Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of vehicle accidents, posing significant risks to both individuals and businesses. An effective distracted driving policy is essential for protecting employees, reducing liabilities and ensuring compliance with safety regulations. Below are key strategies for developing a strong distracted driving policy:
• Understand the reason for the policy. The primary purpose of a distracted driving policy is to protect employees and the public. By addressing the root causes of distracted driving, employers can proactively mitigate safety and liability risks and promote a culture of driving responsibility.
• Establish the scope. The scope of the policy should cover all employees who drive a vehicle for business purposes, including drivers of company vehicles and those who drive personal vehicles for business reasons.
• Define the types of distracted driving. To help workers understand and prevent distracted driving, businesses should detail various types of distractions. These include manual distractions that take drivers’ hands off the wheel (e.g., texting, eating), visual distractions that take their eyes off the road (e.g., looking at screens), cognitive distractions that take away their focus (e.g., conversations with passengers, drowsy driving), auditory distractions that inferred with safe driving through noise (e.g., loud music) and physical distractions that include unnecessary movements inside the vehicle (e.g., combing hair).
• Address phone use. Cellphone use plays a significant role in motor vehicle accidents, and many states have laws against using handheld devices for calling and texting. Employers should consider banning cellphone use entirely to prevent distracted driving. If employers allow hands-free cellphone use, they should require employees to keep interactions brief and focused to avoid any distractions. To prevent the temptation of using a phone while driving, employers can require their employees to turn their phones on “do not disturb” or “silent” before operating a vehicle.
• Include information on technology. Employers have access to various tools that can minimize distractions and improve safety (e.g., telematics, cellphone-blocking technology, dash cameras, and artificial intelligence-based monitoring). By including information on these tools in the policy, employers establish the expectations and rules around them.
• Require pretrip inspections and meal breaks. Employees should be required to conduct pretrip inspections and make needed adjustments (e.g., mirrors, seats, climate and GPS settings) before driving. They should allow time for meal breaks and be instructed to pull over to eat.
• Discourage drowsy driving. The policy should address mental alertness and fatigue management and explain how schedules promote restfulness. Employees must feel comfortable voicing concerns if they are too tired to drive, and employers should encourage regular breaks on long trips to prevent fatigue-related distractions.
• Train employees and communicate. Training sessions should educate employees about the risks of distracted driving, the company’s expectations and the importance of compliance. If technology is being used to address distracted driving, employees should be trained in how it works, what to expect and how collected data is used to promote safety. Employers should also encourage open dialogue by allowing employees to ask questions during training, creating an environment where employees feel comfortable discussing the policy.
• Review and enforce the policy. Employers should regularly review their distracted driving policies and update them as necessary to incorporate new best practices or technology. Employers should also establish clear disciplinary actions with specific penalties for repeated or severe policy violations. Consistent enforcement across all employees is essential to ensure fairness and prevent bias.
Conclusion
An effective distracted driving policy requires clear guidelines, proper training and consistent enforcement to ensure employee safety and compliance. By effectively communicating expectations for safe driving behaviors, employers can foster a strong safety culture and reduce distracted driving risks.
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