There are occasions when a vehicle movement has to take place which does not constitute part of a rental agreement (i.e. non-rental mileage needs to be recorded). This option is typically used in rental companies to move the vehicle from location to another. There may be a rental request for a vehicle type that may be scarce or unavailable at one location; this demand may be met by moving the vehicle from another location that currently has excess capacity on this vehicle type. In order to maintain correct sequential mileage recordings it is recommended that the movement log be utilised to perform this task.
What do you want to do?
It may be useful here to provide an example of how the movement log affects the location of the vehicle. A Volkswagen Polo resides in Hire Group B with a registration number of R770PDP. If the Allocation Summary form is interrogated then it may be seen that the current location of the vehicle is LIV (Liverpool). Within the CRM Vehicle Rental vehicle record (MK.drveh) the Owned By location = LIV and the Currently at location = LIV. A new vehicle movement is initiated. The status of the movement record is Open. Within the movement record we select the Movement to location to be MAN (Manchester). Once the details of the movement record is complete the movement is saved and a record number is generated for the movement. The status of the movement record remains at Open. The printer icon is enabled so movement a document may be printed if required. Now, within the CRM Vehicle Rental vehicle record (MK.drveh) the Owned By location = LIV and the Currently at location = MAN. If the receiving rental location (Manchester) tries to allocate this vehicle to one of their agreements at this stage then the system displays a message: Warning: Vehicle on movement 00002; it will, however, enable the allocation to proceed. However, if they then try to commence the Start Rental function this is not permitted and the system displays the prompt: Vehicle is not at agreement start location.
To finish the movement the 
icon is selected. This option confirms the arrival of the vehicle at that receiving
location and enables the subsequent hire of the vehicle from that location. Once complete, the record
has a status of R to denote Finished (Returned). The Finish Movement
option effectively enables the bottom half (or Return section) of the the movement form to
be completed. At this stage the Currently at location field in the CRM Vehicle
Rental record (MK.drveh) is updated to the location that is receiving the vehicle i.e. MAN
(Manchester). Therefore, for revenue purposes the vehicle is now owned by the receiving location.
The vehicle can be allocated to an agreement at the new MAN (Manchester) location
and the rental agreement started without any warnings.
This option enables the recording of delivery and collection details as well as simple repositioning tasks. The movement log complements the mileage recording made on the rental agreements. If it is used correctly it should help in the identification of vehicles which are accumulating extra mileage between rental agreements.
Movements can be checked and listed with the report generator for scheduling purposes.
To create a vehicle movement:
From the Master Menu, select the Vehicle rentals option and Company required.
The VEHICLE RENTALS Menu is displayed.
Select the Reservations option.
The Reservations and Availability form is displayed.
Select the 
icon
(or, alternatively, select the Movement option from the Vehicle menu.
The Movement Log form is displayed.
The Movement Log form is displayed when the the icon is selected from the Reservations form.
This form is divided into five parts that are as follows:
In addition to displaying the form name the Title Bar displays a number of other useful identification criteria and buttons.
| Menu | Icon | Description |
|---|---|---|
| File > New |  |
Enables a new vehicle movement record to be created. |
| File > Open |  |
Displays the Movement Search form that enables an existing movement record to be located and opened by entering one or more of the selection criteria fields. |
| File > Save |  |
Saves any amendments that have been made to the movement record in the current session. |
| File > Exit |  |
Exits the current movement log to the Reservations form. If any amendments have been made to the agreement that have not yet been saved then the system prompts: Abandon changes to movement?. The OK or Cancel command button should be selected as required. |
| Print > Print Movement |  |
This menu option is context-sensitive and is only enabled once the vehicle movement record is saved. Enables a movement document to be printed to the currently selected printer. It is not necessary to print a vehicle movement document but it may be used in order to print out delivery/collection instructions for the driver. The format of the printed document is user-defined and can be used in such a way that it serves as an official order document for the vehicle movement; the document format is dependent upon the underling format stationery having been designed and set up within the Movement format field in the General Tab within System Parameters. Note: The system can be set-up to override the currently selected printer. A printer can be assigned to a location in GB.locat e.g. Spool222. Ensure that this is the same location as is associated with the user id (In the GB.users details file). When the option to print the movement is taken the appropriate printer (e.g. Spool122) is defaulted in the printer selection form. |
| Movement > Finish Movement | |
A vehicle movement is carried out in two steps. The first step is for the rental operator for where the vehicle is currently located to open a movement log record and select the required location to where the vehicle is to be moved. At this stage the record has a status of Open. The second step is carried out by the rental operator at the destination location and utilises the Finish Movement option to confirm the arrival of the vehicle at that location and enable the subsequent hire of the vehicle from that location. Once complete, the record has a status of R to denote Finished (Returned). The Finish Movement option effectively enables the bottom half (or Return section) of the the movement form to be completed. At this stage the Currently at location field in the CRM Vehicle Rental record (MK.drveh) is updated to the location that is receiving the vehicle. Therefore, for revenue purposes the vehicle is now owned by the receiving location. The vehicle can be allocated to an agreement at the new location and the rental agreement started without any warnings. |
| Movement > Close Movement |  |
Once the Finish Movement option is used to confirm the arrival of the vehicle at the new location, certain fields within the movement record may still be edited. This option closes down the movement so that the record may no longer be edited. The record now has a status of Closed. |
| Help > |  |
Provides online access to context sensitive help for the current application using the default browser. |
The status bar contains quick-reference information with regard to movement audit information and movement status. The following information is displayed:
Created
Displays two fields of information: the userid/log-in of the person who initially created the movement record; and, the date on which the movement record is created.
