Fighting a preventable with Swift.

I had something similar happen. State patrol said it was not my fault. Did not give me a ticket. Inspected truck, trailer and logs and all were good to go. Company said since I was not cited, then it does not go on my record or on our insurance. Nothing I could do about it because they have to yield to traffic on the interstate as they are getting on.

 

So if I was you, I'd fight it tooth and nail. If you are not cited or held responsible by the police, then it was not your fault and should not go on your record. Screw what Swift says. They are wrong. Period.

 

Okay,,,your situation is somewhat like mine. If you don't have a copy of it yet, get a copy asap of the police report and than, HOLD ONTO THAT REPORT LIKE IT IS YOUR BIRTH CERTIFICATE. You will have to show it to every company you hire onto.
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I was involved in an accident in 2009 where the 4 wheeler never even touched my trk/trlr. Police report states I was not involved but, the company put it on my DAC anyway, as a "non-preventable". On my DAC it states that I "ran vehicle off the road" but, states "non-preventable". Yeah, thought the same thing, how is that even possible? I did my research and what not and that is when I found out that the Carriers are the ones that put information on your DAC. Sure, there is a process in fighting it but, they (hireright) will only remove what is false. If the accident happened and you are part of the report, regardless of fault, it will stay on there. Even if they did remove it from your DAC, it will be on your PSP and that will not get removed for 5 years. As long as the police report says you are not at fault, you wont have a problem getting another job. Now, if they (swift) put's on your DAC "Preventable", fight! I don't think they will though.

Not sure when this happened but you can get a copy of your DAC for free, from hireright.
You can get a copy of your PSP for $10, just google "PSP report"
You can get a copy of MVR for a small fee, or free, as well. Google "MVR Report in your state".

Give some time from the time of the accident though. ALSO! Keep talking to your safety dept, maybe you can keep them from putting it on your DAC, I doubt it though. Don't let this get you down, you will be alright, this is just one of those, "what a bunch of BS" moments in life.

 

If this happened before CSA 2010, you may be right, but you should still check your DAC, PSP and MVR. Just so you know for sure...

 

A little off topic in regards to the O/P's specific situation, but with all that has been said here, what if no accident report had been written because the end result of the accident did not meet the criteria for a DOT reportable accident nor did it meet the state's/city's criteria for an accident report? Could a company be in the 'right' for reporting it on your DAC as a preventable or even a non-preventable?

 

News flash: DAC doesn't mean Jack ######. Conway hit me with a DOT reportable accident (this is an accident where a vehicle is towed or there is a fatality) on a 5mph fender bender that my codriver had WHEN I WAS IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. Needless to say the woman in the 4wheeler was charged with improper lane change and blah blah blah. Conway put it on MY DAC as if I was the driver and as if it was DOT reportable.

I never bothered to fix it, I've gotten two way better jobs after leaving them. It really doesn't mean anything to me or to any employer the word of a Bottom Feeder company and a private slander company like HireRight, what matters in this industry are two things: your MVR and your CSA score. And as long as those two are clean, NO COMPANY will say no to you. So screw Swift and screw DAC.

 

Your not entirely right, for every driver brother and please, tell me where I can get this CSA score you speak of?

 

Dont worry about something that has not nor is going to happen..

I am a former state trooper now driver.. I was on the driver review board with a previous company and I can tell you if all you say is correct then you have nothing to worry about.

The safety department is on the companies side but like another post said for them to call it preventable put them in a liable position. They are liable for what their drivers do whether right or wrong.

Do keep all your info and get a copy of your dac.

 

Swift is an extremely large and powerful trucking company. DAC has kept many people from getting a job or a better job. It would NOT be wise to underestimate them.

God bless every American and their families! God bless the U.S.A.!

 

What do you mean I'm not entirely right? If a company is willing to believe Swift and HireRight over what your MVR says then maybe you better off not working for them as they will probably do the same to you.

I don't know where you can see this. But companies can access this info. All I know is this was a major topic on my hiring for my current job. Actually they were the ones that told me what was going on. I had no idea they had put that on me. They printed the info for me, and they were confused because of it showing an accident like that yet my MVR was clean. And my CSA simply showed two past inspections both passed. So they wanted to ask me what Conway was saying. Then after a couple of days they decided to believe me.

And by the way, this companies won't deal with this with you. If you call them to dispute what THEY are reporting they will simply tell you to deal with HireRight or any other slander company personally. Which is BS considering THEY are the ones making stories up.