Driving Record Checks

We recently changed insurance companies and we are now responsible to determine if an emplopyee is an "acceptable driver". In the past we relied on our insurance company to decide this so I didn't have a guide as to who is and isn't acceptable.

Do you have anything or can you guide me towards something that would help us to make criteria for an acceptable driver? I want the list in writing before management starts making random decisions to include or exclude anyone.

Comments

  • 13 Comments sorted by Votes Date Added
  • We get our own driving records and follow our own policy, but each insurance company has their own guidelines and will sometimes challenge a driver's status.

    Generally:
    * No alcohol or drug related offenses within past 5 years.

    * No serious offenses within past 3 years: reckless or careless driving, speeding 15 mph over limit, fleeing or eluding police, leaving scene of accident, etc.

    * If no serious or drug or alcohol offenses, then look at accidents and other violations. (I can't get the chart to copy here, so here are the general guidelines.)

    CLEAR:
    0 preventable accidents & 0 violations

    ACCEPTABLE:
    0 preventable accidents & 1-2 violations
    1 preventable accident & 0-1 violations

    BORDERLINE:
    0 preventable accidents & 3 violations
    1 preventable accident & 2 violations
    2 preventable accidents & 0-1 violations

    POOR:
    0 preventable accidents & 4 violations
    1 preventable accident & 3-4 violations
    2 preventable accidents & 2 or more violations
    3 preventable accidents, regardless of violations

    New hires should be clear or acceptable. Current employees who move down to borderline are notified that any further violations might cause them to lose driving status (and possible job), and their MVR's are reviewed every 6 months.
  • nietra,

    We use the state's (Maryland) point system. Potential drivers cannot have more than two (2) points on their driving records. Veteran drivers can accumulate up to three (3). Any DUI's or DWI's in the past five years instantly disqualifies applicants and current employees from driving.

    We also use a term we call "Negligent Driver." A negligent driver is defined as "a driver who has two (2) preventable accidents with appreciable damage in a twenty-four month period.

    An "accident" is defined as "an occurrence or action involving an agency driver which results in an injury or fatality to an individual or damage to a motor vehicle or property."

    An "injury" for this purpose is defined as "any injury treated by a physician, dentist, or nurse, or in a hospital."

    A "preventable accident" is defined as "an accident in which the driver failed to do everything the driver reasonable could have done to prevent it, according to accepted standards of National Safety Council."

    "Appreciable damage" is defined as "any situation that creates a potential liability for payment by the agency or any of its insurance carriers for property damage in excess of $500.00."

    When it comes to accidents and negligent driving, there is an appeal process. Supervisors may also submit a letter documenting the reason(s) for continued employment should they feel compelled to do so.

    Geno, SPHR




  • Our new insurance company does not check MVR and relies on us to determine if they are an acceptable driver. With that in mind I asked for some guidance on determining who is acceptable and I received the following information. How does this compare?

    Mo major violations in the last five years (OWI, vehicular homicide, reckless driving, drugs, leaving the scene)
    or
    Max. 1 moving voiolation in the last five years in combination with one at fault accident
    or
    Maximum 2 moving violations in the last five years with no at fault accidents
    or
    Max. 2 at fault accidnets in the last five years with no moving violations


    It's up to us to set the guidelines but I'm wondering if this is too strict since the document also states no driver under 25, no drivers in their first year of hire, and no driver over the age of 70.
  • NIETRA: I do not understand, if your insurance company does not do the MVR for driving record check and history, who does? Without the MVR how will you know if I have a speeding ticket that has been "judicated", so that you can assign a numerical value in your poicy? We do our MVRs yearly and quarterly, if a driver becomes a "probationary employee driver" with 12 points. The 13th point will cause the driver to no longer be qualified to drive a vehicle for our company, he comes out of the seat immediately upon being verified by the MVR. The driver is considered as not-insurable. Speeding tickets are valued as 3 points each, a vehicle wreck may cause a immediate termination if he is at fault. If not at fault, but could have prevented the accident, being in the wrong place at the wrong time 9 points may be assessed. Backing accidents and damage to the property of others could get a driver 4 points. Transporting a non-employee will get you a 12 point or an immediate termination depending on the circumstance.

