Want to lower your fleet’s commercial insurance claims or premiums? Then train your drivers better, according to insurance professionals.
We have all seen insurance rates rise due to inflation, nuclear verdicts, and more.
ATRI research documented a 40% increase in the liability insurance premium cost per mile over the past decade. This is true for Canadian carriers as well.
The number of insurance claims for all commercial vehicles across Canada increased ‘significantly faster’ than the number of commercial vehicles on the road between 2016 and 2022, according to a recent Commercial Trucking Insurance and Education report.
So, how does the insurance industry hope to lower insurance rates? Better CDL driver training and onboarding. Let’s break this down.
The problem: Trucking accidents are increasing insurance premiums
The report found that insurance premiums are highly correlated with claims expenses and the risk of a claim being made.
The cause of this correlation? Driver experience and the length of time since a previous claim.
Lack of experience is crucial in the trucking industry. Insurers perceive new drivers as more likely to be involved in accidents or make mistakes due to their inexperience on the road.
For drivers under 30, the violation rate is almost double the rest of the new CDL population.
Across all age cohorts, 23% of new CDLs had moving violations, and 16% of new CDLs had accidents. As the CDL driver’s age decreases, violation and accident rates increase.
Younger commercial drivers — the fastest-growing age group — also represent the highest risk, and new CDLs are becoming riskier based on distributional shifts to younger ages.
Since lack of driving experience is a high risk, it only makes sense that more training for new drivers would help lower insurance costs. But what kind of training is recommended?
Insurers urge onboarding, mentorship, and continued education for new CDL drivers
As we preach at CNS with our proactive safety programs, overall company culture that prioritizes safety is key to development and maintenance of safe drivers.
According to the insurance report, onboarding and mentorship are considered key to properly preparing truck drivers.
The problem is that the length and quality of onboarding and mentorship programs among carriers varies significantly, especially the smaller the trucking company.
But the safety impact is real.
Carriers that prioritize safety as an essential part of their culture tend to be those with more robust onboarding, finishing, and continuous education programs. These training opportunities, and daily driver exposure to a culture of safety, help to impress safe practices upon drivers, aiding in reducing their accident frequency and severity.
Additionally, continuous professional development throughout a truck driver’s career is important.
The industry evolves regularly as new technologies are introduced, and rules and regulations are updated and/or modified. In the face of this change, it is important for established drivers to be kept on top of such changes and thus the need for regular training is important throughout driving careers to ensure continued safety.
This is where CNS excels, subscribe to our YouTube channel to stay up-to-date on the latest trucking safety and regulatory news.
What should an onboarding and continued training program look like?
First, let’s tackle onboarding.
Onboarding and mentorship provided by safe carriers can reach up to two years.
After receiving a CDL, there are still hundreds of truck driver competencies that can be acquired in several ways including on-the-job training and finishing schools.
Truck driving skills can be categorized into two main types: soft skills and hard skills.
Hard skills refer to the technical and tangible abilities required for operating a vehicle and performing specific tasks related to driving and maintenance. These skills include: navigation, proper driving, basic mechanical knowledge, route planning, load securement, hours-of-service or logbook management, backing and docking, and more.
On the other hand, soft skills are more intangible, such as: communication, organization, discipline, trustworthiness, time management, adaptability, and more.
Owners and managers may have to devote more time and resources to driver-employee conversations and evaluations than they are accustomed to.
Ask your drivers questions at 30 days, 60, 90, 120, and 180 days.
I think you really need to take the approach of “How can I invest in my employees? How is it that I can make sure I understand what each individual can provide to make my company successful?”
You can also provide mentorship in which a new driver has both quality and quantity of in-cab hours with an experienced driver.
Now, let’s tackle continued training.
Even with adequate entry-level training, there is a need to provide additional individualized coaching and guidance to drivers.
To encourage ongoing training, some jurisdictions require drivers who want to renew their license to complete a minimum number of hours of training over a five-year period.
Drivers require additional training on driving in different terrains and conditions, with various types of trucks and commodities, as well as training on how to use electronic logging devices.
CNS Learning Hub is building a storehouse of driver and management training that can be added to your onboarding and continued education program.
All of our instructors are certified in the topics they are teaching, whether it be online, a webinar or in-person. We provide you with confidence that you are learning accurate information.
Additionally, we provide a certificate of completion at the end of each course that can be added to your driver qualification file.
It has never been easier to fulfill your required DOT, OSHA, HAZMAT or other industry required training. Take care of all of your trainings online. START TRAINING TODAY!
Are you ready to be proactive?
Our safety management programs are perfect for combining multiple services and can be tailored to fit your needs, whether you are a new owner operator or a seasoned trucker or business owner.
At CNS, our DOT Compliance Programs focus on Proactive Safety Management (PSM), a mindset that will ensure your fleet’s safety and compliance is always in order and ahead of the FMCSA.
Our PSM Motor Carrier Program includes:
- ELD management
- Driver Qualification File Management
- New driver on-boarding
- Driver safety meetings
- CSA score management
- Policies and handbooks
- Vehicle maintenance
- and more
For more information, call (888) 260-9448 or email us at info@cnsprotects.com.
