• Stop Critical Crash Campaign
• Try a Little Education on for Size
• Is Your Service Equipment Covered?
• Get Your True APR with Concept Financial Group, Inc.
• Are You Attracting and Retaining "GQ" Drivers?
• Customer Only Section at www.truckwriters.com
• Area Code Change 
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Stop Critical Crash Campaign

Great West Casualty developed this campaign to focus in on three types of crashes.

They are preventable and the circumstances indicate that the driver did not do everything reasonable to avoid the crash.

They happen with frequency and therefore are usually predictable.

They produce severity and result in serious physical harm or death to individuals and/or damage to personal property and the environment.

The three critical crashes we are addressing in this campaign are:

Rear-end
Lane Change
Run-under

When you sign up for this campaign, you will receive a ready-made program to address these three type crashes. The program includes an instructional video about the program, four different videos addressing the three crashes plus one on speeding, and a booklet with a calendar of events, awareness ideas for easy coping, and a section addressing each crash to be used for driver instruction or meetings.

Even though the information addresses the three critical crashes, there are many awareness tools which can enhance your safety program and address all other types of crashes. Pay check stuffers, table tents, newsletters, and posters can easily be copied to be handed out to the drivers or left sitting in areas where drivers gather.

This is a year long campaign. Throughout the year you will be receiving additional information from Great West Casualty. Additional posters, SMART Brochures, and newsletters will focus on time of the year and seasonal topics. You will automatically be signed up for the Great West Casualty Fleet Safety Award Program This award is based on your total fleet mileage vs. the number of accidents.

If you haven't already signed an enrollment card call the agency or your Great West Casualty Safety Representative and they will be happy to assist you. There is no cost for the campaign material but will give you dollar savings by reducing crashes.

-by John Forsythe, Great West Casualty Company 
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Try a Little Education on for Size

We recently came across a compelling article in the December issue of Heavy Duty Trucking. The story is based on an anonymous letter written by a truck driver. The trucker became enraged when a four-wheeler cut him off. He decided to "teach him a lesson" and began to tailgate the car to "show him who's boss".
Needless to say the truck is boss and will win every time in a war of rage with a car. The ensuing crash found a humbled truck driver holding the hand of another human being trapped in the wreckage of his car while they waited for an ambulance. His rage quickly turned to anguish when he learned that the car driver later died in the hospital.

The result of one trucker's rage was another man's death. Forever haunted by the horror of what he had done and the image of the other man's face was cause for reflection for this trucker.

"Motorists have no idea how they risk their lives around big trucks. Do they deserve to die for their ignorance? If someone cut you off in a supermarket line would you pull out a gun and shoot them? Don't hold that 80,000-pound gun to the back of a four-wheeler's head. You're the pro. Act like one."

The article, "Road Rage Revisited"' gave a sense of purpose to one of our many efforts in support of the trucking industry that we would like to recommend to anyone involved with trucks and/or trucking. Some time ago we too became aware of the motoring public's basic ignorance of big trucks on the road. We took it upon ourselves to do something about it.

We reasoned that the problem could be nipped in the bud if we caught it early. So, we contacted the local driving school and two local high school driver education instructors and offered our time to "teach them a real lesson" about sharing the road with big trucks.

We found that the normal classroom section on large trucks was woefully inadequate. Most of the kids were genuinely interested in knowing more. Basic do's and don'ts around a truck are fine. Teach kids today about blind spots, right turn squeezes, cutting off a truck and following distances; and, just maybe it will be one less claim (maybe even one less fatality) to anguish over in the future.

We wholeheartedly encourage anyone in the business to give it a try. Truckers, truckers' wives, brokers, dispatchers, whoever has a knowledge of what it takes to drive a truck in traffic take the time to share that knowledge. Give them a little education that might just help you both avoid a life-changing accident one day.

-by Jeff Vanasse, Agent - Administrative Risk Consultants, Inc.
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Is Your Service Equipment Covered?

After a recent theft of a snow plow off the front of an insured's service pickup I had the unpleasant task of advising my customer that the auto claims department planned to deny the claim because the snow plow was not original equipment of the pickup. It did not help to advise either the insured or the underwriter that our agency had no prior knowledge of the snow plow.
Compelled by this development, I decided to investigate further with another of our underwriters regarding another account with a business auto policy on their trio of very nice service pickups.

Earlier in the year I commented to the company that each pickup had a very nice color-coordinated topper and asked if I should include the toppers in the value of the pickup or list them separately. The answer was include the value and mention in the application each unit had a matching topper. But now, after describing my dilemma on the snow plow theft the answer from the second company changed!

Any equipment not factory installed and/or permanently bolted in place should appear on a separately scheduled equipment floater to the property or vehicle policy.

