How do you define a “good” driver?

For many carriers, that definition begins and ends with those who deliver as much freight as possible on time. After all, this is how carriers generate revenue.

Robert Kaferle, vice president of safety at Reliance Partners, a trucking insurance agency and provider of safety consulting, urges fleet owners to measure drivers beyond who makes the most deliveries.

While most companies expect their drivers to be compliant with regulations and company policies, some make the mistake of not recognizing their drivers for doing so.

Instead, they praise those who delivered the most loads, regardless of what hours of service regulations might have been broken to do it.

“You can have one driver who is labeled as a ‘good driver’ because he always delivers freight on time and another driver who is labeled as an ‘average driver’ because he doesn’t take loads that violate hours of service or doesn’t do things that risk safety but averages fewer miles per hour than the ‘good driver,’” Kaferle said.

Kaferle believes this stigma needs to change. Carriers can start by adopting a holistic approach with an emphasis on safety when evaluating a driver’s performance.

“A good driver doesn’t just get from point A to point B when expected,” Kaferle said. “It means, but isn’t limited to, having no violations, adhering to hours of service, making sure his paperwork is accurate and complete, having good customer service and delivering freight on time.”

Drivers who can balance all of their duties and do them well actually contribute to a company’s overall financial well-being.

For instance, drivers who stay current on maintenance and regularly do their pre- and post-trip inspections will help keep the vehicle in healthy, working condition for longer. This helps prevent premature equipment failure and avoid vehicle violations during roadside inspections.

Additionally, safe drivers who maintain legal speed limits can mitigate fuel costs. It’s widely cited that trucks that stay within the 55 to 60 mile per hour range enjoy the best fuel economy, with a .14 mpg reduction in fuel efficiency per mph increase.

Carriers can also save money on insurance costs by employing drivers who follow Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, allowing the company to keep down their Safety Measurement System (SMS) scores.

“The lower the perceived risk, the lower the rate. Risk is evaluated partly on your SMS scores that are configured with driver violations. The higher your SMS scores and your accident ratio, the higher your premiums can be. It’s a way to evaluate the risk that insurance companies take on. There’s no getting around that,” Kaferle said.

Poor SMS scores also have a domino effect, which can cause drivers to be pulled over for inspections more often and impact their productivity over time.

The best way to attract and encourage safety practices within an organization begins with a top-down approach, according to Kaferle. The owner must recognize the advantages of a safety culture and support it in practice.

If safe drivers don’t see evidence that their company values their efforts, it is possible they will see this as a red flag and leave for another company with better SMS scores and appreciation of safe drivers.

To combat this, Kaferle recommends carriers create a recognition program for drivers who had no violations each month, regardless of whether they had a roadside inspection. This takes both little time and effort but can make a big difference.

Releasing a list of drivers with no violations, for instance, creates positive peer pressure because every driver in a fleet knows who is on the list. It not only is a positive reinforcement for compliant drivers, but it encourages drivers not recognized this time to perform better in order to get their names on the list next time.

Carriers seeking to improve their safety program, or other areas like maintenance, equipment trade-in cycles, lanes and operational structures, can contact Reliance Partners to receive guidance on how they can improve.

Reliance Partners helps carriers grow a holistic, healthy environment at their organizations, which ultimately facilitates a safer culture, allowing carriers to protect and keep their most important resource — drivers.

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As its name suggests, the Pre-Employment Screening Program (PSP) is used by motor carriers ahead of a hiring decision to evaluate a prospective driver’s safety history.

As such, drivers should treat their PSP records like a resume, said Mark Barlar, director of DOT regulatory compliance at Reliance Partners, a trucking insurance and safety consulting agency.

While PSP records are sometimes inaccurately referred to as scores, they are not numerical values. Instead, the reports are compilations of each driver’s inspection history, including violations from the last three years and crashes in the last five years across all of the motor carriers they worked for. They contain details such as whether infractions resulted in out-of-service determinations and whether crashes involved injuries or fatalities.

Motor vehicle records (MVR) provide relevant, yet different, information from a driver’s PSP, and while a carrier can contact a driver’s previous employers to request inspection reports, they’re only required to retain those files for one year after the driver leaves. This makes PSP records valuable to fill in the blanks about a driver’s safety practices, identify any red flags in driving behavior and help hiring managers determine if a driver will be a good fit or a potential safety risk.

“It’s a good way to tell if people do good pre-trip and post-trip inspections,” Barlar said. “If you see violations for just one light out on a vehicle, well, that can happen, but if you see five or six lights out on the vehicle that tells a different story. Either the motor carrier the driver was working for didn’t enforce pre- and post-trip inspections or the driver just didn’t care about it.”

Not all carriers take part in PSP screening as it is not compulsory and carriers must get drivers’ permission before they can access their records.

