Whatever type of truck you drive, you know that there are tons of risks involved. Handling more heavy-duty vehicles means being more responsible and cautious of every other driver on the road. So, it’s important to learn proper safety and how to protect your drivers if something happens. These preventative measures can range anywhere from proper training to truck monitoring.
Protecting your drivers from risks also includes truck insurance. However, it’s not enough to know the basics of coverage. Fleet owners must know the best types of insurance to protect their unique company. For instance, an insurance plan for a towing company in one region can be completely different from a reefer truck fleet’s in another location. Therefore, shopping for trucking insurance means knowing your company and all of the specific risks you face.
Here, we’ll go over all you need to know about trucking. We’ll walk you through what types of risks commercial trucks face and trucking news. We’ll also cover what types of trucking insurance you’ll need and how to save on the best coverage for your business.
Earning as a truck driver means long working hours and unwavering commitment and responsibility towards the job. Most truck drivers are fatigued and stressed due to the overwhelming pressure to stay secure while hauling heavy loads within the deadline.
Keep in mind that happy truck drivers are not only satisfied, but also more productive.
Driving a truck or bus is, needless to say, a huge responsibility. But just how big of a responsibility is it? For one thing, there are numerous factors that create safety challenges for truck and bus drivers.
The Safety Measurement System (SMS), a branch of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), identifies and intervenes with drivers who have demonstrated unsafe driving behavior. It uses seven distinct categories, known as BASICs, to identify, categorize, and rank drivers to prioritize for intervention. BASIC stands for Behavioral Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories and includes the following categories:
You’ve done everything right – your drivers are experienced, careful and well-trained, your trucks are well-maintained and up-to-date and everyone is complying with regulatory laws – but you still had an accident. It happens to everyone eventually, and it’s why you have commercial coverage for your fleet of trucks and vans anyway.
The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in every state requires both personal and commercial vehicles to obtain truck tags for license plates on an annual basis. The amount that drivers must pay for these truck tags depends on several factors, including age and type of the vehicle. Just as drivers of personal vehicles must prove they have minimum liability insurance, the same is true of commercial truckers.
Physical damage insurance provides coverage to repair damage to your truck or trailer caused by fire, severe weather, theft, vandalism, and falling objects. It is common for lienholders on truck loans to require physical damage coverage to protect their financial interests if the truck requires costly repairs or cannot be fixed.
There are many protocols and procedures in place that can help to assure the safety of commercial drivers and all other people on the road. One of those categories of procedures involves drug and alcohol testing. Here is what you need to know about that type of testing for commercial drivers.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) requires all commercial vehicles that weigh more than 10,000 pounds to undergo an annual truck inspection. This is to ensure that all equipment on the commercial vehicle works as it should to help improve public safety. The DOT conducts inspections at six different levels.
