Have a Happy & Safe Memorial
Day -
Reminder to Drive Safely- NO TEXTING
With
the Memorial Day weekend at hand, the summer driving season is about to
kick off. While millions of Americans will be watching the
road, many others will be sneaking peeks at their hand-held devices to
read incoming text messages. What’s worse, some drivers will
also be sending messages.
This dangerous activity has not slipped past the watchful eye of
federal regulators, and they have been cracking down. On March 31,
2010, the Department of Transportation made permanent its interim ban
on truck driver texting. The ban applies to drivers of interstate
commercial trucks and buses exceeding 10,000 pounds. A truck driver who
is caught texting while driving could be assigned up
to $2,750 in fines. If the truck driver was texting while driving and
caused an accident, the DOT stipulates that punitive damages must be
awarded. As you may know, punitive damages are not insurable
by law in most states.
To help mitigate your exposure and initiate an act of good corporate
citizenship, we recommend that your company take every effort to warn
all drivers, including salespeople and field staff, about the perils and consequences of driving while texting.
These warnings should be delivered in a formal manner, and there should
be a paper trail.
What if your company does not own trucks or buses, but does send its
employees out on the road for business? Our recommendation stands.
Include a ban on this activity in your employee guideline and have a
clear paper trail that documents your good faith warnings about texting
while driving. Don't wait until after an accident.
Honoring
Those Who Served
On this day of remembrance for those who died while serving our nation
in battle, we join with all Americans to honor their memory and
their sacrifice.
Sincerely,
Robert Dietzel, ARM,
CIC
Kevin McPoyle
Managing
Partner
President
After a short commercial, you will see an interesting news video on texting while driving.
About
KMRD Partners, Inc.
– KMRD Partners, Inc. is a full service
Property & Casualty broker serving
the commercial property and casualty insurance market from offices in
the Philadelphia, PA region. Their mission statement,
“Making a difference by Managing the Cost of Risk”,
is a unique approach that focuses not just on insurance placement, but
coverage expertise, service accountability, client education and risk
management.
2600 Kelly Road,
Suite 300, PO Box 755
Warrington, PA 18976
1-866-957-KMRD (5673) Fax 267-482-8431 www.kmrdpartners.com Reducing the Cost of Risk
- One Client at a Time
