By Chad Engle, Loss Prevention Manager and Safety Specialist
Man, I hate to say it, but summer is almost over. I know that the summer solstice is not until September 22nd but for all intents and purposes summer is over when school starts and around here, kids go back to school the week of August 12th.
According to the National Safety Council, August safety topics to consider include Stop on Red Week, Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, and Back to School Month. A theme that connects all these topics is safe driving. Car crashes consistently rank in the top three of NIRMA’s loss leaders, or most common causes of loss.
During fiscal year 2023 – 2024 NIRMA member car crashes resulted in property and liability claims totaling $1,502,862 and workers’ compensation claims totaling $386,339. Combined, car crashes accounted for $1,889,202 out of the total incurred of $7,986,759. So, 23% of the total amount incurred by NIRMA members, or almost ¼ of the total amount NIRMA paid in claims during the last fiscal year was the result of car crashes.
NIRMA members are encouraged and expected to actively manage the risks faced by their employees. What has your county or agency done to actively address the risk of car crashes?
The Insurance Information Institute recommends the following practices:
- Check employee motor vehicle records upon hire and regularly thereafter. (Also, a NIRMA Best Safety Practice)
- Implement and enforce a mandatory seat-belt policy for all drivers and passengers.
- Prohibit employees from using cell phones while driving.
- Recognize that aggression and hostility are personality traits that may lead to crashes.
- Require employees that regularly drive vehicles in the course of their employment to complete a driver-training program that includes safe following distance, speed awareness and control, and proper backing techniques.
- Implement a periodic safety inspection and maintenance program for all vehicles used for business purposes.
- Recognize accident-free drivers to encourage better driving.
- Make sure that your work schedule or procedures do not pressure drivers to speed, complete paperwork while driving or engage in other poor driving habits.
- Have a procedure for drivers to follow after a crash.
- Investigate the cause of all accidents and use the results as a training opportunity for all drivers. (Also, a NIRMA Best Safety Practice)
Driver training and accident investigations are crucial in your risk management of car crashes. NIRMA recommends and provides resources for both practices. Todd Duncan, K.C. Pawling and I are all certified National Safety Council Defensive Driving Course 4 Hour (DDC 4) instructors. This is an in-person interactive course that delivers practical strategies to reduce crash-related injuries, fatalities and other related costs. Not only does it provide key understanding, skills and techniques to avoid crashes, but it also focuses on why drivers make the choices they make and why they should reconsider those behind the wheel choices.
Driver training courses are also provided through NIRMA’s Online University and Online Streaming Videos. These can be found on the NIRMA website by clicking on Training under the Resources tab.
Accident/Incident investigations should be performed anytime there is a near-miss or an actual property damage or injury claim. The goal is to find the root cause of the incident and develop ways to prevent recurrence. These findings can then be shared with employees during training so that they have the knowledge to prevent a similar incident from happening to them.
As always, if you have any questions on the topics and resources discussed above, please reach out to me at 1.800.642.6671 or [email protected]. Take care!
