There’s no arguing about the fact that safety is crucial in the tow truck industry. Tow truck drivers face a lot of risks when it comes to their jobs – working on the side of the road with cars flying by is dangerous and scary. Of course, many of the dangers of towing aren’t in the control of you or your drivers – you can’t control the actions of other people on the road, the weather, and so on, but you can make safety a fundamental part of your business by creating a culture of safety.
What do we mean by a culture of safety? We mean that safety is something that defines your business. It’s a fundamental part of what the business is. How do you go about creating a culture of safety? We’ve got seven tips for you.
Establishing a culture of safety at your business.
1. Committing to training.
When you’re hiring new tow truck drivers, you need to have an extensive training program so you can teach them how to do their jobs safely. Training is a way to teach safety, of course, but it also gives you the chance to point out hazards that are inherent to towing and how to minimize them.
And it’s not just you new drivers who should participate in safety training. Your current employees should take part, too. Everyone has to be a part of putting safety at the forefront of the business. This also allows everyone the chance to come together and share ideas, thoughts, and strategies for safety. This can help everyone avoid common towing-related injuries.
2. Communicating safety information and standards to your employees by holding meetings.
Now, having a lot of safety protocols and trying to set a high standard of safety won’t exactly work that well if you don’t communicate if to all of your employees. Everyone needs to be aware of the safety measures you have in place and the reasons for them. They need to know the hazards they’ll face out there on the roads.
Conducting regular or weekly safety meetings can help you convey the safety procedures you have in place and what those look like in the field. Your meetings are a chance for your drivers to talk about safety-related events that happened that week and share helpful stories – for example, how they safely accomplished a difficult recovery. It’s also a chance for everyone to ask questions and for you to go over your policies.
Something to emphasize at these meetings is how to manage risks by controlling the factors that you can. You can’t stop the other driver from texting, but you can choose to obey the speed limit, check your equipment thoroughly, and put your phone away before you drive.
3. Conducting one-on-one meetings with your drivers.
Along with doing meetings with the whole team, you can have one-on-one appointments with each of your drivers. It’s a good idea to touch base with everyone to give them the chance to voice their concerns about safety and ask questions. Plus, it shows that you genuinely value and care about your employees.
4. Having an employee handbook.
You can also create an employee handbook to outline all of your workplace safety policies and other procedures. This is a great way to get everything in writing so that your expectations are very clear. Do make sure to get some legal advice when putting together your handbook – there are a lot of employment-related laws and practices you have to adhere to. as an employer.
5. Encouraging employees to speak up about their safety concerns.
Make sure that your employees feel that they can voice their concerns about safety and point out any hazards they encounter. You can’t step in to minimize risk or counteract danger unless you’re aware of them. Make it clear that no one should worry about any consequences for reporting concerns.
6. Investigating accidents in the interest of furthering safety.
If an accident does occur, it’s important to conduct an investigation. The purpose of the investigation is not to blame anyone or to hold someone responsible. It’s to find out how you can prevent a similar accident from happening ever again. You want to find out why it happened and figure out what you can do to prevent accidents in the future.
7. Having management lead the way.
Management needs to be at the front of the effort to create a culture of safety. Everyone in leadership needs to support and encourage safety. They need to set an example for your drivers by following your workplace safety standards.
It’s important to establish a culture of safety at your business. You can keep your drivers out of harm’s way. Being able to send them home safely at the end of the day is priceless.
Looking for tow truck insurance quotes? We can help with that. Our tow truck insurance experts can get you multiple quotes for your rates so that you can shop and save money. All you have to do to get started with your quotes is fill out our online form or give us a call today.
Source:
Jackson, Tim. “A Culture of Safety.” Tow Times, June 2018, p. 6.
