no such thing as a free lunch, there is no such ting as a free car. The employer is entitled to keep track of his property. If you don't like that, get your own car. Sorry to be blunt, but that's the situation you've placed yourself in.

Moreard wrote: »

If such data is being held about me what rights do I have? Would the Data Protection Commissioner have a role? Could they audit my employer, maybe shake him up a bit?

The DPC only has a role here if the law is being broken. You are entitled to see what data is held about you and to have any incorrect information corrected. The employer is obliged to keep the information confidential and only use it for its disclosed purpose. Do you suspect that the data is being used inappropriately? If you have concerns, first ask your employer and if that does not resolve the problem, complain to the DPC giving as much fact as you can. I think you don't have a good relationship with your employer and this needs to be addressed by you or sooner or later you'll have conflict.

-Chris-

Moreard wrote: »

Just to give a bit more background information :

I do pay BIK
It is an executive saloon car not a van or car van
It is from a fleet management company so it is not the property of my employer hence no asset protection issues
I do not work by the clock although I do work a regular day i.e. I do not have to somewhere from 9-5.
I've nothing to hide but don't like the idea of some IT geek or pencil neck manager being able to scrutinise my whereabouts during my "free" time.

The car is still your employer's asset to protect even if it doesn't belong to them - if it gets nicked your employer will owe the fleet management company a cheque to cover the value of the car.

I would expect, if it's a relatively high value car, that it may be an insurance requirement. It may be that the tracker isn't being used to monitor your location ongoing but rather will be activated in the event of vehicle theft.

Moreard wrote: »

If such data is being held about me what rights do I have? Would the Data Protection Commissioner have a role? Could they audit my employer, maybe shake him up a bit?

Really I just want to find this thing, break it and wait and see what happens.

The data protection act says that you have the ability to ask what information is being recorded and why it's being recorded. Feel free to ask!

Fey!

Nobody has so far asked the OP WHY he thinks he's being tracked by his employer.

Also, what type of car is it; some insurance companies will insist on trackers on vehicles over a certain value.

masseyno9

Fey! wrote: »

Nobody has so far asked the OP WHY he thinks he's being tracked by his employer.

Also, what type of car is it; some insurance companies will insist on trackers on vehicles over a certain value.

yes they did! post #4! anyway, that is still what i want to know! My guess is if its a high-value car the employer/insurance company has it in place so if its stolen they cana ctivate it and find the car.

OP, find out if you're being constantly monitored or if its just a security device. If you're being monitored and dont want to be, then take appropriate action

DublinWriter

Fey! wrote: »

Also, what type of car is it; some insurance companies will insist on trackers on vehicles over a certain value.

I was just thinking that; I'm sure most insurers will give a corporate client a big discount on a fleet premium if there are anti-theft trackers installed in the cars.

OP....maybe you're being a tad paranoid?

taidghbaby

OP if you think your being spied upon then why not bring the girlfriend/mothers/fathers etc. car out for a few days and force your employer into admitting the tracker is on the car.

That should get to the bottom of it!!

Moreard

Fey! wrote: »

Nobody has so far asked the OP WHY he thinks he's being tracked by his employer.

Also, what type of car is it; some insurance companies will insist on trackers on vehicles over a certain value.

I was given sight of a document which contained a question of my boss by an employee equal to myself regarding the status of the tracking device fitted to his car, thus leading me to my current suspicions.

The car is not that high value - there's loads of them on the roads.

Mr. Presentable

AudiChris wrote: »

There's a fine line between protecting your assets and (potentially) snooping on your employees.

I believe that if you pay BIK on your car that you shouldn't be track-able outside of working hours.

Nobody is snooping on the employee. They are tracking a car they own. There is no problem here.

If indeed the OP is not just being paranoid.

Seriously, it's my car (or I lease it and it is in my care), you have the use of it, but it's my car and I'm entitled to know where it is.

Moreard

cyclopath2001 wrote: »

If you want privacy, use a car you own. Just as there is no such thing as a free lunch, there is no such ting as a free car. The employer is entitled to keep track of his property. If you don't like that, get your own car. Sorry to be blunt, but that's the situation you've placed yourself in.

The DPC only has a role here if the law is being broken. You are entitled to see what data is held about you and to have any incorrect information corrected. The employer is obliged to keep the information confidential and only use it for its disclosed purpose. Do you suspect that the data is being used inappropriately? If you have concerns, first ask your employer and if that does not resolve the problem, complain to the DPC giving as much fact as you can. I think you don't have a good relationship with your employer and this needs to be addressed by you or sooner or later you'll have conflict.

Now and again it's nice to get the simple view of life but I'm afraid life isn't that simple.

BIK means the car most certainly is not free. I'm required to drive this car as part of my job and sold my own sports car on being promoted to this role. Assuming there is a tracking device on the car and I've not been informed of this fact, how did you arrive at the conclusion that I placed myself in this situation??

Just because I'm an employee doesn't mean I surrender my privacy for a pay cheque. I have a very professional relationship with my employer that is being jepordised by their actions on this issue. If conflict is the end result, then so be it, I'm a big boy.

Do you suspect that the data is being used inappropriately?

Yes. That is why I started this tread. Non-disclosure must be illegal. If you put up a CCTV camera, you must put up a sign telling people they are being recorded. If your telephone conversation is recorded you must be informed before the call starts. It is very inappropriate to have the ability to collect data about my movements in my free time and not inform me.

I would guess that our laws, as usual, have not kept up with technology and that is why nobody is quite sure of the answer.

rebel.ranter

Yes you should have been told. We had them installed in pool vehicles at work. They were used t determine which driver was driving at the time of a speedig fine. Each driver had a swipe that they brought with them when driving a particular car. I am responsible for part of the fleet. I never saw any reports of locations. If your manager has the time to be checking that level of detail on you he has way too much time. I prefer to see what results the team produce not petty details.

Sometimes these devices have the antenna put too close to the radio, they will cause the same effect as putting your phone too close to the radio, the radio will start to buzz as the unit updates location.

Have you ever noticed this in your car?

Have you asked your boss if there is atracking device?

Did you ring the fleet management company that your employer uses to query whether a tracing device is installed?

Ask the mechanic to check for a device at the next service interva if you are not too confident of finding it yourself.

Lastly I know for a fact that there are software packages that are available to companies to track employees' mobile phone locations. I was subject to a trial with this software 7 years ago. Luckily it was abandoned. They could be tracking your phone too!
I believe Eircom use this for their Field Service Engineers, or at least they tried to bring it in...