Is a Deer Guard worth it?

I dunno. Maybe they feel if they put a herd bumper on, the clowns behind the wheel will find a way to do more damage to someone's property when they inevitably hit something. Just a thought.
Think of it this way. If Joe Flippy Flops takes his new Swift - issued Cascadia out and hits a fire hydrant, the truck gets damaged. Fire hydrant stands there unharmed. Swift fixes the truck and everyone is happy.
Now picture Joe Flippy Flops with a herd bumper on said truck. You think that fire hydrant has a chance? Now Swifty is on the hook for not only any truck repairs, but a new fire hydrant, and the labor to install it.

Again, I have no idea whether it's cost effective for fleets to use them. But a single truck operation, I'd think it's well worth the money

 

The more trucks a fleet has the less return they will see from a grille guard.

 

May be dependent on truck types in a fleet. I am guessing, an aluminum hood on a 389 is more expensive than a plastic one?

 

I used to get a lot of calls on dispatch night shift from drivers who thought they missed 'that deer' until they saw the blood, guts and gore from the tank wagon ladder back along the hose tube and fender.

Two deer seasons ago I had one jump in front of my pickup hit left of center and rolled down the driver side before running away.

$2600.00 under my comprehensive.

My agent said if you swerve or somehow strike something else it becomes a collision instead of comprehensive.

 

We used the Herd Guard brand.... Love them and have saved our trucks multiple multiple times .. just mine alone prevented any damage from 5 deer strikes and an uninsured driver who was doing 50+ plus onto I-15 NB downtown Salt Lake during heavy snow storm and inch+ snow ice..... He lost control hit my drives then bounced of side freeway wall came back around and hit front right corner of my W900.... The herd Guard made a mess of his SUV.... No damage to truck or guard. No claims on our insurance on any of these strikes and no damage to guard either.

 

no you did not
3 deer and one bear hit you
I've never hit anything. One time a receivers dock hit me and took off a swing door. Came out of nowhere.

 

In 28 years of MOSTLY night driving I hit 3 deer, and ran over maybe 6 smaller animals (possums, groundhog, skunk). Of those 3 animals I hit one caused no damage, one left some hair on the grill and blood on the driveline, and one hit my deer guard and left blood on the grill. It's luck of the draw. Don't swerve. You don't want a rollover or dead driver trying to avoid $1500 worth of damage to fiberglass. You also don't have to look at that animal during and after the impact. What good is it going to do to have that gruesome image stuck in your mind for the rest of your life? Steady braking, straight ahead or in your lane. Your dashcam will tell the story. Let it. Dashcams don't get PTSD.

 

Why doesn't every home have a burglar alarm? If you think you won't have the problem, you don't prepare for it. If you think the problem is possible you prepare for it.

 

Wow! That's more than one deer per year.

I have been trucking for ten years, and I have never hit a deer. No, not once.

I would definitely not swerve to avoid hitting a deer either. I don't see how you hit so many deer. I don't want to hit a deer, but I could not hit two dozen deer over 20 years IF I TRIED TO!