Backing accidents are among the most frequent types of vehicle accidents reported by utilities insured in this program. Many of these are minor, but certainly not all!

Backing accidents are among the most frequent types of vehicle accidents reported by utilities insured in this program. Many of these are minor, but certainly not all! Larger trucks, usually those with attached specialty equipment such as service buckets, crew buckets, and digger/derricks can inflict serious damage when backing before the driver realizes what’s happening “way back there.” Often the driver has no idea that anything is behind him when he backs up. A typical claim file report often reads something like this, “Insured driver stopped to check an address, then realized he had passed it. Claimant driver pulled up behind him. Insured driver reversed and backed over the claimant’s compact car causing damage to the entire front end. Possible total loss.” You may have had a similar event in your fleet. (Following which you got to complete an accident report form.)

Most of our clients report that backing accidents are difficult to fully control and prevent. Many, if not all, have been through the usual preventive techniques, including telling drivers not to park where they have to back out, requiring crew members to get out and guide the driver in all backing maneuvers, even using “set out” cones to force drivers to walk behind the truck before getting in. Each of these can be helpful, but each approach has drawbacks. “No backing” parking places can be hard to find and other people can park us in. Spotter requirements don’t help with service buckets and circumstances (weather, timing, location) may challenge or inhibit consistent compliance. Cones (if remembered) can get a driver to look, but by the time he’s back in the seat, things can change and they do nothing for us in cases like that in the example above.  

Technology is coming to the rescue.  Most of you already know that the the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a rule that  requires all vehicles under 10,000 pounds, including buses and trucks, manufactured on or after May 1, 2018, to have rear view cameras that cover a 10-foot by 20-foot zone directly behind the vehicle. (They also include requirements for image size, linger time, response time, durability, and deactivation. If you want to read the actual rule, click here.)

But while this will certainly assist in reducing backing incidents in cars and pickups, buckets and diggers are in the 30,000 GVWR range, and are not covered by this rule. However, many of these units are assembled using cab & chassis units that are now being designed to accept rear view camera units, since they are often derived from lighter trucks, using similar if not duplicate dashboards. And, as the number of camera units being built ramps up due to the new requirement, similar to any other tech device, the cost per unit is already falling. So you can consider adding them to almost any new truck if you spec them that way. For those few that cannot be ordered with OEM backup monitors, it is also possible to add aftermarket devices to them or to your existing older units. Such aftermarket cameras and monitors, both hard wired and wireless styles, are widely available from several vendors, starting as low as a couple of hundred dollars, less than most deductibles. And lot’s less than the average claim!