Reducing Employee Vehicle Accidents:The world-class solution used by the world’s largest companies

The vast majority of vehicle accidents are avoidable. Recently, Bob Joop Goos, Chairman of the International Organization for Road Accident Prevention, stated, “More than 90 percent of road accidents are caused by human error. We, therefore, have to focus on people in our traffic safety programs.” 1

Many firms are extremely aware of the problems they face concerning worker-related accidents and injuries; however, in many cases, traffic-related injuries, and their impact can be hidden from view. Recently, while working with a client, we spent a lot of time analyz-ing accident data, then cross-referencing it with data from the client’s on-site medical center. Immediately we noticed that the data did not match up. Days-away cases and lost-time incidents (LTIs) had been extensively documented, but some data relating to employee absenteeism could not be found. The reason? The employee absenteeism in question was due to vehicle accidents that had occurred outside company property and outside company hours. By allowing this type of data we could see that vehicle accidents accounted for nearly 526 days-away cases in just one year. In many instances, what could be construed as being a case of absenteeism or a medical day, was in fact an accident—and one that was entirely avoidable.

The impact of an accident on those involved, and their friends and family is incalculable. However it can be extremely serious for the employer as well. The indi-rect impact of an accident upon the employer can be

estimated at three times that of the highly visible direct costs.2 These can include issues such as

Some employers are doing exactly what Bob Goos advocates—focusing on the people. In many of these companies, employees are using complex, specialized, and potentially dangerous machinery. The difference between driving a car and operating machinery is that as machinery changes occur, the operators are coached, re-trained, and given more information about how to effectively use their equipment. That’s half of the equa-tion. Then, the same employee that is entirely focused upon his safety and that of his colleagues on the job, signs off for the day and gets into another complex, specialized, and dangerous piece of machinery—an auto, truck, SUV—which he or she operates without the same focus on safety. This is just one of the reasons why AlertDriving’s FleetDefenseSM system is breaking new ground by reducing employee driving accidents.

Reducing Employee Vehicle Accidents: The world-class solution used by the world’s largest companies

Medical costs

Claims administration fees

Damaged goods

Loss of production and quality

Process interruptions

Labor costs

Increased cost of insurance

Loss of goodwill

Loss of a customer

Delays in product delivery

Equipment replacement

Costs not covered by insurance

Fines, legal fees and civil penalties

Loss of key employees

AlertDriving and FleetDefenseSM

Quality Safety Edge has partnered with AlertDriving to eliminate employee accidents on and off the job. AlertDriving has worked with more than 30 of the largest companies in the U.S.A, and the results speak for themselves: a typical reduction in driving accidents is 30-40 percent in the first year. AlertDriving specialists have more than 14 years of experience providing users with a single-source, comprehensive, fully customizable driver risk identi-fication and mitigation training system. Using their system, the severity of incidents falls dramatically, having a direct impact on employee safety and an ROI of on average 900 percent.

To reduce collisions, injury costs, and liabilities the AlertDriving solution incorporates three distinct stages: First, identify high-risk drivers; second, mitigate the risk that they pose with prescriptive training; and lastly, monitor their participation and success in the program. The reason why many of the world’s largest companies are using this system is because it is delivered entirely online . . . and it works!

Assessment—Hazard Perception Evaluation (IDENTIFY)

The Hazard Perception Evaluation allows AlertDriving to identify the participant’s specific strengths and weak-nesses. During the evaluation, the driver will participate in a drivers-eye view of real-life road and traffic situ-ations, filmed in their country or region. Each driver will go through 20 different, local driving sequences. Following these, they will answer multiple-choice ques-tions. The video emphasizes using the mirrors, scanning the road ahead, and anticipating potential road hazards.

The system continually evaluates the performance of the driver in six key areas:

• Speed management

• Space management

• Scanning

• Attitude

• Ability to identify danger zones

• Awareness of other motorists

At the same time, the system monitors the number of attempts made by the driver to identify the risk, whether the answer is correct or not, and the speed each multiple-choice question is answered. On completing the process, the driver is then presented with a detailed results page that scores him or her on the above crite-ria. Based on the individual’s results, a training plan is automatically customized for each driver to improve specific skills.

