A Trucker's Need for Best Practices- Quickly

While everyone is trying to get their arms around the ramifications of CSA 2010, new information is out that points to the need for truckers to fix themselves, rather than be made to do it.

New information compiled from industry giant Lexis says that half( yes that is 50%) of driver qualification files are incomplete- or wrong. Since most insurance carriers, truckers, and truck brokers are worried about vicarious liability that goes with such terms as negligent hiring and negligent entrustment, truckers would do well to invest and fix it now. Insurance agents should work with their insurance carriers to make a trucker look better- now. Without it, the potential for liability is unfortunately at an all time high.

Here is the article in the Journal of Commerce and the Transportation Intermediaries Association.

"The LexisNexis Commercial Driver Safety Report 2010 has revealed that up to 50 percent of commercial driver qualification files, required by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) are incomplete or inaccurate. The report showed numerous instances of incomplete or inaccurate information being used by organizations to screen and qualify drivers, highlighting significant and troubling gaps in compliance and safety programs. Another troubling finding is that commercial drivers are increasingly testing positive for use of PCP, Marijuana, amphetamines and opiates since 2008.

The LexisNexis Commercial Driver Safety Report 2010 is designed to help commercial transportation fleet owners and managers address initiatives, such as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010), by highlighting the areas where existing driver safety and screening programs may be inadequate. The study also found that:

• In files that are compromised by missing documentation, driver licenses are missing 85 percent of the time.

• While use of most illegal substances appears to be on the rise, positive tests for cocaine use decreased 41 percent since 2008.

• Close to 50 percent of the driver motor vehicle reports analyzed by LexisNexis include an adverse motor vehicle history, such as a driving violation or suspended license. "