Those that do take part are seeing the benefits.

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration website, motor carriers using the PSP when hiring new drivers lower their crash rate by 8% and driver out-of-service rates by 17% versus those that do not.

“Most insurance companies know all about the PSP and ask their insurers to look at it before hiring drivers,” Barlar said. “It’s good practice. Crashes hurt people and cost insurance companies money. We want to prevent crashes and for freight to get to its destination safely.”

For drivers, it’s in their best interest to take responsibility for the information on their PSPs through consistent reviewing to not only know what is there but also verify accuracy. Drivers can sign up for PSP monitoring on the FMCSA website, a free service that alerts them when changes have been made to their PSP record. Any changes will appear monthly when the FMCSA publishes scores and inspection details.

How to clean up your PSP report

PSP reports contain whether crashes were preventable or non-preventable, which could play a large role in a carrier’s hiring decision.

For example, if a driver had two crashes in the past three years, and both were preventable, it could signal a crash risk and could negatively impact the hiring decision. But what if those crashes were non-preventable? A carrier might choose to hire that driver.

Non-preventable crashes won’t automatically be shown as such on a driver’s PSP record, or Safety Measurement System for that matter, so drivers and carriers must be proactive to get this notated. To do this, the user must submit a request for data review through FMCSA’s DataQs System to get the incident marked with an identifier that it was a non-preventable crash.

DataQs is the FMCSA’s system that allows “motor carriers, drivers and their representatives” to request and track a review of federal and state data issued by FMCSA they believe to be inaccurate. It is how certain changes can be made to PSP records and the SMS.

In some circumstances, crashes may also be incorrectly listed for incidents not FMCSA reportable. Accidents are reportable to the FMCSA if they involve:

• A fatality.
• Someone received medical attention away from the scene of the crash.
• There is disabling damage to one of the vehicles in the crash requiring it to be towed.

“Every police officer in the U.S. can write a crash report, but they might not be trained on what is the disabling damage to the vehicle,” Barlar said. “If they click a box on their report, it will automatically show up on the driver’s PSP record.”

When drivers have facts to back up claims that violations are inaccurate, in some circumstances, they might be able to get them removed from their PSP records.

“You can use DataQs to challenge citations if the violation has a point value,” Barlar explained. “If you go to court for that citation and it gets changed to a different violation on the inspection report, the point value goes from whatever it was listed as to one. If you get a dismissal without any court costs, it gets removed from the inspection report and the point value is zero. If it’s a warning, you must provide evidence or some basis of fact to support your assertation that the violation is invalid,”

The bottom line: Motor carriers use PSP records to make sure they’re hiring safe drivers, meaning it can make or break a hiring decision. Drivers must be proactive by consistently monitoring changes to their records and, in some circumstances, submitting DataQs requests when necessary to ensure they are fully up to date.

Start with Reliance Partners for help navigating DataQs and to learn more about improving safety at your company.

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Founded in 2009 and headquartered in Chattanooga, TN, Reliance is the fastest organically growing commercial insurance broker in the United States with nearly $500 million in gross written premiums. The Company specializes exclusively in commercial transportation risk management solutions, a unique differentiator within the highly fragmented insurance brokerage industry. Through its deep domain expertise, customer-centric sales approach and innovative technology, Reliance provides access to a full suite of insurance solutions to over 8,000 truck fleets and freight brokerage customers across the United States.

Reliance boasts an incredibly diverse employee base with over 25 nationalities represented and 30 languages spoken, allowing the Company to better serve an increasingly diverse network of transportation customers. Reliance strives to cultivate an entrepreneurial culture that values ambition and drive, providing employees with the tools necessary to succeed and challenge the status quo in the transportation insurance marketplace.

“We chose Carousel because of their partnership approach, our alignment on strategy for growth, and their ability to help us achieve our goal of reaching $1+ billion in premiums in the next 3 years,” said Andrew Ladebauche, CEO of Reliance. Chad Eichelberger, President of Reliance, added, “Our company is at an inflection point, and after getting to know Carousel over the past two years, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with them for both financial support as well as strategic guidance. Their experience fits perfectly with our strategy, where we are today as a company, and where we want to take Reliance over the next decade.”

“We were drawn to this partnership due to the strength of the team, their unparalleled track record of organic growth, differentiated sales strategy, and customer-centric focus. Reliance is the leading domain expert in transportation risk management in the U.S., and is uniquely positioned within a very large and fragmented market. We are thrilled to partner with management and help the Company accelerate and achieve its growth objectives,” said Al Welch, Partner at Carousel Capital. “The opportunity with Reliance and management intersects so well with our past experience in insurance services, insurtech, and transportation,” added Jason Schmidly, Managing Partner at Carousel Capital. “This partnership represents our continued belief in an underlying theme in insurance services – technological innovation drives efficiency and facilitates a better experience for all stakeholders.”

