Traffic Accidents Cost You $1,051 per Year

The American Automobile Assoication (AAA) released a research report this week, which concludes that traffic accidents cost American motorists $160 billion a year. That breaks down to $1,051 per year, per motorist. This includes such things as property damage, lost earnings, medical costs, emergency services, legal costs, and travel delays.

I think there’s a saying, “there’s liars, damn liars, and statistics”. I’m sure this report included numerous SWAG’s (Scientific Wild-Ass Guesses). Nevertheless, I have no doubt that what they are saying is true. Accidents are expensive in many unforseen ways, and often impact people completely uninvolved in the accident. For example, last year, I was on my way to Kentucky for vacation, and I was scheduled to meet up with a buddy for a 2pm tee time. I got trapped in a huge, road-closure type accident in Charleston, WV for 4 hours. Needless to say, by the time I got to Kentucky, it was too late to play golf. So, the golf course owner did not get our two greens fees that day due to a traffic accident. That’s an economic example, to say nothing of the emotional pain and suffering if a loved one is injured or killed in an accident.

The article also states that 43,000 people are killed every year on the roads. Whoa, that’s a lot of people. I played around with the calculator. I SWAGged that you therefore have a 1 in 5,000 chance of getting killed on the road every year. You probably have a 1 in 1,000 chance of being injured.

AAA’s solution is more and more restrictive laws. I’m not sure I agree with that. In a free society, sometimes accidents are the price of freedom. Still, driving on the road, whether it be a truck, or just an ordinary car is serious business. Anyone who forgets that might become a statistic.

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Eric Arnold is a Former Enforcement Agent with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and a leading expert on USDOT compliance for small businesses. Do you have a question for Eric Arnold? Email him at eric@arnoldsafety.com.

Arnold Safety simplifies D.O.T. Compliance for commercial vehicle operators. Get Eric Arnold’s USDOT Compliance Guide, DVD, & Regulations at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Learn more about Arnold Safety compliance consulting services at ArnoldSafety.Com.

DVD Compliance Package for Sale

Let me say a few words about our DVD Compliance Package we have for sale. There are a whole series of safety regulations out there that apply to you because you operate trucks on the road. My package is designed to teach you what you need to keep the government happy in a few short hours, rather you spending a week laboring through a huge regulations book, trying to figure out what’s important and what’s not. Your time is better spent doing whatever it is you do to make money. The package features a 100 minute DVD of me talking, taking you step-by-step through the most important safety regulations, a copy of the rulebook for reference, a smaller book which is a transcript of what I said on the DVD, and a set of forms you will need to set up your driver qualification files.

Now here’s the good part. As part of the $275 purchase, you get access to me. If you have a specific question, or something you didn’t understand about the safety regulations, call me on the phone, and I will answer your questions. 95% of your questions will probably be answered by the DVD package, but it’s nice to have a human you can call on the phone for information. Believe it or not, I do return phone calls. I used to think that went without saying, but after being in business for 5 years, I have come to realize that most businesses do NOT in fact return calls. Well, I do. Finally, if you buy it, and really hate it, we offer a money-back guarantee (which I’m proud to say no one has yet requested). So if you’re looking to figure out fast what you need to stay on the straight and narrow with DOT, don’t waste another minute, buy today!

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Arnold Safety simplifies D.O.T. Compliance for commercial vehicle operators. Get Eric Arnold’s USDOT Compliance Guide, DVD, & Regulations at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Learn more about Arnold Safety compliance consulting services at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Household Goods Regulations

FMCSA has a whole set of ‘other’ regulations, which really have nothing at all to do with safety. These are holdovers from the defunct Interstate Commerce Commissioin (ICC), and they protect the public from unscrupulous moving companies. The fines attached with these regulations are outrageously high, done so intentionally by the Congress, as they try to get at the moving companies who are nothing more than scam-artist criminals.