    PORK
  • I am as shocked as you are but we just switched to Philladelphia Insurance and they stated it is up to us to do MVR checks and determine if they are an acceptable driver. In the past our insurance company did this for us so now we are trying to come up with a procedure to follow once we have those records in hand so we are not making random "he is ok" decisions.

    I have asked about getting MVR's from Philladephia without an answer yet and in the mean time have paid for 2 checks for new hires. The employees each physically went to DOT for their records for us to revew both were clean so it was really easy.

    As far as I know Iowa does not have a "point" system for driving infractions.


  • Our insurance company also used to do MVRs for us, but they stopped a few years ago with some changes in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. (I'm not intimately familiar with the details; I understand it has something to do with 3rd parties gathering the information and releasing it to us.) However, the insurance company still runs their own because they sometimes call & challenge a driver's status, even though we don't give them the info.

    Anyway, the procedure to get our own is simple for Kansas and Missouri. We send a form with the employee's signature straight to the state and they send the MVR to us. The fee is not bad for either state. I don't typically let drivers bring one in (or if they do have one with them, I still send off for an official copy for the file.)

    I am surprised that they don't give you more of a definition for what they consider an acceptable driver, since they are the ones providing insurance.
  • You might try ADP Background Checks - just go online to ADP. Although our insurance company will not do BMV reports, ADP will do them for us. We also check with our insurance company to verify that the potential candidate would be an acceptable driver under our policy. They will tell us this much.
  • Sadly, insurance companies, just like BANKS (chime in Dutch), are not really interested any more in superior customer service. It's all about having the biggest brick building on the nicest corner lot in town and charging the customer, while providing as little service as they can get away with.




    Disclaimer: This message is not intended to offend or attack. It is posted as personal opinion. If you find yourself offended or uncomfortable, email me and let me know why.
  • This is not a customer service related issue. Under the FCRA, a MVR can only be ordered for a permissible purpose and the MVR can only be used for the specific purpose in which it was ordered - meaning one report cannot be used for both insurance and employment purposes.

    Please see the excerpt from the December 2004 "Views and News" from iiX. This is an educational newsletter that goes to all our customers. For more information,please go to [url]www.iix.com[/url].

    "iiX would like to remind insurance carriers, agents and brokers that they may not give MVR information to their commercial clients. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) states that one
    consumer report (MVR) may only be used for the specific purpose for which it was ordered. All users must have a permissible purpose as prescribed under the FCRA to obtain a consumer
    report. MVRs ordered for insurance/underwriting purposes may not be used for any other purpose, and no information from the MVR can be shared with commercial clients. If an employee of a
    commercial client is found uninsurable, the insurer may communicate to their client that the person is uninsurable. However, no information from the MVR may be passed to the
    client/employer."

    Please note that this provision works both ways -you can't order an MVR as an employer and pass along to your insurance company.
  • Would it be permissible for me to order the MVR, determine if they meet our criteria and pass their name to our insurance carrier to be added to the authorized driver list?
  • I don't see any problem with this. We update our driver's list with the insurance company also.
  • That would not be prohibited by FCRA.

    This is indeed a customer service related issue. If the customer is dissatisfied, then it is a CS issue. Perhaps, though, it could have been avoided or quickly resolved if the insurance company had advised the customer why it made the decision it made. Customer service issues are primarily perception driven.




    Disclaimer: This message is not intended to offend or attack. It is posted as personal opinion. If you find yourself offended or uncomfortable, email me and let me know why.
  • You're right - it is a customer service issue in that the insurance companies should provde an explanation to their customer.
Sign In or Register to comment.