Module 6: Accident Analysis and Litigation Managing Motor Fleet Safety

Module 6: Accident Analysis and Litigation Managing Motor Fleet Safety Programs: Training for the Safety Director

Module Objectives By the end of this module, you’ll be able to: Identify accident trends based on an analysis of accident data Identify root causes of accident trends Recommend appropriate solutions to resolve root causes of accident trends Determine if the carrier is likely to be found liable in a lawsuit following an accident North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020 of 39

Section 1: Root Cause Analysis of Accident Trends

The Direct Costs of Accidents - 1 of 39 Lost revenue Vehicle repairs Towing costs Cargo claims Driver medical and worker’s compensation claims

The Direct Costs of Accidents - 2 of 39 Liability payments Equipment rentals Lost revenues due to disruption in operations Drug and alcohol screening Driver delay, pay claims, deadhead

The Indirect Costs of Accidents - 1 of 39 Safety department expenses Excessive depreciation Legal fines or penalties Decreased employee effectiveness Dissatisfied customers Unfavorable public image

The Indirect Costs of Accidents - 2 Higher insurance premiums Government reporting costs Costs of borrowing money to replace or repair equipment Accident investigation expenses Employee replacement costs Litigation expenses of 39

Understanding Accident Trends Trends are events that happen regularly or often. of 39

Discussion: Trends vs. Root Causes Let’s discuss the relationship between trends and root causes of 53 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Analyzing Data Trends 0 of 39 Step 1 - Code the information for each incident Step 2 - Tally the codes for each factor Step 3 - Graph each factor

Activity 1: Accident Data Analysis For this activity: Refer to the Accident Data Analysis activity on pages 6-9 in the Student Coursebook Follow the directions and answer the questions on the Identifying Read the scenario on page 6-11. 1 of 53 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Activity 2: Demonstration of Accident Data Analysis For this activity: Read the incident description for driver number 1, on page 6-11 of the activity. Take out the accident analysis truck coding sheet and the accident analysis sheet from pages 6-17 and 6-15 of the activity. 2 of 53 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Age Codes 3 of 39 Codes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 — — — — — — — — — — 21 - 23 24 - 25 26 - 30 31 - 35 36 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 55 56 - 60 60 Ages

Analyzing Data Trends 4 of 39 Step 1 - Code the information for each incident Step 2 - Tally the codes for each factor Step 3 - Graph each factor

Activity 3: Accident Data Analysis For this activity: Work in pairs to complete the coding, tallying, graphing, and trend analysis of the remaining factors for all of the incidents. 5 of 53 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Activity 4: Accident Data Analysis Debrief For this activity: Identify the trends that you observed in the data. 6 of 53 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Discussion: Root Cause Analysis 7 of 53 Let’s discuss the relationship between trends and root causes North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Sources of Root Causes 8 of 39 Hiring practices Training issues Customer service issues Accountability Teamwork

Questions to Ask to Identify Root Cause(s) of Accidents What circumstances allowed the driver to have the accident? What did we, the employer, do to allow this accident to occur? 9 of 39

Summary – Real Causes of Accidents 0 of 39 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Section 2: Accident Litigation

Determining Liability 2 of 39 Agency Negligent entrustment Negligent hiring

Rebutting Agency 3 of 39 Driver acted outside scope of employment at time of collision.

Rebutting Negligent Entrustment 4 of 39 No employees knew of driver’s incompetence OR Previous offenses were unrelated to cause of the accident

Rebutting Negligent Hiring 5 of 39 Safety department fulfilled responsibility to contact prior employers and obtained MVR

Discussion: Preparing for Litigation 6 of 53 How many of you have been involved in legal proceedings related to driver accidents? North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Litigation Process 7 of 39 Pleading – – – – Complaint Summons Answer Counterclaim Dismissals and judgments before trial Discovery Pretrial hearing Trial/Verdict/Appeal

Activity 5: Accident Litigation For this activity: Answer the questions on the Accident Litigation activity form, found on page 6-23 of the Student Coursebook, using the information from the Accident Investigation Scenario, Witness Interviews, Driver Interview, and Personnel Records. 8 of 53 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020

Module 6 Quiz 9 of 39 Complete the Module 6 Quiz questions

Do You Have Any 0 of 39 North American Transportation Management Institute, 2020