Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Announces a New Partnership with Samba Safety
Vehicles are used extensively in wood business operations, and drivers (typically employees, but can include contractors) are obviously needed to operate those vehicles. Driving is one of the most hazardous tasks performed in the workplace. The statistics are startling: there were 42,000 motor vehicle collision deaths in 2016, according to the National Safety Council, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that vehicle collisions have been the leading cause of deaths at the workplace for many years.
One statistic that really stands out is that 94 percent of vehicle collisions (“accidents”) are caused by driver error according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Shouldn’t company managers want to know as much information as possible about employee drivers? Many companies (though some sources, like an Automotive Fleet magazine survey, say fewer than 50 percent) will request motor vehicle reports (MVRs) at some interval. It has largely been considered a “best practice” to pull MVRs initially, post-accident and on annual intervals. But is that enough? A lot can happen in a year’s time!
To help our customers to really know their employee drivers, Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company has partnered with an industry leader in driver risk management, Samba Safety, to offer continuous MVR monitoring. Continuous MVR monitoring goes a step ahead of simply pulling MVRs at one point in time by monitoring behavior in real time, so it can be addressed as soon as possible. There are many advantages of this service, including:
- Identifying at-risk and unsafe drivers
- Assessing individual driver performance
- Reducing the frequency and, possibly, the severity and costs of accidents
- Reducing legal vulnerability
- Enforcing driver policies
- Creating a culture of safety and excellence
- Keeping communities safe
- Protecting and even enhancing your company’s brand and reputation
Through this partnership, PLM is offsetting the costs by paying the one-time base enrollment fee for all customers who sign up, and Samba Safety is offering a 20 percent discount to PLM customers that purchase their services. Customers can sign up by completing the enrollment form at https://www.sambasafety.com/partners/special-offer-for-pennsylvania-lumbermens-clients/ . The customer will be responsible for paying the monthly monitoring fee of $1.50 – $2.00 per driver per month (compare this to the average state single MVR fee of $9.50 per driver, as reported by Verisk).