Building a Culture of Fleet Safety – Creating a Roadmap

For virtually all vocational fleet operators, your drivers and their performance behind the wheel are the biggest x-factors in your fleet equation. High-risk behavior from your drivers – speeding, aggressive driving, harsh braking, etc. – not only increases costs throughout the entire vehicle lifecycle; it also exposes your company to ramifications that go well beyond accident repairs if you’re not addressing their performance while driving a company vehicle.

On average, approximately 20 percent of a company’s fleet will be involved in an accident each year – and each incident brings with it a significant cost to your company. In addition to direct costs such as medical bills and vehicle repairs, there are often a number of indirect costs as well – lost productivity, increased insurance premiums, potential legal liabilities, and negative publicity to name just a few. In fact, according to the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety, motor vehicle collisions costs employers more than $70 billion annually.

To keep your drivers safe, mitigate your company’s risk exposure, and minimize accident costs, you need to proactively build a culture of safety. To help you develop a comprehensive fleet safety program that aligns with the specific needs of your company, here are a few key factors to consider.

Establish Goals & Secure Organizational Buy-In

As you begin to explore implementing a driver safety program (or look to adjust an existing program), you should start this process with a clear understanding of your current risk exposure. Begin by assessing the current state of your fleet operations and driver performance. Determine (to the best of your ability) your fleet’s accident rates. Are collision repair costs elevated and/or on the rise? Are there particular drivers who account for a significant portion of accidents?

With this insight, you can develop a strategy to address pain points and key areas of risk exposure. This information will also allow you to establish goals and measurements for success to ensure your safety program is having a positive impact.

Also be sure to keep in mind that driver safety is a challenge that transcends fleet and requires an unwavering commitment from your entire business. An organization that wants to adhere to best practices will embrace a top-down approach with all fleet stakeholders emphasizing the importance of driver safety.

If all fleet stakeholders are not aligned on the goals of your safety program, it will be incredibly challenging to foster a culture of safe driving. Responsibility for fleet safety should not rest solely with fleet personnel. Safety and performance expectations should be clearly defined, and all fleet stakeholders should be held accountable for upholding these performance standards.

Roadmap for Driver Safety Success

Today, best in class fleet operators are leveraging multi-faceted programs to optimize fleet safety. To improve performance, mitigate risk, and reduce accident rates, a successful driver safety program should include the following elements:

• Properly set expectations for driving performance with an online fleet safety policy.
• Establish a personalized onboarding program for new drivers that includes a skills assessment program to identify poor driving habits and assigns corrective training before an incident occurs.
• Provide regularly recurring refresher training for drivers to keep skills sharp and safety top-of-mind.
• Continuously assess driver behavior using telematics and monitor MVRs on a consistent, on-going basis rather than just annually.
• When drivers exhibit risky behavior or an incident occurs, prescribe online training modules to match specific driver weaknesses to improve behavior.

The most effective approach to fostering a culture of safe driving is to use online training developed by safety experts. Well-constructed online training can be very engaging, interactive, and provides a consistent experience.

To maximize driver engagement, training should be personalized to the driver’s needs rather than generic training such as a defensive driving course. For new hires, this means first assessing their skills then providing targeted training to improve skills needing development. For tenured employees, this means monitoring their driving performance and providing immediate, personalized training to address high-risk behaviors. For example, if a driver incurs a speeding offense, a speed management training module should be immediately assigned to the driver.

Once your safety program is well established, you can also leverage comprehensive metrics and reporting, such as a driver scorecard, to highlight trends and further engage your drivers in the program. You’ll also want to share this information with leadership and encourage them to continue to communicate the importance of driver safety and hold stakeholders accountable for results.

Even with well-established goals and a roadmap for success in place, it is still easy to fall victim to a number of common pitfalls that can derail your progress. For more information on the pitfalls to avoid and how to effectively leverage technology to enhance the optics of your safety program, be sure to read part two focused on building a culture of fleet safety.