June Is National Safety Month…Are You in the Driver’s Seat?

National Safety MonthIn June, the National Safety Council will be promoting National Safety Month, a nationwide advocacy effort to increase safety at work, on the road and in homes. The campaign focuses specifically on raising awareness to reduce the incidence of the leading causes of injury and death.

In conjunction with this effort, Marathon is working to expand education about two important issues for businesses: worker driving safety, which we will feature this week, and leading causes of accidents, which we will discuss in next week’s blog.

Many business owners have workers who drive for business purposes, but not all of them know the extent of activities that qualify, nor the safeguards they should implement to protect themselves from potential liability.

  • All driving conducted in conjunction with a business activity is business-related driving, whether or not the employee is driving a company vehicle.
  • Depending on the relationship, company-related driving by independent contractors may also be considered business driving.
  • Even very peripheral activities, such picking up supplies for the business after work hours and on a volunteer basis, could be construed as business driving.

Business Driving Precautions

To protect themselves and their workers, business owners should follow and communicate a variety of safety measures:

  1. Establish and enforce clearly stated, no-exceptions policies regarding business driving. These policies should not only detail when driving for the business is acceptable but also outline the approval process for those who are not authorized to drive under their job descriptions.
  2. Primary Causes of Accidents
  3. Develop guidelines for personnel to follow in the event of an accident or traffic infraction. These should be incorporated into both the company manual and a “safety kit” that also includes:
    • Company contacts to notify in the event of a problem on the road;
    • What information to provide police and any other drivers involved;
    • Company preferences for towing companies, doctors and other third parties who might assist a worker after a driving incident.
  4. Speak to company insurance agents, both automotive/fleet and corporate, and determine what driving is covered under the policy. If agents recommend expanding or adding coverage, give their suggestions earnest consideration.