The moral of the story is make sure to advise your agent of the presence of any extra equipment attached to service vehicles such as plow blades, toppers, booms and tool boxes. In the case of yard maintenance equipment list loaders, cabs, mower decks, snow blowers, etc.

No matter how qualified your agent or how experienced the agency that handles your account, there is a limit to the knowledge of your operation that can be gained by mere association.

-by Jeff Vanasse, Agent - Administrative Risk Consultants, Inc.
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Get Your True APR with Concept Financial Group, Inc.

Ever feel as though your transportation lender is somewhat vague when it comes to the Annual Percentage Rate (APR)?

One of my prospects visited me in my office in Blaine. This individual was interested in buying a new truck and wanted information on Concept Financial's finance program. After completing the simple one-page credit application and enduring my spiel on how to avoid the common financing pitfalls, this trucker headed out to his rig and hit the road. The very next day his credit request was approved and the truck shopping began. Armed with an approval and loads of information, this trucker had it made, or so he thought.

In his search for a truck he also found a transportation lender willing to loan him the funds at a lower rate. However, at closing, the trucker realized that the rate was actually higher than his quote from Concept Financial. As you might imagine, this news turned the excitement of acquiring a new truck into an experience he would like to soon forget.

The quest for the best APR clouded this trucker's judgment. He was verbally quoted a lower APR and since that's what he wanted to hear, he let his guard down and didn't verify what he was told. At this point feeling somewhat intimidated, he signed the loan and off he went. Some of you might think you would not have signed that truck loan but remember that the only thing standing between this gentleman and his new truck was a quick signature.

Take control of your financing. Give us a call at 763-780-1527 or e-mail chris@conceptfinancial.com about the purchase or lease of your next truck or trailer. It will save you some of your hard-earned cash.
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Are You Attracting and Retaining "GQ" Drivers?

Anyone that doesn't realize that there is a shortage of good qualified "(GQ)" truck drivers hasn't been in the trucking business more than 24 hours. The major concern among trucking companies of all sizes is not "fuel is too high and regulations are too stringent." The number one complaint is, "there aren't enough good qualified truck drivers to choose from."

What is a good driver? A good driver is someone who can pick tip a cargo load at point A and deliver it to point B - without damage to the cargo, equipment, self or other persons or things - in a timely fashion.

What is a qualified driver? A qualified driver is someone who meets all DOT, FHWA and insurance minimum driver requirements. Some of those requirements include being medically qualified. (23- 25) years of age or older, two years or more of similar type driving experience, no more than one at-fault accident in the past (36) months, and no major violations (DUI, Careless, Excessive Speed, etc.) in the past (36) months.

The problem is not finding good drivers. In many cases, it isn't even finding qualified drivers that is difficult. It is finding the combination - a good qualified truck driver - that is giving trucking companies fits. Regardless of the size of your company - your location, types of hauling/handling, radius of operation and benefits - can play major roles in attracting and retaining good qualified drivers. One major key to retaining these drivers is to keep abreast of what the driver is feeling and thinking about his/her job on a day-to-day, week-to-week and month-to-month basis. Be sure that you are constantly communicating with your drivers and attending to their needs the best you can.

Good qualified drivers are a precious commodity and even if you need to offer benefit programs, sick days and top pay it is still much cheaper, to retain good qualified drivers, than it is to place ads and train and retrain less desirable drivers. With the less desirable drivers other ancillary items usually stem up also including increased claims costs, late deliveries/pick ups, excessive wear and tear on equipment, downtime, and increased insurance costs - if the insurance companies will even insure them in the first place. With the rising cost of claims, as well as an increase in claims frequency and severity, insurance carriers are going to be even more stringent on the type of truck drivers they will insure, so be sure to take care of the "good qualified" drivers when you have them and save yourself money and headaches down the road.

-by Shawn Sullivan, President, Truck Writers, Inc.
 
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Customer Only Section at www.truckwriters.com

We have been making some improvements to our website to better serve you. The latest enhancement is the Customer Only section. This provides three blank forms for you to complete and submit at your convenience for vehicle requests, driver changes and certificates. You may submit these forms over the Internet or print them and fax them to us.

These are secured pages on our website and will be forwarded to our group of Customer Service Representatives via csr@truckwriters.com. We will verify that this information came from you or your company and verify coverages prior to processing. To obtain access to this section, please contact Lisa Burnside at Truck Writers, Inc. for the Internet Access Agreement form, username and password. Lisa can be reached at 1-800-634-8612, extension 134 or by email at lisa@truckwriters.com.
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Area Code Change

Please note that our area code is changing effective February 27, 2000 from 612 to 763.  You may also contact us at www.truckwriters.com or email info@truckwriters.com.