Modified
Displays two fields of information: the userid/log-in of the person who last modified the movement record; and, the date on which the movement record was last modified.
Status
Displays the current agreement status e.g. Open, RF to denote Finished (Returned) or Closed.
The Vehicle Movement dialogue box comprises of just one form containing a number of basic fields that are as follows:
Registration number: The registration number of the vehicle being moved. The
button immediately to the right of this field initiates a search of all vehicle records held within the CRM vehicle file (MK.vehic). If a vehicle registration is selected that is already on allocated to an agreement the system prompts: The vehicle is currently booked out on agreement ????? (where ????? is the agreement number) and will not allow the movement to proceed.
Reason: A free text field to explain the reason for moving the vehicle. This is not a mandatory field.
Out Location: Defaults to the current location and cannot be edited.
Movement To: This is the branch to which the vehicle is being moved. This field must exist in the Locations Link table (within Miscellaneous Options) and is a mandatory field.
Note: Once the movement record is saved and a movement log number generated (and displayed in the title bar) then the first stage of the movement complete. At this stage the Owned By location field in the CRM Vehicle Rental record (MK.drveh) remains as the location that initiated the movement but the Currently at location changes from the location that initiated the movement to the location that is receiving the vehicle.
Tip: If the receiving rental location tries to allocate this vehicle to one of their agreements at this stage then the system displays a message: Warning: Vehicle on movement 00002; it will, however, enable the allocation to proceed. However, if they then try to commence the Start Rental function this is not permitted and the system displays the prompt: Vehicle is not at agreement start location.
Group The vehicle hire group. This field is for information purposes and cannot be edited. The corresponding group must exist within the receiving location.
Current Mileage The current odometer reading for the vehicle. This field is for information purposes and cannot be edited.
Owning co Some rental companies utilise a multiple rental company (as distinct from multiple location)operation. In this case, the owning rental company code is displayed in this field e.g. 02. This field is for information purposes and cannot be edited.
Hiring co Some rental companies utilise a multiple rental company (as distinct from multiple location) operation. In this case, the receiving rental company code is displayed in this field e.g. 03 (the company code is derived from the Movement to location. This field is for information purposes and cannot be edited.
Driver: The driver code may be keyed directly or, alternatively, the
Date out: The date of the vehicle movement. This defaults to today's date but may be changed.
The drop-down-arrow button may be used to invoke a monthly diary form in order to assist in establishing the required Date out criteria. Selection of the < button moves to the previous month and the > button moves to the next month. Selection of Exit exits the diary form. A double-click on the appropriate day of the month enters this date into the appropriate field. Tab or click with the mouse to move to the time field.
Time out: The time the vehicle movement is due to start.
E-Mail to user ID: This is the e-mail address of the person to which the movement details are to be forwarded. (Oddly enough, the system defaults-in the email address linked to the nominated driver record). This is a particularly useful feature if you want to mail a central operator with details of all of the movements that are being carried out.
Out Odometer: It is important to record the out odometer reading in order that lost mileage information can be reported on. This is a mandatory field and is validated. If an incorrect odometer )less than previously recorded) reading is entered the system warns of this and displays the last known odometer reading at the foot of the form.
Out Fuel %: The fuel level when the vehicle movement commences. No calculations are made on this value; it is for reporting purposes only.
This information is displayed within this form but can actually only be entered via the
Finish Movement form initiated by selecting the
icon.
Date returned: This is the date the vehicle movement is finished.
Time returned: The time the vehicle movement is finished.
Return OdometerThis is the mileage when the vehicle movement is finished i.e. when the vehicle arrives at the new location. Again, it is important to maintain seriality of mileage recordings.
Return Fuel %: The fuel level reading when the vehicle movement is finished.
Fill up Fuel : Any fuel that is required to fill up the tank following the repositioning movement.
Comments: It is possible to maintain a comments area to store notes about the vehicle movement. Comments made here can be used to print out of the movement document format.
