How to Protect Your Trucking Business From Lost and Damaged Cargo

There are a number of considerations when shipping frieght. How much will it cost? How much can we move at once? How far can we get? When will it arrive? These are the obvious concerns, and therefore the ones that get the most attention. Optimizing a freight route revolves around efficiency, which increases reliability and should reduce costs. These are the objectives of every shipping company.

Cargo Security

Less obvious but potentially far more costly is the issue of the safety and security of the cargo. All the efficiency in the world doesn’t matter if the cargo is damaged, lost or spoiled. If you don’t think this can be a disaster, just imagine what happens to a shipment of premium steaks in the sunny California desert if a truck’s refrigeration fails. Forty tons of spoiled meat and a quarter-million dollars later, you’ll probably react like most people and make cargo security your top priority.

Now replace those steaks with solid-state computer drives. You’d be well advised to adopt the slogan of programmers everywhere: Never underestimate the bandwidth or the retail value of a truck full of hard drives.

The fact is cargo security is your top priority regardless of efficiency, cost or speed. A wide variety of hazards awaits the unprepared, which is why truck insurance offered by an experienced company with a high-level understanding of the logistics and issues involved is so vital to your success.

Better Training

As with all complex problems, the first step towards a solution is training. More capable and better educated drivers are the front line in the efforts to preserve the value of cargo and reduce the need for more expensive last-minute solutions.  Training doesn’t have to be limited to drivers, however. Everyone in a shipping company should be well-apprised of the issues faced by the organization. The old adage “many hands make light work” shouldn’t be overlooked, especially when it comes to security. A well-trained driver is one who knows his or her equipment inside and out, who can predict mechanical and electronic failure before it happens and who knows the contacts at their clients and shipping company to alert in the event of a threat to the safety of current and future cargoes.

Training as a priority can’t be over-emphasized. Any business that accepts responsibility for someone else’s property must be at the top of their game far more often than not if they expect to survive and grow in the face of the spreadsheet-precise competition in today’s economy. Better training, better documentation and a more capable workforce are three of the best ways to make certain your security policies are up to date and being tested in the real world on a continuous basis.

Repair

The second priority, which interlocks with your training policies, should be your vehicle and equipment inspection, maintenance and repair regimen. Just like the airlines, trucking companies have to be highly focused on the condition of their vehicles and the equipment they carry.  Shipping, logistics, efficiency and cargo security are impossible objectives if you are fighting your own tools. On the other hand, everything becomes easier and less expensive if you are working with well-maintained quality equipment operated by well-trained and attentive drivers.

Training and maintenance should be interwoven to the greatest extent possible. The reason is clear. Drivers will almost always be the first to notice maintenance issues and they will definitely be the first to notice a potential hazard regarding cargo security. If they are trained to recognize not only the evidence of a maintenance issue, but the causes and buildup to such an issue, they are in a crucial strategic position to not only save the company the costs of more urgent repairs at a later date, but they are also in position to protect one or more expensive shipments and the reputation of the company itself.

A well-trained team of drivers operating a well-maintained fleet of trucks is the best promotional tool on Earth for a shipping company. Not only does it inspire confidence in potential clients, it produces a fertile environment for new business from existing clients. Today more than ever, business is completely dependent on trust, and protecting clients from losses is the fastest way to get that priceless relationship.  Showing your clients how you plan to protect their valuable property is one of the most powerful ways to promote your business. Shipping isn’t generally considered exciting, but if your customers can be certain you are putting a full effort into protecting their property, you can bet they’ll be more than a little enthusiastic about keeping you around.

Better Insurance

If you can engineer such an environment, your next step will be to work with a world-class commercial truck insurance company to make absolutely sure your client’s property is not only well-protected by your training and maintenance policies, but also by the best insurance policy money can buy. If your driver is well-trained and your trucks are well-maintained, we can complete the picture by introducing you to an experienced and knowledgeable insurance agent who understands your business, and the business of your clients.

Strong Tie has worked with all kinds of shipments, all kinds of trucks and virtually every business model known to the shipping industry. We can help you do what most of your competitors are likely to overlook: Prepare for the unexpected. No matter what you haul, from jewelry to luxury automobiles to electrical transformers, we can put a policy and an insurance program together for you that will dovetail perfectly with your confidence-building training and your industry-leading vehicle maintenance systems. In other words, we will help protect your cargo, so you can pass along the promise to your customers, old and new.

The nation’s lifeblood is cargo security and affordable shipping. Let us show you how your company and ours can team up to provide unparalleled service and rock-solid protection for every shipment, local, regional or nationwide. We’re motivated and ready to work with you and we think you’ll discover the possibilities and potential for growth and success are rather inspiring.