Plumb Safety: Three Common Auto Claims for Lumber Dealers

With booming business, supply chain delays, and labor shortages, it can be difficult for lumber dealers to keep up with safety and risk management for their daily operations. One critical area for your clients to not lose sight of is fleet safety for their business. Large trucks, like the box trucks, boom trucks, and flatbeds operated by lumber and building material dealers are a frequent source of losses.

PLM has insured the lumber industry for over 127 years – which means we have seen it all when it comes to auto losses. That is why we work closely with our insureds to encourage safe driving practices and to build a fleet safety culture in their operations.

So, what are we seeing regarding auto losses for our insureds?

The three most common claims we see are:

1. Rear-end Collisions. Many of these cases from the rear end accidents can be severe especially when involving heavy equipment trucks. This is due to the amount of weight behind them and the force they can exert on another vehicle, especially a private passenger vehicle. Safety Tip: Look as far down the road as possible and plan an escape route.
2. Backing Up Accidents. This often occurs when a driver overshoots the intersection and must back up. When backing up, the driver may go too far and strike a vehicle. With very large vehicles, it is difficult for drivers to have clear views behind them. Safety Tip: If you must back up, perform a walkaround the vehicle prior to backing or utilize a spotter.
3. Sideswipes and Wide Right Turn. Sideswipes and wide right turns go hand in hand, coming down to the driver being cognizant of their surroundings, or due to other vehicles around them not keeping enough clear distance. Safety Tip: Use your turn signal well in advance of turning. Check your mirrors and turn slowly. PLM offers free “This Vehicle Makes Wide Right Turns” stickers that insureds can put on the back of their trucks.

Auto losses can be much more significant to your client’s business when considering the other costs such as downtime, delivery delays, loss of equipment, and reputational effects. PLM is here to help consult with our brokers and insureds to create fleet safety programs and provide resources to build risk resiliency for their business. You can also find more fleet safety resources on our Loss Control Center.