Reduce Hired & Non-Owned Auto Liability

Motor Vehicle Report (MVR) Grading Criteria

Make sure your MVR grading criteria has clearly defined acceptable, borderline, and unacceptable results including points, DUI’s, suspensions etc. Tie the criteria to a discipline policy and driver sign off allowing the provider to take corrective action and remove potentially unsafe drivers from the road. It’s critical to be consistent in enforcing the MVR Grading Criteria for all drivers.

Motor Vehicle Report (MVR) Ordering

It is important for management to immediately recognize potentially hazardous driers, take corrective, or disciplinary actions (when tied to MVR Grading Criteria). It is easier to stay ahead of hazardous drivers with an automated MVR update service if available. State DMV services and third party vendor services are available in some states. If ordering manually, MVR’s should be ordered at least annually.

Method of Client Transportation

Each of the following should be addressed in a provider’s transportation policy. In the course of review, check to see if all are covered by the current Hired and Non-Owned Auto policy.

• Aide’s Personal Vehicle
• Client Personal Vehicle (driven by aide) – These vehicles can be older and/or not well maintained. Avoid if possible.
• Ride Share – An attorney should review the Ride Share company contracts to determine who is responsible for what in the event of a loss during transportation, transfer, etc. How confident are you the ride share auto insurance would respond? Define what staff are responsible for in terms of transfers, seatbelts, etc. Ride Share should be developed into its own procedure or checklist as an addendum.
• Paratransit or non-emergency medical transportation company – Clients who are non ambulatory, or in a delicate state requiring higher level of care (ex. oxygen dependent or post medical procedure) should contract directly with a paratransit or non-emergency medical transportation company.

Personal Auto – Business Use Endorsement, Limits, & Proof of Coverage

The provider should require a Business Use Endorsement with a minimum limit of liability on each driver’s personal auto policy. Proof of coverage should be required annually. Standard personal auto policies could decline a claim related to business use, which is why requiring the business use endorsement is so important. If triggered, the endorsement could offer a “buffer” layer before the providers hired and non-owned auto liability policy responds.

Incident/Accident Reporting Procedure

An incident reporting procedure related to client and employee injury as well as an auto accident reporting procedure should be developed and reinforced.

Cell Phone Use & Texting While Driving

Make certain the policy includes a statement on cell phone use and texting while driving.

Operating Radius

A policy should define the operating radius the home health care provider is allowed to drive a client.

Vehicle Inspection Checklist

Develop a vehicle inspection checklist and perform an inspection on each personal vehicle transporting clients.

Training

Provide training for new hires and annually on Incident/Accident reporting, distracted driving, transfers, seatbelts and securing passengers.

Attorney Review

Any new policy or update to an existing policy should be reviewed by an attorney.