Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/1173600
W EEKLY EDITION OCTOBER 2, 2019 Tip s on Dr iv er Sa fety By Karleen Kos, PSAI Executive Directo r…continued from page 2 Is Video - Telematic Technology Part of the Answer? At a recent PSAI Convention, Trevor Schmidt, Lytx, presented a seminar on drive cam technology. In "Using Video Telematics to Improve Safety and Efficiency in Your Fleet," he provided a picture of what this technology can do to help companies identify and coach employees around potentially risky driving behavior, manage risks, and reduce losses in cases where the driver is not at fault for crashes that may occur (slides from the presentation are available to Members in the PSAI Resource Library under "Vide o Telematics."). Trevor presented the following data, which many attendees found surprising. • Around 95% of collisions are preventable. While many crashes can also be attributed to environmental and vehicle - related factors including weather, road design, visibility issues, and mechanical failures, more than 9 times out of 10, the driver could have taken action to prevent the accident that ultimately occurred. Distraction, speed, and general awareness issues are the most common driver - related performance is sues. • For every one major collision that occurs, there are approximately 300 no - damage risky incidents stemming from driver behavior. Several types of technology exist to help companies improve driver performance and manage risk. Among these are: • Technol ogies that record mechanical activity. Similar to the "black box" on an airplane, these technologies record unusual events such as hard braking or steering anomalies, speed changes, and other conditions. These provide drivers and their companies with infor mation about abnormal events and can be helpful in some crash investigations for the information they provide. • Road - facing cameras. Similar to the dash cams used by police departments, these devices record what was happening on the road ahead and anything that may happen when the truck stops while the camera is still running. This technology provides a record of what the driver was seeing immediately prior to the event. Coupled with the above technology, these tools can provide context in a crash situation and also be helpful for coaching employees. • Full video and audio recording devices. These technologies are continuing to evolve, but the main benefit this technology provides above and beyond the other two is that it shows what the driver was doing immedia tely before and during the unusual event. Paired with outward facing cameras, this information can be powerful for coaching a driver and/or exonerating him in the event of a crash. P AGE 14 CONTINUED ON PAGE 15