“We are beyond proud of the Reliance team and what they have accomplished over the course of our partnership and are excited to continue as investors to support the business,” said Lamp Post Group Co-Founder Ted Alling.

The partnership was funded with equity from Carousel Capital’s sixth fund. Senior debt financing was provided by Apogem Capital. K&L Gates served as legal advisor to Carousel and Bradley served as legal advisor to Reliance.

About Reliance Partners

Reliance Partners is a high-growth commercial insurance agency in the United States and a top tier provider of a wide range of insurance products and risk management services for the transportation and logistics industry. For more than 10 years, Reliance has been providing solutions for safeguarding the supply chain networks that drive the American economy forward.

About Carousel Capital

Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Carousel Capital is a private investment firm that invests in companies located in the Southeastern United States. Carousel’s investor base includes institutional investors and an elite group of more than 100 current and former CEOs with deep connections in the region. Since its inception in 1996, Carousel has invested in 49 companies primarily in three targeted growth sectors: business services; consumer services; and healthcare services.

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‘The idea of workforce boards is to determine what industries or sectors you want to support, and then allocate funds to help create a workforce to support those industries’

If there’s one thing the trucking industry is lacking, it’s self-promotion. That’s the opinion of Andy Owens, CEO of A&M Transport, who encourages industry leaders nationwide to take leadership roles on local workforce development boards.

The pandemic has revealed just how crucial the transportation industry — long taken for granted — is to Americans’ way of life, as well as how delicate it is. Owens makes the case for greater investment in the transportation industry as buzz for the supply chain has never been higher.

“In years past, trying to get transportation’s fair share of training dollars has really been a push and a struggle to get it,” Owens said. “Now, of course, with the supply chain crisis, transportation is kind of front and center and at the top of everyone’s mind.”

Appearing with Timothy Dooner and Michael Vincent on FreightWaves’ WHAT THE TRUCK?!? program, he discussed the pivotal role that Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Workforce Programs can have on boosting trucking industry awareness and employment opportunities, and he spotlighted trucking’s lack of representation on such boards.

WIOA is designed to help job seekers access employment, education, training and support services to succeed in the labor market and to match employers with the skilled workers they need to compete in the global economy.

The best part about WIOA is that it doesn’t involve trips to Washington, but rather focuses on your local region. WIOA requires states to strategically align their core workforce development programs to coordinate the needs of both job seekers and employers through combined four-year state plans, fostering regional collaboration within states through local workforce areas.

Owens has served on the Southwestern Oregon Workforce Investment Board since 2015. Although his commitment to the role could be considered a full-time job, he said that anyone can get involved in a variety of capacities.

“Like with any volunteer position, you’re going to get out what you put into it; you can make it a full-time job or just make it a hobby,” Owens said, adding that appointments to the board are made by a recommendation from a community group like your like Chamber of Commerce and then approved  through a county commissioner or its equivalent office. “The idea of workforce boards is to determine what industries or sectors you want to support, and then allocate appropriate funding to the local Worksource or Employment offices to help recruit and train a workforce to support those industries.”

Oregon, for instance, has nine Local Workforce Areas throughout the state. They are supported by local civic, business and community leaders to strategize ways to best leverage funding and resources to build and support the workforce demands of their communities.

“My goal is to get a transportation representative in every workforce area across the United States,” Owens said, adding that by law, workforce boards must have a minimum of 51% private industry representation. “It’s a big push right now; in Oregon, we’ve gotten three individuals onto nine workforce boards, and soon we’ll have a couple more.”

Owens is optimistic that things are headed in the right direction, as Oregon’s trucking industry continues to be of concern. He said that any given trucking company in Oregon has anywhere from 10% to 25% of its fleet working part time due to a lack of drivers.

He said a realistic goal for workforce development boards should be to secure more government funding for employment offices to train more truck drivers and hopefully better promote the industry as a whole.

“I would encourage anybody who has an interest in workforce development — which we all should at this point of the game — to take a look into your local workforce area,” Owens said.

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There’s much to gain from the nearly $2 billion in trade flows across the U.S.-Mexico border every day. Pacific trade lanes remain stifled by west coast port congestion, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the trade war between the United States and China. These past-year developments have led many American companies with outsourced operations to set up shop much closer to home. Nearshoring manufacturing operations in Mexico are becoming an attractive opportunity for supply chains across North America.

Reliance Partners and the Laredo Motor Carriers Association detailed Mexico’s trade advantages at the 4th annual Modernization of Cross Border Trade in Laredo last month. Speakers explained how U.S. and Mexican carriers and brokers can profit from cross-border expansion, especially around the busiest truck port on the Mexican border, Laredo, Texas.