The Hazard Perception Evaluation will identify all of your drivers risk levels as well as your company’s most at-risk drivers well before they get behind the wheel of a vehicle. It also provides each driver with a personalized course for skill improvement.

Two of the main benefits of the Hazard Perception tool are a) resources are spent addressing each individual’s specific problems, not remedying areas in which they do not have any difficulties, and b) the program reassures the participant that they are being prescribed a person-alized set of training modules that will help them drive more safely on and off the job.

Defensive Driver Training (MITIGATE)

It is important to note that the modular training stage of the FleetDefenseSM program does not attempt to teach anyone HOW to drive. Instead, it reinforces the need to drive safely. Each of the training modules takes approxi-mately 20 minutes to complete.

Because everyone has a different learning style, the training incorporates a reading comprehension section, a statistical section, and an audiovisual section using lo-calized video content. The first part presents the subject of the module. Statistics and graphs demonstrate why a specific driving behavior is a problem, and the audio-visual aid demonstrates how to change that behavior. The module ends with multiple-choice questions. The multiple-choice questions are the testing component that allows the driver to receive feedback on his/her skill development progress.

The driver can take as many attempts as necessary to complete the training.

The training system automatically corresponds via e-mail telling drivers which modules they are scheduled to take and by when. Subtle reminders are e-mailed to prompt participants to take their next training module.

Groundbreaking Delivery Method—Pulse Training

One reason why the largest companies in the world use AlertDriving is that it continually provides the user with an engaging, interactive, and user-friendly training experience.

When the learning portion of the program begins, each course is implemented in the same way: small, manage-able amounts of training are implemented consistently throughout the year. An example might be that one driver receives the “Distractions” training early in the year, a month later “Drowsy Driving” and “Speeding” at a later date. This means that the participant is trained at regular intervals over a longer period of time, leading to a higher retention rate and a higher degree of perma-nent learning.

Many experts in learning have discussed participant attention spans, and have come to a consensus that the limit of concentration on any one task is approximately 20 minutes long. With the assessment being 25-30 minutes and each of the training modules being 20 min-utes, the drivers remain engaged, actively participate, and most importantly, do not see the training as either interfering or boring.

Monitoring

For the client, having the ability to monitor the assess-ment and training in real time gives the process a high level of transparency.

Each organization is able to customize every facet of the program to its specific needs. They can run any number of reports that will track drivers’ progress from overdue lessons and test scores to course statistics and frequency. The system is flexible: the reports can be run for specific groups, regions or drivers. This flexibil-ity allows each client to run the report to their exact specifications.

Worldwide Presence on Every Platform

AlertDriving has gone to great lengths to localize the content for this process. It has been translated into specific languages (currently 70 languages in 55 coun-tries are available) and for each country the real-life sequences are filmed on location. Each country has its own driving rules and regulations which are incorpo-rated into the training modules and updated regularly to take into account any legislative changes.

Delivery of AlertDriving is also extremely flexible. To take the assessment, you need only to be in front of a computer—at work, or at home. Each of the modules is not only available on your computer, but also on tablet

and mobile phone. The training can be taken wherever and whenever the driver wishes to take it.

Vehicle Policy Testing

Finally, one of the most important issues when discuss-ing employee accidents concerns company liability. Driving policies are much like EULA agreements when installing software. Most often, each employee is required to sign the policy statement, so they flip through it, sign it, and leave the HR office. Unfortu-nately, time and again, courts are no longer judging this to be an acceptable level of due diligence, and in many cases, firms are paying the price.

AlertDriving is able to include a policy test either as a standalone test or as part of a driver risk-management program. This allows clients to eliminate a large por-tion of their liability since drivers must first read and electronically sign that they have read and fully under-stood the policy before being tested on its content. By partnering with AlertDriving, Quality Safety Edge is now able to offer the world’s most advanced driving risk-mitigation system. Employers have the opportu-nity to provide their employees with a process that reduces accidents, injuries, collisions and costs—all with a flexible, scalable, minimal footprint.

