6 Fundamental Safety Tips for Motor Carriers and Fleet Managers
Reducing risk can save your company time, energy, and money. Those three things are crucial to staying in business in today’s world and staying competitive in today’s market. The following tips can help improve performance and keep your fleet as safe as it can be to keep your drivers on the road, your trucks rolling, and your company ahead of the game.
Drivers are assets.
As operators of a CMV, drivers are responsible for what happens. Safety and efficiency are valued behaviors. Remind the drivers of this and encourage behaviors and habits that support safety and efficiency.
2. Don't skimp on compliance.
Audits conducted by governmental agencies are full of "gotcha" items. Some are not severe, but others may get permits pulled, fines, or worse: your ability to operate revoked. Invest in people, companies, and/or processes to make sure you "check the boxes." This is more than just FMCSRs. A typical trucking company also reports to IFTA, IRP, FHWA, EPA, and each state's equivalent.
3. Hours of service and drug testing are not to be toyed with.
In a compliance review from either the FMCSA directly or a state partner, Drug & Alcohol Testing violations could impact your ability to maintain a satisfactory rating. For drug testing, partner with a TPA and make sure everything related is run through and handled by that qualified vendor. Then, follow through with their recommendations. Beyond that, know the testing requirements enough to make sure they are pulling at the correct random testing rates.
HOS takes effort now that telematics and ELDs are commonplace in vehicles. Companies should communicate to drivers that HOS violations will not be tolerated. Make sure you are following up on HOS violations with meaningful action (write up, retraining, termination, etc). and run and follow up on HOS reports! This includes not just HOS violations but PC, unassigned driving, malfunctions, and the like. Speaking of PC, know the FMCSA guidance, teach the guidance and enforce the guidance.
4. Documentation wins the day over not.
Documentation shows that you had the right intent. This looks a whole lot better to law enforcement and auditors. Being transparent and having good documentation proves you care.
5. Recognize bad behaviors early and cut them out.
We all know that a distraction could result in an accident, so why tolerate it? If you see a driver on their cell phone, working unsafely, or displaying disrespectful or immature behaviors in general: squash it. Not acting could cost the company money and you could lose a driver.
6. Measure twice, cut fast
In industries like transportation, profit margins are slim. They're worse in tough economic conditions like today. Acting on metrics can increase revenue and cut costs. Every department should have them, and safety is no exception. Track claims, insurance spending, accident and injury rates, HOS violations, roadside performance and telematic data etc…. This information can help shine a light on wasteful spending, driver utilization, and more. Some of these metrics can point out opportunities or spot inefficiencies.
We live in a world of Tik Tok’s, swipe rights, and instant gratification. The “younger” generation isn’t built the same as the old generation. Learning styles have evolved, attention spans are shorter, but the messages LEC is called to share about safety, remain the same.
The hope for this blog is to provide you, the reader, with high quality, informative safety messages, industry tips, and relatable content… but in a way that makes it relatable to the “new” school way of learning. We want you to feel a part of the conversation, to imagine yourself in your every day, utilizing this content. The content will be the same as if you were picking up a 800 page textbook and reading… but in a “not-so-mind-numbing” fashion. So while we may include quips and quirks, the information remains just as important and just factual.
We hope you can take something away from this blog to share with your drivers, managers, and co-workers to help your fleet to be a safe and efficient as it can be on and off the road.
