Werner - Not What I'd Heard (Thank God.)

My other half (of 18 years with Werner) says this is all 100% accurate.

 

Tar28 (etal)... Self-Insured: Just like your 4-wheeler, trucks are required by law to have insurance, but they don't "pay" an insurance company for it, it would be a fortune out of their pockets into an insurance company's pocket... never to be seen again.

Instead, they "self-insure", which basically means they buy a low-cost "bond" for a minimum face value of say 5 million dollars (for example). The "bond" is really like an interest baring investment certificate that is chopped up into "shares" and sold to investors. The investor purchases actually fund the 5 million dollars, if ever needed, otherwise it's placed into other investments to accrue [make] interest. The bond investors are paid interest from these other investments for buying in.

The trucking company pays a much smaller fee for the bond, which basically covers the administrative costs of setting up and managing the bond fund. The trucking company also has a very high deductable in the bond, usually 50% minimum, quite often 100%. Just like us, the higher the deductable, the lower the cost.

Now you say "INSANE!!!", a $5m bond, with a $5m deductable. No not really. Basically is just means that the trucking company pays all their claims out of their own pockets... up to the $5m deductable... then the bond kicks in to pay up to $5m (or max of face value) for anything over the $5m deductable. Thus the term "self insured"... the company pays the first $5m themselves, with an extra $5m of "backup" money if any claim exceeds $5m --- the $5m/$5m is on "per claim" basis.

The truth... "self insurance" is really a legal loop-hole that satisfies the legal requirement of insurance, gets the trucking companies off cheap, and spreads any liability over thousands or hundreds of thousand of investors. The investors earn a healthy interest rate on their money, and the liability is ususally extreemly low because the trucking company pays any claims out of their own pockets.

Who are these investors??? Mostly two big companies fund 98% of these bonds, "Anderson & Anderson Investment Corporation of America", and the larger percentage is funded by "Lloyd's of London", London England. They are brokered locally in the U.S. by "The St. Paul Companies", St. Paul, Minnesota.

D.C.

P.S.- Next weeks topic will be "Pharmaco-Kenitics of Nuclear Medicine in the Trucking Industry". (just kidding of course.... unless you really want to hear it)

P.P.S.- just kidding a little more...

 

If this is so, which seems to be a good deal overall, then how come it is supposed that it's the insurance companies making the rules for trucking? I mean, if the trucking companies are paying for the damages on their own, why would the insurance companies even have any say in things?
I could see it if they were the ones paying out for every fenderbender, but a $5m deductible? I doubt they ever pay anything, unless a truck hits a bank.

 

Now, that's a real good question... It'll be interesting to see what's said on that issue.

 

Can i get a little clarification on this? Tell me if i understand this correctly. U-Turns are not allowed in any place with traffic unless cops are present for traffic control. I don't know how many times when I was driving for Gordon when we got bad directions and had to either go around the block. Or find a huge parking lot in some industrial area and do a U-Turn there. Are those types of turns allowed? I know this may seem like a stupid question but I'm really trying to understand this policy.

 

Thank You. I'll be starting my orientation in phoenix on Monday with Werner so I'm trying to be as far ahead of the game as passable. Thanks again!

David

 

Hey JeepKid can you let me knw how it goes im considering Werner Refrigerated. Thanks and be safe driver.

 

Will do!

 

BadInfluence, I really have to thank you for this thread. It haas been such a breath of fresh air and really informative and positive. I have read alot of threads on this forum bashing different companies and I'm sure some of the complaints are legitimate. But I'm sure many more are problems brought on by their own negative attitudes and lack of work ethics. I've seen that same thing in my previous career as an auto mechanic.

I will be starting school in July and have been looking towards the future and what company I may want to start with (assuming they will give me a chance). Werner was one of the companies I was interested in, but was concerned about the negative stories I had read. Your posts have given us all something to think about, whether it be new drivers looking for a job or experienced drivers unhappy with current situations.

Thank you!