1. http://www.alertdriving.com/home/fleet-alert-magazine/international/human-error-accounts-90-road-accidents

2. www.asse.org/professionalaffairs-new/bosc/indirect-costs.php

About the Author

Christian Ingle, QSE’s Vice President for Latin America, has spent the past four years helping QSE design and implement a global strategy. A native of the United Kingdom, Christian has unique experience working for multi-national companies in a wide range of locations around the world.

Following his postgraduate studies at the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, he spent time consulting for the European Commission in Brussels while in Spain and the United States.

Christian is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and French. “I love having a challenge; even better if that challenge takes place somewhere that I have never been and requires speaking a different language,” he says. After considerable time living and working in Argentina, Spain, Portugal, the United States and Brazil, Christian now leads the Latin American operations from the Quality Safety Edge do Brasil offices.

Working closely with AlertDriving, Christian is in a position to answer any questions regarding the FleetDefenseSM product.

©2012 Quality Safety Edge, Inc. Confidential Information. Quality Safety Edge (QSE), Values Based Safety®, and BBS Essentials® are registered trademarks of Quality Safety Edge, Inc. All information is QSE pre-existing intellectual property, and/or is based upon pre-existing intellectual property of QSE, or is used with express permission of the copyright owner and may not be reproduced without express prior written authorization form Quality Safety Edge. All rights reserved.

Excellence through behavioral technology

A Pioneer in Behavior-Based Safety

Quality Safety Edge (QSE) is a pioneer in behavior-based safety with more than 25 years of proven results. Founder and President, Terry McSween, Ph.D., is recognized as one of the world’s leading authorities in behavior-based safety. He has written the seminal text and over 100 published articles on behavior-based safety. Staffed with Ph.D. behavioral psychologists and safety professionals, Quality Safety Edge has the expertise to provide you with the depth and experience required to implement original solutions.

Customized to fit your organization

Many organizations attempting behavior-based safety struggle with unsuitable “off-the-shelf” processes. Although the core components of behavior-based safety are misleadingly simple to understand, adapting those components for diverse environments requires careful planning. This ensures that the elements integrate well with your organization’s culture. Our team works collab-oratively with you to design unique behavior-based safety solutions that fit your unique environment.

Ways we can help you

• Values Based Safety®

• Readiness assessments

• BBS Essentials® for small companies

• AlertDriving

• Serious Incident Prevention™

• Commitment Based Leadership®

• BBS health assessments

• Internal facilitator training

• Educational workshops

• Speaking engagements

• BBS data-management systems

Who is QSE?

• Construction

• Chemical Process plants

• Defense contractors

• Electric Utilities (including generation

and T&D)

• Heavy equipment

• Maintenance

• Manufacturing

• Oil & Gas production and exploration

• Oil & Gas Pipelines

• Refining

• Warehousing & Distribution

• Health care

• And many others!

Industries we have worked with include

Experience

With over 1,200 implementations worldwide, in almost every type of business and industry, our consultants and project managers are particularly well suited for various cultural and organizational environments.

You know your business. We know behavior. Together we can design systems to ensure a safer, more productive and profitable workplace.

A Global Reach

A global economy is no longer a future vision, but a reality . . . many will argue a necessity. However, doing business interna-tionally now requires much more than mutual commerce; it requires in-depth customer and cultural knowledge. Quality Safety Edge has applied that knowledge to help clients in 27 countries achieve world-class safety cultures.

Excellence through Behavioral Technology

Asia Asia@qualitysafetyedge.com

Europe Europe@qualitysafetyedge.com

0800 014-8447

Latin America LATAM@qualitysafetyedge.com

+55 11.3042.4390

United States Info@qualitysafetyedge.com • 877.588.1140 (toll free) 14676 S. Diamondhead • Montgomery, TX, USA 77356