“We are very bullish on this corridor for several reasons. First, the attention that the pandemic has brought to the supply chain, especially at the C-suite with CEOs and COOs, they know they’ve got to have their supply chains closer to home, and Mexico is ideal for that,” said Reliance Partners CFO Tom Albrecht. “Second, it’s because of the people. There are so many carriers passionate about freight, and we know we can help them with their insurance needs.”

Mexico’s advantages over China were a major talking point at the conference, as comparisons were drawn between intellectual property protection, travel convenience for U.S. companies, currency exchange rates, as well as each country’s family structures.

Mexico is currently the United States’ largest goods trading partner, with $614.5 billion exchanged between the countries in 2019. In fact, the presentation noted that 86% of Mexican-made automobiles are exported to the United States and Canada. Reliance Partners expects trade to increase, stating that Mexico’s auto production will rise 54% as a result of COVID-19 supply chain shake-ups.

Mexico was also given the nod for its lower manufacturing costs, longer work weeks, its 13 free trade agreements — the most of any country in the world — higher birth rates, and that its language and numeric system uses the same characters as the United States.

However, cross-border commerce isn’t without risk. Mexico’s effort to crack down on cargo theft has been futile of late, and insurance gaps have amplified each loss. In April alone, FreightWaves reported that 692 cargo trucks were robbed across Mexico. Even more shocking, that’s an improvement — a 21% year-over-year decline.

Reliance Partners’ Borderless Coverage offers automated, cross-border and Mexican cargo insurance to carriers, brokers and shippers with full coverage from the moment of pickup until final delivery without any disruptions of coverage at the border. Coverage can be obtained on a per-load, project or annual basis, with the broadest form and lowest deductibles available.

Despite the challenges of cross-border shipping, logistics providers can operate in these regions with confidence knowing that Reliance Partners provides the most comprehensive form of coverage for both domestic and international freight.

“We’re very excited about the opportunity of partnering with Reliance Partners; we believe they are top notch for liability and cargo insurance in Mexico,” said Bernardo “Bernie” Rodarte, vice president and general manager, Mexico at Schneider National. “We are very confident in the value that we bring moving under a dedicated-type scenario — closed loops with top-notch security — we can’t be surpassed in that aspect.”

In addition to insurance solutions, Reliance Partners is creating comprehensive programs for motor carriers with B-1 commercial truck drivers in their fleet. Mark Vickers, executive vice president of international logistics at Reliance Partners, said that his team is excited to work with cross-border logistics firms employing these drivers, as he believes they bring significant value to U.S.-Mexico trade.

“Historically insurance markets in the United States have shied away from B-1 drivers, but what these markets don’t necessarily understand is that B-1 drivers actually drive safer than [commercial drivers] you’ll find in the U.S.,” Vickers said, reasoning that Mexican drivers earn significantly more than they would at similar jobs in Mexico. “These drivers do a fantastic job.”

Reliance Partners looks forward to hosting the 5th annual Modernization of Cross Border Trade with the Laredo Motor Carrier Association in Summer 2022.

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One mistake behind the wheel can lead to devastating consequences to you and those around you.

Semi truck accidents are unfortunately a common occurrence on our nation’s highways. Many drivers won’t admit it, but it’s easy for those who have managed to evade these harrowing events to lull themselves into the “It’ll never happen to me” mindset.

The truth: Many victims of traumatic accidents feel similarly right up until the moment of impact. Drivers able to walk away with their lives and no one else hurt will most likely tell you that it altered their driving habits forever.

This is the case for Brian Runnels, Reliance Partners’ director of safety, when he reflects on an accident that changed his driving career forever. Nearly 25 years to the day of the accident, Runnels remembers the crash vividly. While he’s thankful that no one was seriously injured, he said the emotional scars have never really healed, and that it could’ve been avoided if he wasn’t distracted and reacted improperly.

“It changed a lot about the way I drove and my thoughts on distracted driving, seeing trucks barreling down the road or following somebody too closely,” Runnels said. “There’s no skill involved in handling distractions or following too closely. … They’re lucky, but sooner or later, their luck is probably going to run out.”

The most dangerous time in truckers’ careers is the first 18 to 30 months on the job, according to Runnels. Speaking from experience, he reasons this to be the period that many start to get comfortable — perhaps in some cases too comfortable — with their routes and day-to-day tasks. Runnels was in his second year behind the wheel when his crash occurred.

That fateful day came in June 1996, when he was hauling a load of Styrofoam cups east out of California. Just as he crossed the Colorado River into Arizona, a car pulled out in front of his truck, causing him to slam on the brakes and sending him into the median. He eventually overturned.

