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With its potentially high costs to a business, fleet safety should be a number one concern for any company hoping to reduce its overall expenses. These expenses come mainly in the form of increased auto insurance and worker’s compensation rates, something that can almost be entirely controlled by a solid and effective fleet safety program. So how does a business develop and enforce a successful program? The first step in any successful program starts with proper pre-screening policy and procedures that addresses a proper and thorough authorization and screening process of all applicants whose job includes driving a company car.

Authorization process
All applicants that apply for a job position that requires use of a company car should be fully screened prior to hire. That means running Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) checks on each and every serious candidate. These MVR checks will show if a driver has any D.U.I convictions, as well as any other driving offenses or traffic violations. As a side benefit, it also verifies the applicant’s identity. In addition, if a driver is applying for position that requires a certain “class” of license, that can also be verified through the MVR check.

To further strengthen the pre-employment check, the job application should include questions that the MVR may not pick up, such as any unreported accidents or hit and runs, or operating a vehicle with a suspended or revoked license.

Selection process
Obtaining the MVR checks is the first line of defense for ensuring a successful fleet safety program. However, those MVR checks are useless unless a company establishes hiring guidelines based upon those checks. A sample of those hiring guidelines is shown below:

An applicant applying for a position that requires use of a company car must meet the following requirements:

It doesn’t guarantee success, but it sure helps
Performing these simple pre-screening recommendations doesn’t mean that non-qualified employees won’t slip through the cracks, but it will certainly deter most poor drivers from being hired.

Advanced warning systems such as adaptive cruise control and forward collision warning systems can greatly improve a company’s overall fleet safety.