For example, a common scam is a mover sets up a website. You get a free quote on your move, based on where you’re going, how much stuff you have, etc. The scammer purposely gives you a lowball estimate. The naive customer says, “wow, that’s half of what everyone else is charging me, what a deal, aren’t I clever?” Then the mover comes along, packs up the mark’s things, and down the road he goes. When it comes time to deliver the furniture, the mover tells the mark there’s been an unexpected snag, and it will now cost 3-4 times as much to complete the move, and he won’t get his stuff back until he comes up with the cash. The mark is now stuck, basically ransoming his own stuff which is being held hostage.

FMCSA has all sorts of rules prohibiting this. Unfortunately, FMCSA’s main remedy in these situations is a monetary fine, which is almost 100% useless against hardened criminals. A true scammer will simply throw DOT’s fine in the trash can, and by the time the government gets ready to take real action against the scammer, he’s already moved across town, is calling himself something else, and the scam continues.

The problem is, there are legitimate Mom-and-Pop moving companies out there who are honest businessmen, who simply are not all that well versed on the household goods regulations. As I said, the penalties associated with these regulations are exorbitant, whether you are a criminal or an honest man who’s paperwork wasn’t exactly right. I was contacted a few weeks ago by an attorney who represents a small 2-3 truck operation. His client took a shipment from PA to NJ, something he normally doesn’t do, as a favor to a customer. Somehow, FMCSA found out about it, and discovered he is not registered as an interstate household goods mover. The fine? $25,000!!!! And FMCSA tells him there’s nothing he can do about it, as that’s the statutory minimum set by Congress. So now this poor guy is out of business, simply because he failed to file some paperwork with DOT.

While most of us are not household goods movers, probably at some point you, or someone you know will hire a mover. NEVER do business with a fly-by-night company you find on the Internet. Myself, I’m happy to pay the extra money for a reputable company who actually has an office with people in it, so if there’s a problem I’ve got somewhere to go, not just a cellphone number. Do some research on who you’re giving all your lifetime possessions to…. it could save you some real headaches.

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Arnold Safety simplifies D.O.T. Compliance for commercial vehicle operators. Get Eric Arnold’s USDOT Compliance Guide, DVD, & Regulations at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Learn more about Arnold Safety compliance consulting services at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Big Rig Takes Off Trooper’s Door

On January 12, 2008, on I-75 in Tennesee, a tractor-trailer side-swiped a state trooper’s car, nearly knocking the driver’s side door clean off. Video footage from trooper’s car here.

Police have now located the driver and his truck in Ohio, where he will undoubted be charged with a number of crimes. From viewing the video, it appears the truck in question, operated by Western Express out of Nashville was in the right hand lane. The trooper is in the righthand breakdown lane, with his blue flashers on. His driver side door is open, probably protruding slightly into the righthand traffic lane of I-75. To the left of Western Express appears to be another truck in the left lane. Making a guess, Western Express probably boxed himself in, and by the time he realized he couldn’t move left, too late, and whammo!

This sort of accident is totally preventable. Western Express should have immediately slowed down when he saw the flashing blue lights on the shoulder, and started looking for an opening to move to the left. Drivers who aren’t looking 10-15 seconds down the road will occasionally box themselves into these type of situations. Naturally, he made it much worse by fleeing the accident scene.

And, for you movie fans….. the great scene from ‘Smokey and the Bandit’. Ah, there’s nothing like the Great One, Jackie Gleason.

FMCSA proposes mandatory behind-the-wheel training

FMCSA has issued a proposed rulemaking, which will require new drivers applying for a CDL to have behind-the-wheel training prior to the issuance of the CDL.

Presently, there is no such requirement.

If a driver can go down to the Motor Vehicles office, and pass the written and road test, they get the CDL. No longer, under the new proposal. FMCSA proposed a new driver will be required to have 120 hours of training (76 classroom, and 44 behind the wheel) for Class A, or 90 hours of training (58 classroom, 32 behind the wheel) for Class B and C.

In 2004, FMCSA issued new rules requiring some training for new CDL drivers. They were sued by the safety advocacy groups, who did not think those rules were stringent enough. FMCSA settled that lawsuit, agreeing to issue rules requiring a behind the wheel training component.