“It’s a very surreal feeling to have the driver’s side mirror smash through your driver’s side door window and watch the pavement fly by right underneath you,” Runnels said, describing the moment of impact. His wife, who was in the bunk at that time, was tossed about the cab and fell on top of him.

His efforts to avoid the collision were ultimately in vain, though, as Runnels slammed into the passenger vehicle.

Although the driver of the passenger vehicle lacked a sense of awareness when pulling onto the freeway, Runnels equally blames himself for his inability to avoid the accident. It just so happens that as the car was pulling out, Runnels took his eyes off the road to load a cassette tape.

As his truck turned sharply to the left, he recounted that a truck in that lane had been flashing his lights to let him over in the seconds preceding the crash.

“In the 10 seconds or so that it took me to flip that tape over, he was over there pretty much the entire time, and I didn’t know that I had that option to get out until it was too late,” Runnels said.

Thankfully, no one was seriously injured in either vehicle. However, after 25 years, Runnels is still haunted by his actions — or inactions — from the event that lasted just a few seconds. What’s troubled him the most is not knowing the emotional impact the wreck had on the occupants of the vehicle he had hit. After all these years, he still wonders how the passengers and their extended family view truckers and the industry at large.

“The gentleman and his wife that I hit were older, so they probably had children, grandchildren and maybe even great-grandchildren. I realize after 25 years that it’s quite possible that everybody within that family is now anti-truck,” Runnels said. “I did my part in damaging the image of the industry. I’ve been trying to fix it ever since, but the damage has been done.”

Runnels suffered from depression after the accident for a number of months and even stepped away from the industry for about a year and a half. He recalls his first experience back behind the wheel as very nerve-racking.

“I can understand why a lot of drivers don’t come back [to the industry] or a lot of drivers try and come back and can’t because of the trauma experienced,” Runnels said. “I went to work for a small mom-and-pop carrier, in which they threw me the keys and told me my first load was heading to Chicago — it was horrifying,”

Although the accident induced anxiety for quite some time, it marked a turning point for Runnels, who went on to record over 2 million consecutive driving miles without an accident. Safety ultimately became the focal point of his career, as he went on to become an effective driver trainer and risk manager, most recently serving the insurance and risk management side of the industry.

Unlike most training courses that don’t touch on the emotional side of accidents, Runnels has shared his story with many drivers over the course of his career to remind them of the shocking realities that follow negligent driving habits.

“Did I want it to scare the drivers that I was training? To a certain degree, absolutely,” Runnels said. “I wanted them to be thinking about the potential consequences of their actions, and by and large, it’s not something that’s discussed like that because there’s not a ton of folks that have experienced it.

“Let’s talk about how many lives that one wreck can affect. It doesn’t necessarily have to result in a fatality; it doesn’t necessarily have to result in major injuries either, but the image of the industry gets horribly tainted by these accidents.”

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Near the top of the to-do list for any trucking company is securing basic auto liability coverage before hitting the road. For those without trucking experience, understanding how to get the right insurance can be daunting.

Reliance Partners Chief Sales Officer Brandon Richards reassures new entrants that insurance doesn’t have to be taxing, as long as you partner with the right provider.

“If you’re a new venture and this is your first time dealing with regulatory insurance, you should definitely consider your options, but it’s most important that you speak with an agency that has experience working with new clients, and understands exactly how to educate them on their needs,” Richards said.

It’s imperative to know exactly what you need before signing the dotted line on any policy form, so don’t be afraid to ask an agent many questions. Remember to think of insurance not as a transaction or commodity, but as an agreement formed from a business relationship.

So is auto liability required?

The answer is yes — all trucking companies are required to have this line of coverage. Auto liability or truck liability insurance provides protection for the motor carrier for legal liability arising out of the ownership, maintenance and use of any insured automobile.

Richards suggests first weighing your options: Compare coverages from a handful of providers to know what’s on the table. He recommends taking time to consider a policy that protects against uninsured motorists and personal injury, as well as deciding whether or not you’ll need hired and nonowned auto liability or a blanket additional insured endorsement.

Another thing to keep in mind is insurance endorsements, which are amendments, modifications or additions to the original policy. There are many types of inclusions or exclusions that could be written into a policy, so be sure to ask your agent about all items that appear on the endorsements list.

“Always look at the policy forms of the coverages being offered. Look through sample policy forms for a list of the endorsements so you’ll know what’s stated in each document,” Richards said. “Is there a radius restriction listed? Are there strict driver guidelines that may hinder you from being able to hire the drivers you’re looking for? Does the policy have restrictions on how old the power units can be?”

After reviewing all the bells and whistles in a policy, next on the agenda is determining how much coverage is needed. The minimum that can be purchased is $750,000 combined single limit per federal regulations. However, Richards states that $1 million is typically the standard, which is the minimum amount he recommends his clients consider. If it fits the budget, he also suggests clients purchase excess liability or umbrella policies for additional protection.

