Trucking companies are struggling to hire the 80,000 drivers that industry experts cite as necessary to maintain the movement of supplies throughout the country.1

Retaining new drivers is even more difficult — more than 60% of new drivers hired in the first three months of 2019 quit within 90 days.

Increases in crash frequency and rising insurance rates are adding to the industry’s woes. Fatal crashes involving commercial trucks in the U.S. rose 47% between 2009 and 2019; 14% of those fatal accidents involved drivers 25 years of age and younger or drivers over the age of 65.2 Insurers have hiked policy rates accordingly. Over the last decade, insurance premium costs per mile increased 5.9 cents to 8.7 cents, or nearly 50%.3

Implementing a driver finishing program can immediately address some of these issues. These programs can enhance driver understanding of policies and procedures, improve safety records, boost new driver recruitment efforts and help retain veteran drivers.

Reducing risk through driver finishing programs

Driver finishing programs help bridge the gap between driver proficiency and mastery, offering new drivers practice and a support network as they begin their careers.

Driver finishing programs also help reduce risk. One fleet carrier saw a 10% reduction in Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)-reportable accidents within eight months of implementing a driver finishing program.4

Although all drivers must have a commercial driver’s license (CDL) and complete an FMCSA-accredited Entry-Level Driver Training Program (a mandate that just took effect February 7, 2022), many insurance underwriters refuse to cover new drivers.

Driver finishing programs can make inexperienced drivers a better risk and make an organization more attractive to underwriters. These programs can vary from a mentorship situation to a full-fledged educational experience requiring as many as 200 hours behind the wheel with a trainer.5

Building a driver finishing program: What’s involved?

Here are four steps that will help fleet carriers add a driver finishing program — and make the most out of one:

  1. Define the program. Programs often involve two weeks classroom and on-site education, followed by short-haul driving with a trainer and several weeks driver shadowing with a mentor. But trucking companies can design their own curriculum, hire a consultant or send drivers to an existing driver finishing program.
  2. Include mentors. Pairing new drivers in a finishing program with experienced drivers can help veteran truckers feel valued and offer new employees valuable information and experience from a trusted guide. Mentoring can also reduce turnover and boost productivity.6
  1. Focus on company specifics. Training should emphasize a trucking company’s policies, procedures and expectations for drivers. The program should provide vehicle- and cargo-specific education for drivers, outline the organization’s vehicle inspection requirements and review important operations.
  1. Present program successes to underwriters. Insurers favorably view fleet carriers that have taken extra steps to educate and train their drivers. Presenting data that shows the program’s success can help any motor carrier at renewal.

Contact HUB International’s transportation specialists for more information on creating a driver finishing program. You can also learn more about HUB’s commercial trucking insurance services here.

1 WCNC News, “The U.S. needs more than 80,000 truck drivers,” January 28, 2022.
2 Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts 2019, October 29, 2021.
3 American Transportation Research Institute, “The Impact of Rising Insurance Costs on the Trucking Industry,” February 18, 2022.
4 National Surface Transportation Safety Center for Excellence, Effective Strategies to Improve Safety, April 30, 2019.
5 Professional Truck Driver Institute, Driver Finishing, accessed June 14, 2022.
6 EduMe Ltd, “Why driver orientation training is key to improving fleet quality,” accessed June 14, 2022.