FMCSA is accepting comments on its proposed rules through March 25, 2008. If you want to read the rulemaking itself, or make a comment, it is FMCSA-2007-27748 at www.regulations.gov. FMCSA must read all comments, and depending on the volume and nature of the comments, may alter the rule. Presently, FMCSA plans to make the rule effective 3 years after issuing the final rule, which would probably be in 2011 or 2012.

My thoughts on this? This is almost certainly going to happen, probably 2012 or 2013. Not every proposed rule becomes a final rule, in fact many are proposed, and just disappear. Not this one, though. Congress is pushing this, FMCSA promised the courts it would do it, so it’ll happen in some form.

Will it improve highway safety? Maybe. I’m somewhat cynical. I have a feeling drivers who can’t drive are still going to find a way to get a CDL, training requirement or no training requirement.

One thing I do see happening soon is enforcement of the current training regulations, found in 49 CFR Part 380. It states drivers receiving a CDL after July, 2003 must be trained on driver qualification files, hours of service, wellness, and whistle blower protection. Most people don’t know there is a Part 380, as FMCSA does not enforce its new rule. However, it’s only a matter of time before John Hill, FMCSA Administrator is called to task by Congress, wanting to know why they don’t enforce their rule. When that happens, expect FMCSA to start a new wave of fines for Part 380 violations.

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Arnold Safety simplifies D.O.T. Compliance for commercial vehicle operators. Get Eric Arnold’s USDOT Compliance Guide, DVD, & Regulations at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Learn more about Arnold Safety compliance consulting services at ArnoldSafety.Com.

FMCSA issues Interim Final Rule on Hours of Service

This week, FMCSA issued an interim Final Rule on Hours of Service, which is…. the same as the existing rules! What is this all about? To recap: FMCSA changed the hours of service rules in 2004 at the direction of Congress. They were sued by public safety groups, such as “CRASH”, and “PATT” (that’s Parents Against Tired Truckers), complaining that the new rules allowed the drivers to work too many hours. This summer, a U.S. Court of Appeals agreed that FMCSA had erred in issuing the rules, and vacated some key points of the current rules, such as the 34 hour reset of the 70 hour rule. The implementation of the Court’s decision, however, has been delayed twice. Now, prior to the Court decision becoming effective, FMCSA has stepped forward and re-issued the current rules, while stating that it is working on a new, permanent set of rules, which will be issued in 2008.

What does this mean RIGHT NOW? The current rules stay in effect, and will be in effect for probably the next 6-12 months.

What will happen next? Who knows? I imagine the advocacy crazies will be back in Court petitioning for an injunction or something, which they might get. What will DOT’s new rules look like in 2008? Probably going back to only 10 hours driving, but keeping the 34 hour reset, I bet. But stay tuned, as we haven’t heard the last on this issue. The ball is now back in the Court’s court.

Swift Transportation Takes $36.5 M Hit From Crash

In summary, Swift Transportation Co., probably the largest truckload company in the country, was involved in a fatal accident in Kansas in 2004, where their driver ran a stop sign, hit another vehicle, killing the driver. The jury returned a $36.5 million judgement this week against Swift.

$36.5 million! Why so much? Well, the article is posted below, but I’m reading between the lines. Apparently, Swift could (would not?) produce the logs from the accident, which may have shown whether or not the driver was over hours, or fatigued at the time of the accident. Since they did not produce these required documents, the jury punished them.

Huh. My attorney keeps telling me that if documents disappear following a crash, judges and juries just assume the worst, so apparently that is true. Especially in this case, as no doubt Swift had all kinds of documents other than the logs which would have shown how many hours their driver worked prior to the crash, such as GPS documentation. Was that provided? Probably not. I guess the moral of this story is retain all documents following a big accident, don’t get cute and start “disappearing” things.

It also shows what can happen if you have a fatal wreck, and your driver is violating the rules at the time of the crash. From the Arizona Star:

“Swift Transportation Co., a Phoenix-based trucking giant, has been slapped for $36.5 million in damages in a lawsuit over a fatal traffic crash in Kansas. The verdict, which included more than $13.5 million in punitive damages, was returned Friday after a nearly four-week trial in Maricopa County Superior Court.

