There’s a fast, cheap, and often overlooked way to judge the effectiveness of your safety program: check your provincial carrier abstract or profile. It sounds simplistic, and you may not like the picture your profile paints, but it lays out your weaknesses in black and white and for a nominal fee.

If you need to have one by law, why not put your carrier profile to use? The price is right: In Ontario, where my operation is based, the cost of an abstract is $7. ItÕs the best $7 fleet safety consultant I’ll ever hire.

Each province has its own idea about what specific information should be included in a commercial fleet operatorÕs abstract, but in general, your profile can give you a clearer picture of your drivers’ behavior, your companyÕs accident history, and the fitness of your operation based on violations found during roadside inspections and facility audits.

Just having the information in your profile isn’t enough. You have to put it to good use through the way you manage your operation. For example, now that you know who your high-risk drivers are, how should you respond? A one-on-one meeting to discuss the driver’s violation history is a must. Document the meeting, clearly stating what was discussed, how the driver’s behavior needs to be corrected, and how the driver’s performance will be monitored from that date forward, and finally, what the consequences of continued poor performance will mean.

I have on several occasions required a driver to personally go to the ministry office to provide me with a driver’s abstract on a monthly or quarterly basis depending on the seriousness of his violation review. If a driver knows that his performance is under the microscope and he doesnÕt change quickly, because you have clearly documented the problem and the consequences, you can let him go without fear of a wrongful dismissal claim.

On the other hand, you can use that abstract as a benchmarking tool, rewarding drivers as their performance level improves.

Checking driver abstracts on a yearly basis is not enough. Your company policy may require drivers to report every roadside incident or moving violation right away. I trust my drivers, but by pulling a quarterly fleet abstract I can verify what they are or are not telling me.

Furthermore, there’s real payback in regularly monitoring and effectively controlling driversÕ over-the-road performance. You want to review that data as frequently as possible so you can focus your training initiatives on areas that need the most work. Ultimately, you’ll maximize the return on your safety training investment.

I use the word “investment” because safety adds to the bottom line, through reduced accident claims and better driver retention. Professional drivers want to work in an environment that fosters and values their personal safety. Wouldn’t you, too?