Reliance Partners states that motor carriers who transport certain hazardous cargo must maintain a total of $5 million in auto liability coverage in those instances, in accordance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s BMC-91/91X requirements.

Price is always a factor in the decision-making process, but Richards warns against considering it the key selling point, explaining that quality is often based on the price you pay.

The key to securing excellent coverage ultimately rests with your insurance provider. That is why it’s important to wisely choose a partner you can trust, and select a plan that gives you peace of mind to operate efficiently without worrying about potential gaps in coverage.

Richards suggests reviewing the AM Best rating of the carrier, too. The financial strengths of an insurance company is often of great interest to shippers and brokers, so it’s important to know if you’re partnering with an A-rated or a non-rated carrier.

To learn more about auto liability insurance and coverage plans to best fit your business, reach out to Brandon Richards and Reliance Partners today.

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Today’s fast-paced freight landscape demands all things be instantaneous. Thankfully, advancements in technology and innovations in approach have made keeping pace easier than ever.

Utilization- or usage-based insurance (UBI) presents a new way of quoting and securing coverage, and this model has made its way into the transportation and logistics sector with Reliance Partners at the forefront. Freight insurance can now be booked on a per-load basis and distributed through a transportation management system (TMS) or load board.

Insurance and InsurTech leader Reliance Partners is making headway with its wide array of usage-based logistics insurance solutions, which aim to increase operational efficiency, reduce costs, mitigate cargo and other types of risk.

Reliance Partners offers UBI lines of coverage for primary and excess cargo, truckload, less-than-truckload, and trailer interchange, with usage-based excess auto liability in the works for domestic, cross-border and international freight. Through application programming interface-enabled solutions (API), Reliance Partners can integrate directly into your TMS, allowing for instant insurance with as little as a screen tap.

A freight UBI model looks to replicate the tremendous growth seen in the automotive insurance market, where it’s estimated that the UBI market will be worth $125.7 billion by 2027.

Sahej Singh, director of business intelligence and strategy, dives into Reliance Partners’ reengineering of freight insurance. “With utilization-based insurance, instead of always paying for excess cargo, for instance, why not pay for the coverage only when you need it?”

Reliance Partners’ domestic, cross border and international UBI coverages are designed for freight brokers and freight forwarders on a per-load basis; freight forwarders, and even motor carriers in need of a one-off load, according to Singh. In addition, he highlights Reliance’s ability to service clients regardless of how advanced they are technologically.

“If you’re a general freight broker or freight forwarder that doesn’t yet have the technology systems in place to handle APIs or anything of that nature, we saw that to be quite an underserved market in terms of the other offerings out there,” Singh said, noting that flexible, pre-structured insurance policies can be attained through a manual reporter, which customers can use to list a few data points regarding their loads on a weekly basis.

Its UBI and API-enabled solutions not only leverage best-in-class primary and excess coverage when you need it, but they also make billing and claims management seamless and transparent through their claims portal. Singh explains that Reliance Partners services claims directly through the underwriter and can provide in-house support via phone or email as well, offering brokers, forwarders and shippers peace of mind through the entire freight insurance process.

Through its recent acquisition of Borderless Coverage, a cross-border consulting and insurance provider, Reliance Partners is not only focused on better protecting the industry’s insurance gaps in cross border logistics, but has also expanded its UBI offerings and consulting services to both cross-border and international freight. To better reflect its cross-border acquisition, Reliance Partners has plans to rebrand its usage-based insurance platform to Reliance UBI, as the trucking industry’s all-encompassing UBI solution.

“We’re putting an emphasis on the per-shipment usage model; there’s very few commodities that we cannot cover,” Singh said. “This approach towards insurance is innovative and completely customer-centric; you can get the coverage you need for your freight and only pay for it when you need it in a very simple, transparent and cost effective manner.”

He continued, “Customers don’t even need to have the technology to benefit from our usage-based insurance; though we have the capability to integrate into technology systems via API, such that TMS, load boards and digital brokers can enable their carriers to purchase excess cargo, for example, on a per-load basis at the click of a button.”

Reach out to Sahej Singh (sahej.singh@reliancepartners.com) and Reliance Partners to learn more about its usage-based trucking insurance offerings.

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It can happen in an instant — you’ve hit a patch of ice and lose control of your vehicle. As you instinctively press the brakes to no avail, the sudden loss of traction leaves you feeling helpless. Hopefully no one’s in your path as you careen down the highway.

Frigid weather can precipitate precarious situations like this on almost any road, as evidenced by last week’s ice storm that swept across the southern United States.