Steven Copple, a Phoenix lawyer for the winning side in the court battle, argued that significant monetary damages were warranted in the case because Swift failed to cough up driver logs the company was required to keep under federal regulations. The logs, which Swift claimed it was unable to produce, may have shed light on whether the Swift driver at fault in the crash may have been cruising down a roadway in a fatigued physical state, Copple said. “We were hampered in our efforts to determine if he was, in fact, fatigued,” Copple said Monday. The hefty verdict clearly represents the significance placed by jurors over the loss of a Kansas man who left behind a widow and eight children, ages 13 to 26, at the time of the crash, Copple said.

Robert Greer, a Phoenix attorney for Swift, said the verdict will be carefully reviewed and legal remedies for the trucking company will be sought in the trial court and, if necessary, in the appellate courts. The lawsuit was filed in July 2004 by the survivors of Thomas Steven, 57, of Wichita, the owner of a plumbing-supply business who was killed in a crash near Hutchinson, Kan. The crash occurred in April 2004 when the driver of a Swift rig failed to slow down while motoring at 65 mph on Kansas 61 on a sweeping, flat curve leading to the intersection with U.S. 50, according to court documents filed by Copple. Kevin Jones, the driver, cruised over three sets of rumble strips that are designed to warn motorists of an approaching stop-sign controlled intersection, according to the documents. The driver then ran a stop sign and crashed into a Chevrolet Suburban, killing Steven and seriously injuring two passengers in the vehicle, according to the documents.

“Mr. Jones never did more than apply light to moderate pressure on the brakes,” Copple argued in the court papers. “He never thought about stopping.” Following the crash, Jones was unable to offer an explanation why he failed to stop, Copple argued.”

DOT Compliance Package On Sale

I’ve been detained for basically the past 10 weeks on a large project for a big construction company, and I have not been advertising the DVD package as much as I should be. However, I am now getting back into it, and will be making some changes. First, I finally think I have found a good person to be my full-time assistant, which should help me move these DVD packages. Second, I have replaced the giant regulation manual pictured in the graphic above, with a smaller, more compact JJ Keller Management Edition of the regulations. It has exactly the same text in it as the giant 3 ring binder I have been using, except it’s about 1/3 of the cost, which I am passing on to you the customer. Why didn’t I use the Keller book to begin with? Well, basically because I’m a moron, I guess. I thought they would have a problem with me using their stuff. After a conversation with one of their reps, not only do they not care if I use it, they are encouraging it. So, yea, JJ Keller, live and learn. I have been selling the package for $295. Since I can now produce the package for less, I will sell it for $275. Also, the shipping which you pay will be less, as well, since the package does not weigh as much. Such a deal.

At some point in the very near future, we will start selling JJ Keller compliance materials on this site at a discount. I’m not 100% sure how this works out for Keller, but basically, they allow me to buy their stuff at a discount, and do not care how I resell it. I will pass most of the discount on to the customers. Not all of it, hey, I’m in business too, but most of it. So stay tuned, soon we’ll have logbooks, rulebooks, training packages, etc., for sale right here, for less than what Keller charges.

DOT Compliance Package

What is this DVD package I’m selling? It’s a 76 minute DVD of me talking, explaining the various rules you have to follow. There is a copy of the regulations, and a written transcript of what I said on the DVD. Plus, there are a number of forms you need to set up your DOT files.

In addition, as part of the price, you get access to me. You have questions, great, call me, and I’ll do my best to answer your questions about the safety regulations, as part of the charge for the DVD package.

I’m pretty generous with my time. I have an owner-operator I worked with about two years ago from Elizabethtown, PA. She still occasionally calls me with questions, sometimes on a Sunday no less. But I take her calls.

