As your fleet grows, so does your accident frequency and claim severity if you do not take appropriate steps to address your fleet safety and defensibility.
“Insurers evaluate fleet risk by looking at both historical losses and the company’s overall commitment to risk management,” says Drew Garcia, vice president of Rancho Mesa Insurance Services and Landscape Group Leader. “They assess factors such as accident frequency and severity, driver hiring and screening practices, MVR monitoring, training programs, safety policies, management involvement, and the use of technologies like GPS tracking, telematics, and dash cameras. Organizations that can demonstrate a structured, proactive approach to driver safety are generally viewed as best in class and more attractive to insurance carriers.”
Garcia and Josh Ferguson, a partner at Freeman, Mathis & Gary, LLP, will cover how contractors can reduce accidents, improve insurability, and protect themselves from costly litigation during their session, “Defensible Fleet Management: Reducing Claims, Costs and Legal Exposure” on Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 9 a.m. at ELEVATE.
“Many insurers and risk managers view landscape companies as transportation businesses that happen to provide landscaping services, making fleet performance a key factor in insurance pricing and availability,” Garcia says. “Understanding this perspective can help companies better align their risk management efforts, and this session will provide insight into the strategies and controls that can improve safety, reduce claims, and strengthen insurability.”
Why Fleet Risk Is on the Rise
Ferguson says the biggest causes of increasing accident frequency are increased vehicles on the roadway, distracted driving and riskier driving behavior.
“Each of these presents their own challenges for the driver and companies with vehicles on the roadway, increasing the value risk management protocols, including but not limited to safety training and the implementation of available technologies,” Ferguson says.
Claim severity has also been escalating due to a variety of factors including increased medical costs, social inflation, increased plaintiff attorney advertising, and sophistication in litigation tactics and financial investment.
“As the exposures increase for companies, the importance of risk management protocols and training takes on ever greater importance,” Ferguson says.
One area of exposure is negligent entrustment, which is the legal theory that holds a person or company liable for giving a vehicle, piece of equipment, or other potentially dangerous instrumentality to someone they knew or should have known was unqualified, incompetent, reckless, or unsafe to operate it.
Ferguson says this applies to subcontractors that a company knew or should have known were unqualified to perform the assigned task.
“Defending these claims relies upon proof of training and other company documentation to show they performed both due diligence as to the person(s) provided the equipment or vehicle and ongoing safety training; or in the case of a subcontractor or other vendor, investigation into the subcontractor’s experience, manpower and equipment to perform the potential tasks/jobs assigned,” Ferguson says.
Ways to Improve Fleet Safety
During the session, Garcia will cover how tools such as GPS tracking, telematics and dash cameras can strengthen coaching, improve documentation and provide critical evidence during claims defense.
“The most successful fleet safety programs treat driver development as a continuous process through MVR reviews, onboarding, ongoing training, technology insights, and clear accountability standards that reinforce safe driving behavior,” Garcia says.
Ferguson adds that driver accountability is improved when employees are educated about the risks to themselves and the company.
“Accountability increases with education, but also from taking cues from leadership,” Ferguson says. “When management is walking the walk and talking the talk, it permeates all levels of a business.”
Ready to evaluate your fleet risk and learn actionable risk management strategies? Register for ELEVATE, and we’ll see you in Tampa, Florida!
