be aware of marten transport.

Sounds like there was nothing you could have done to prevent that driver from hitting you.

I have always heard good things about them but also heard of how they screw people with their point system.

I worked for a pretty large outfit (Sygma) and they were top notch. Didn't care if you hit stuff like trees or the occasional fast food sign. All they cared about was you getting in a real accident.

I was at a dock and some driver hit my truck as he was backing in. Took off one of my mirrors and damaged a headlight. Guy who hit me barely spoke English which ticked me off. Anyway, I called them told them what happened and they were like "nothing you could have done." They even asked if I was ok.

Wish more companies were like that.

 

hey truckdriver p.m. me.....l.

 

Drive safe

 

Marten has very strict safety standards, particularly during the first year with them. In 2007, a lot of first year drivers went out and killed people. We ended up with a SAFER Score of 99 by the end of the year. Marten's new policy has seriousy improved our safety record, which is now translating into better customers, better freight, and better freight rates.

You hit a tree, a fixed object that is easy to avoid. You said the points were doubled, which only happens during your first year.

You had also stated you had previously hit another vehicle while backing. You did not say if Marten determined you were at fault or not.

One preventable accident in a year is a mistake. Two is a pattern of unsafe behavior.

As for the per diem, you actually made more money, with a huge reduction in taxes, than without it. I'm not quite sure what the downside was to that.

As for regional at Marten, yeah, the pay is lower, but you get home more than we OTR drivers do. While the pay is lower than it use to be, the fleet managers and equipment are much better than when I was on regional, so I guess that's the trade off.

Every company has its quirks, but in my 14 years in trucking, the last few at Marten, Marten has fewer than most. Marten's crack down on safety issues was demanded by us drivers, because we got sick of being DOT'd every other day, losing good customers, and hearing about people dying over senseless, preventable accidents.

 

If the first accident occurred with another company, it wasn't a consideration in evaluating this one. And, yes, it does matter if it was someone else's fault, because then it would be considered non-preventable on your part, as would acts of God/Nature.

And, while the local police may have not assigned fault, that does not mean Marten (or any other employer) won't. The cop didn't see the accident, because he/she wasn't there when it happened. They just took the report, and worked to get the roadway clear. If there were injuries or fatalities, others would be called in to investigate.

However, the very first question that popped into my head, based upon your new description of the accident, was why you were unable to stop in time to avoid the obstruction(s) in the roadway to begin with? If I thought of that, so did Risk Management. Something to ponder, I guess.

 

No, you weren't clear, since my impression was you hit the tree, not the other way around. Obviously, that one's non-preventable.

And, actually, under the point system, who is at fault does matter. Put simply, preventable costs in points, non-preventable doesn't effect points at all.

And, the policy regarding ANY PREVENTABLE ACCIDENT at Marten is a simple one, have one in your first year, regardless of how minor or trivial, even where fault is shared. If you are just a little at fault, you're gone. Yes, points are assessed, but even if it were just one, you would have been just as gone.

I know the policy is a bit extreme (okay, a lot extreme), but as I mentioned, there are good reasons, and the decision on how strict to be wasn't exactly a choice. In my honest opinion, the policy is too extreme, in that it doesn't take into account your overall safety record, just the immediate time at Marten. A longer look back would be what I would prefer, but it's not my company (thank God).

Again, either you weren't clear enough in your original post, or I misread something. Thank you for clarifying what exactly happened (with the tree thing). It does change the picture quite a bit.

Oh, btw, no longer at Marten. Simply put, they changed, I didn't like the change, so I left.