Freezing rain iced over highways across North Texas, spurring a series of fatal accidents that claimed the lives of nine people. One of those accidents is what firefighters are calling a “mass casualty incident,” as a 100-vehicle pileup on a Fort Worth freeway left six people dead and 36 people hospitalized.

It’s hard to prepare for such events, but the magnitude of these accidents can be mitigated.

Reliance Partners’ Director of Safety Brian Runnels encourages both commercial and noncommercial drivers to slow down and give themselves extra following distance when temperatures approach below freezing.

“There were plenty of cars and trucks involved in those accidents,” Runnels said. “If people in general would give themselves the time that they need and the distance that they need to stop, there would be a lot less vehicles involved.”

It should be noted that Runnels is not accusing any drivers in particular for the recent string of icy accidents. Rather, he suggests that these situations could be a lot less severe if all drivers take precautionary measures when conditions worsen.

“The problem is that everyone believes they’re the best driver out there, while everyone else is an idiot,” Runnels said. “It’s a situation where you’re only as safe as the worst driver on the road.”

The truth is that ice renders even the most experienced drivers powerless. You can throw the laws of physics out the window when the roads are slick.

Under ideal conditions, it takes 525 feet — nearly the length of two football fields — for a fully loaded, 80,000-pound semi-truck traveling 65 miles per hour to come to a complete stop. Comparably, under the same conditions and speed, a 3,000- to 4,000-pound passenger vehicle requires 316 feet to stop.

Remember, these are the best-case scenarios when conditions are good. A driver’s perception of hazards and subsequent reaction time is critical too. However, road conditions can deteriorate quickly; inattentive drivers have even less time to react.

Runnels states that the only way to bring your vehicle safely to a stop is to disengage the accelerator and resist jamming the brakes. It’s only after the vehicle begins to slow down that the brakes be gently applied to prevent a lockup.

A veteran driver himself, Runnels recalled a brush with ice while driving northbound on Interstate 25 through Trinidad, Colorado. Making his way downhill, he noticed that traffic was building up toward the bottom of the pass. He gently applied the brakes but they kept locking. The downhill struggle continued until Runnels regained traction by tailing the right-side trailer tires into the roadside gravel, then applying the brakes.

What’s notable about his experience was that he was able to recover because he approached the downhill terrain at considerably safe speeds of 10-15 mph. He asserts that he wouldn’t have been so lucky if he was pushing 40 or 50 mph instead.

Falling precipitation in the form of rain, snow and sleet are indicators of winter weather, but sometimes the signs aren’t as obvious. Runnels suggests keeping an eye on your vehicle’s outside temperature gauge for additional warning.

While water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, be on alert for icy conditions even slightly above those temperatures. The roads may still be slick even as temperatures begin to rise.

Black ice can form on any road surface and may appear invisible to speeding motorists. It’s common knowledge that bridges tend to freeze first, but Runnels urges drivers to also beware of ice below underpasses too.

“I’ve seen so many cars and trucks spin off into the ditch immediately after passing under an overpass,” Runnels said, asserting that drivers often forget that the areas below bridges can freeze just as fast.

It’s imperative for all drivers to do their part in keeping the roads safe. At the onset of worsening conditions, Runnels encourages commercial truck drivers especially to put extra space between themselves and the vehicle in front them. The combination of ice, speed and a heavy payload coupled with the inhibiting lag time of air brakes means that semi-trucks must cover an exorbitant amount of distance to lose momentum.

For speeds under 40 mph, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) recommends that drivers calculate their following distance by leaving one second for every 10 feet of vehicle length. For commercial vehicles, this results in around four seconds between you and the vehicle in front of you. Speeds over 40 mph require an additional second. However, FMCSA encourages drivers to double their following distance in adverse conditions.

“When you’re on the freeway, especially when the weather’s bad, are drivers traveling putting any additional distance between each other? The answer is no,” Runnels said. “I hear so many people say, ‘I can’t keep the distance and drivers will cut me off.’ While it’s true that drivers will cut in front of you, it’s your job to get that distance back and you have to be going at a speed that will allow you to make those adjustments, especially on ice.”

The post Don’t skate past safety precautions on icy roads appeared first on Commercial Transportation & Trucking Insurance - Reliance Partners.

It takes a great deal of confidence and a little bit of know-how to become an owner-operator. Ditching the fleet life for a sweet life on your own can be liberating for drivers possessing an autonomous mindset. But traversing the freight landscape solo has its own set of challenges, too.

In fact, being at the helm of your own operation can also be overwhelming for those not quite sure where to start, especially when it comes to insurance.

Jordan Chastain, Reliance Partners’ senior vice president of sales, details the insurance basics that all drivers should know before heading out on their own.

Weigh your truck options

First and foremost, you’ll need a trusty steed. As an owner-operator, you’re responsible for purchasing your own vehicle, which means you’re also on the hook for its maintenance costs, so it’s wise to choose a truck that best fits your needs.

