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Insuring drivers


TKK

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So i have my vans and box trucks with progressive. However one of my employees a few months ago backed into a car. Didnt do any damage except a small dent on the  other persons van. Insurance went up about $200 q month because i had to add her to the policy. Todqy another employee hit a car and im going to pay for it without using insurance, qnd im going to take it out of his check. What do you guys do? Is it fair to charge them for accidents or are we supposed to just have our insurance rates double every year?

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Taking it from their checks is a good way to  get it up the golpher from the local labor board. And they don’t use lube either.

Put it this way, you, the owner has an obligation to make the people your employees hit “whole.” How you do it is up to you, you can go through insurance or write a check to the victim. However check with your insurance what the deadline to file a claim is. Some people will hire a lawyer and sue for pain and suffering, and you want insurance lawyers to go to bat for you. 

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Employees should be on the company auto policy PERIOD!  You get a fleet policy that covers all company vehicles and the drivers that use them.  As far as I know, I don;t believe that you can take damages from an employee's paycheck.  As an employer, you assume the risk by putting your employees on the road, and therefore assume the liability.  We run ALL route driver's licenses before hiring them.  Avoid anyone who has excessive points on their license, multiple accidents, or DUI's within the last 7 years.  But you can NOT take money out of an employee's paycheck to cover damages done while the employee was working for you.  You CAN, however, terminate the employee for driving infractions.  Next time you're out driving, just observe all the commercial vehicles out on the road.  You won't see one without a ding, dent scratch, or other type of "battle scar".  That's because employees drive the vehicle.  That's just a fact of life as a business owner.

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I once bumped someone at a light and paid them a few hundred bucks to keep it from going through insurance. Bad idea they took my cash and then reported it to my insurance also a few days later. Insurance knew what the guy did but still had to cut him a check. Bottom line get good commercial insurance for everyone. There is nothing more important. 

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If you are going to charge the employee for any damage they cause you have to have that in an employment agreement that they have previously signed.  You can add the replacement cost of any electronic devices you provide as well as gas cards, insurance deductibles, etc.  Your insurance should be a blanket commercial auto policy which will probably require you to provide an employee list.  Insurance is to protect you from catastophic claims so get a high deductible of $1000 or more to keep your rates down.  If you have claims you should always expect your rates to go up, it's how insurance works.  Crashes show how exposed the insurance carrier is.  Be smart and run every claim through your policy so you don't get fleeced by a "victim."

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Yes they signed an employee non compete and a statement saying they are responsible for the vehicles. One of the guys has duis and very bad record but hes a great employee however adding him jacks up the price to $500 a month. 

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1 hour ago, TKK said:

Yes they signed an employee non compete and a statement saying they are responsible for the vehicles. One of the guys has duis and very bad record but hes a great employee however adding him jacks up the price to $500 a month. 

Dui's ?? Plural??  I don't care how good of an employee he is, he would NOT be driving my route truck.  You are setting yourself up for HUGE trouble in the future.  You can have all the "agreements" signed that you want, but unless you can show Gross Negligence on their part, no court is going to support those agreements.  As I said before, hiring employees is a risk for any employer, for they are held liable for their employees.  You should not only have a good commercial fleet insurance policy (with the $1000 deductible as AZ stated), but you should have Work Comp Insurance and a good Liability Umbrella policy.  Just my 2 cents.  :)

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It's part of this business. You provide the vehicle and you provide the insurance. Yes it costs more but again it's part of the business. Eventually it will catch up to you and could cost you a whole lot more. Only the people on our insurance policy can drive our vehicles period! Every time someone is hired, Thier driving record is ran and our insurance agent will tell us whether or not they will cover them. And yes they have denied some, so we were looking for another driver

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10 hours ago, TKK said:

Does your policy always go up when you add them?

Absolutely!  The more drivers you have on the road, the higher your premium.  There is no "group discounts".  And YES, the insurance company will run their records and deny any new employees from the policy that they feel will be a high risk (such as suspended license, excessive points, DUI, etc.)  That is why WE run driving records prior to even added them to the policy.  No sense training someone, only to have the insurance company deny them.  When you have a fleet of vehicles, auto insurance is just another cost of doing business.

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