Small business doesn’t run on a Monday-Friday, 9-5 basis. On the blog, it’s a fine line I have to walk, where on the one hand, I need to put informative and interesting content here to keep people coming back, but on the other, I don’t want to post the whole DVD package……..why buy when generous Eric is giving it away for free?

Finally, I also offer a money-back guarantee. Basically it comes down to, ‘what’s your time worth to you?’ Why would you spend a week working and worrying about what rules you need to follow, when I can set you up in half a day?

I’m available over the phone to answer additional questions, and a money-back guarantee, how can you go wrong?

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Eric Arnold is a Former Enforcement Agent with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and a leading expert on USDOT compliance for small businesses. Do you have a question for Eric Arnold? Email him at eric@arnoldsafety.com.

Arnold Safety simplifies D.O.T. Compliance for commercial vehicle operators. Get Eric Arnold’s USDOT Compliance Guide, DVD, & Regulations at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Learn more about Arnold Safety compliance consulting services at ArnoldSafety.Com.

Getting Paid!

Many of you out there are small businesses, just like me. We do a lot of the same things, no matter what business you are in. We invoice our customers, they pay us, we pay our bills, we pay the government. Here are some things I have learned in the almost five years I’ve been in business. Most of you, undoubtably already know these things, but hey, if anyone can learn from my mistakes, glad to be of service.

Nothing is more frustrating than working hard for a customer, doing the work, and then getting stiffed. Stiffed. You know, not getting paid. You send them an invoice, and nothing. You call them and nothing. You call and call and call, and soon you’re spending more time chasing your money, than actually doing the work for them in the first place. It can make you insanely angry. I call these people deadbeats.

How do you avoid deadbeats? Well, one thing they mostly seem to have in common is a shortage of cash. Some business just operate that way: always on the edge, always on the margin. They can afford 5 trucks, but they have 15. They owe the world. They are one bad break from being out of business altogether. Of course, if that happens, they’re taking whatever they owe you with them. Nothing like calling a guy who owes you money, and getting the “I’m sorry, the number you have dialed is disconnected” message. So when you’re initially talking to a potential customer, listen for those telltale signals about financial condition. “Man, it’s rough out here”. “Fuel prices are killing us.” “We’re in debt up to our eyeballs.” “Everybody wants something from us.” “It’s tough to make ends meet.” You’ll be amazed how these guys will just blurt this stuff out to someone they don’t even know. You hear this type of thing…. you’re not getting paid. Run away!

Oh they may want to pay you, but they won’t. They can’t. They owe too many people in front of you, and that’s a long, long line. Either get paid upfront, or don’t do business with them, no matter how much they promise to pay you on the back end. A bird in the hand is worth you not chasing a deadbeat for 6 months. Another trick is when you are presenting the bill, and you get the ol’ “you want all of this now?”, the answer is YES. I want it all now, just like we agreed. If they say they can’t do that, then say you’ll accept two checks, one for half, and the one for the other half, dated two weeks later.

Another thing to remember in avoiding deadbeats is it can be anyone. It has nothing to do with personality. In fact, some of the nicest, most charming people are deadbeats. You’re working with a new customer, and he’s a swell guy, and you say to yourself, “I’ll get paid, these are really nice people, I could get paid now, but that’s ok, he can send the check in two weeks”. MISTAKE! Get paid now. Don’t be afraid to ask for payment. Make the guy dig out his checkbook, and write the check. It’s business. It’s what both parties agreed to initially. Only a deadbeat would be offended by this, legitimate business people understand that if you incur a service, you have to pay for it.

When collecting debts, face to face works much better than on the phone. Most deadbeats are pretty cowardly, and don’t want to face someone they’re in the process of stiffing. The problem is cornering them. Have you ever seen Tony Soprano take off after someone that owes him money? Well it’s sort of like that. You have find them, get in their face, then you might get paid. If you’re just making phone calls, good luck. Generally, if they are taking your calls, that’s a good sign. You’ll probably get your money at some point. However, if suddenly they are never available, and you’re leaving message after message, forget it, they’re ducking you. Unfortunately, the law provides little relief if someone stiffs you. Basically, it’s legalized stealing.

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