There’s no right or wrong answer as to which big rig to choose. Rather, it’s more a pros-and-cons decision. Take a new truck, for instance. Sure, it’ll have the latest safety features and tech upgrades, in addition to great fuel efficiency and a low breakdown propensity (for now), but keep in mind that the vehicle’s price tag typically reflects on the insurance, too.

Chastain explains that the cost of a newer truck typically means higher premiums. “Most of the time, the newer the truck, the more premium that you’re going to pay. However, you’d definitely get more miles out of a newer truck and with all the technology upgrades and safety features. You can also make the case that older trucks require a lot more maintenance.”

You’ll need the basics

First, it’s important to ask yourself if you’re going to operate alone or perhaps one day start a fleet.

Reliance Partners recommends that those wanting to drive independently look for sole proprietorship when starting the business, as it’ll give them full responsibility over their operation. If you plan on employing other drivers, then you should consider setting up as a corporation or a limited liability company instead.

“New venture insurance is going to be the same insurance as that of most motor carriers — $1 million on your auto liability; that’s really where the majority of your premium is going to come from,” Chastain said. “A standard new venture policy, depending on the state that you’re operating in, will probably be around a minimum of $15,000 to $20,000 maximum per truck for your auto liability. It really depends on your driving record, the state that you’re located in, the age of your equipment and what you’re going to be hauling.”

Owner-operators with their own authority will need auto liability insurance — $750,000 at minimum as required by federal law. It’s common for freight brokers and shippers to require $1 million in coverage, but Reliance Partners states that most insurance providers recommend buying at least $5 million of liability coverage, as anything less may not sufficiently cover the financial consequences of a major accident.

Lenders also require that you purchase physical damage coverage, which is based on the value of your vehicle. The premium is typically no more than 5% of the total insured value of the truck if your driving record is good; otherwise it might be higher. Chastain notes that if your vehicle is worth $100,000, then the premium would be $5,000.

It’s important to also consider general liability insurance in addition to cargo insurance, which is mandatory for all commercial trucks transporting paid cargo. Drivers are required to carry at least $5,000 of cargo insurance, but the amount could be greater depending on the value of your payload.

Gap insurance is also available for expensive vehicles. In a situation where the value of the truck has significantly depreciated at the time of the costly collision, this coverage helps pay the remainder of your loan.

Owner-operators under permanent lease

Owner-operators leased to a motor carrier are usually covered by the company’s auto liability and cargo insurance, but only under dispatch. You’ll have to be cautious when driving on your own time. Simply driving to the truck wash or on your way home can be a risky endeavor without proper coverage.

This is where non-trucking liability insurance comes in handy. This coverage pays for property damage or bodily injury in the event of an accident when the truck or driver is not under dispatch and on personal time. Motor carriers may also require you to purchase occupational accident coverage (OCC/ACC) before leasing on, which may provide coverage for accidental death and dismemberment, medical expenses, and disability in addition to other types of available coverages.

“Depending on their CSA scores and claims, etc., a motor carrier’s liability is normally around a minimum of $6,000 and $20,000 maximum per truck,” Chastain said. “Non-trucking liability is probably going to run you $500 to $600 for the year, so you’re gonna see a big difference in the premiums there.”

Don’t be dismayed by higher rates

New owner-operators will have to earn the trust of their insurance provider. This means that your insurance rates will be higher, so don’t be caught off guard when signing the papers.

Chastain said that new owner-operators are often surprised when the price is around $18,000-20,000 for the year with a $3,000 down payment, paying $1,400 a month. “They’re not expecting it to be that expensive because they’re used to paying $700 monthly for non-trucking liability and physical damage; now you’re paying a grand or more a month.”

“The thing about starting with a fresh slate is that it doesn’t show that you have any experience,” Chastain said, explaining that insurance companies would like to get to know you first before handing you lower rates. “They don’t want to take a risk on a driver that may have a terrible first year with claims.”

The more experience the better

Ultimately, becoming an owner-operator isn’t for everyone. Are you prepared to take on the responsibilities of your entire operation — everything from booking loads to insurance expenses on top of hauling the freight? If that sounds like a daunting task, then you might not be ready to go off on your own just yet.

Chastain argues that successful owner-operators are the ones who have notched many years under their belts driving for or leased on with larger fleets. It’s in these roles where optimistic drivers learn the invaluable skills needed to do the job themselves. In addition, he states that insurance carriers are a little more comfortable with drivers with an extensive, clean background in trucking.

“Drivers with more experience leased onto a motor carrier have a lot more success than those that spend the minimum time possible with a trucking company before starting off on their own,” Chastain said. “They usually don’t understand the X’s and O’s as well as someone that’s had a little more experience.”

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