When Bad News Becomes Your Job

We've started this post more than a few times.  We'd get worked up about a trucking issue and then we'd write a paragraph or two, stare at it for a few minutes, then close the laptop.

Not because there wasn't anything to talk about.  There is too much.

Every idea seemed to lead back to the same place. Another lawsuit. Another insurance company tightening up. Oh, surprise, another rate increase! Throw in a dash more regulations.

Our clients are trying to figure out how they're supposed to keep going when every business expense has exploded.

Blah, blah, blah, it felt like all we had to say was, "Here's the next problem."

That’s not why we started Truck U.

The whole point of this blog was to make trucking insurance easier to understand. We wanted to explain why things happen, what underwriters are looking at, and help trucking companies make better business decisions before they become expensive insurance problems.

This year, insurance changed so fast; we still have whip lash. Underwriting has clamped down so tight, it’s been almost impossible to write new business. We are fighting for our livelihood on every renewal policy.  Just like good trucking companies we are working harder than ever to stay afloat.

While we tread water, we are watching insurance companies uncover things that shouldn’t have been happening in the first place. Hidden trucks and unlisted drivers. Garaging addresses that don't match reality. 100% fake operations, falsified IFTAs, chameleon carriers.  See? We can go on and on – doom and gloom for everyone!

Eventually it catches up with a motor carrier. Sometimes it's during new business underwriting when you’re looking for a better rate, maybe it’s after a claim. Most certainly at renewal this year.

The problem is… the cleanup isn’t just affecting the bad actors.

Every time insurance companies get burned, underwriting gets a little tighter. More and more questions are asked as we all learn how the different types of shady operations work. More documentation is needed. ELD onboarding is requested.

Welcome to our world.

By the time we got done work, we just could not sit down and write another article about why everything is getting harder.

One morning we were talking and wondered "When was the last time we had something good to say?"  The answer took a lot longer than we'd like to admit.

Good things are still happening, it’s just that bad news is louder, more sensational. 

Nobody makes a viral post because their renewal didn’t go up this year. Nobody rushes to LinkedIn to announce that their safety meeting actually made a difference. Most of the wins in trucking are pretty quiet.

Maybe that's why we stopped writing for a while. Maybe we were waiting for the industry to give us something positive to talk about, (it’s not MOTUS by the way) when we should have been paying more attention to the good things that were already there.

Don't worry. We're still going to cover the insurance changes, the court cases, the claims, and all the things that can cost you money if you aren't paying attention. That's still who we are.

We're just not going to let Truck U become a place where every article feels like another storm cloud because trucking is hard enough. Insurance doesn't have to be the thing that reminds you of it every single week.

So, we're back, with a lot to talk about. Some of it will be heavy because that's the reality of trucking insurance right now. But every now and then, we're going to make it a point to share something good.

 

 

 

Disclosure:

This post is for educational purposes only. It is not legal advice, insurance advice, or a substitute for calling your agent. We’re good, but we’re not psychic. Policies vary, laws change, and courtrooms get weird. Don’t make decisions based solely on something you read on the internet, unless it’s from us, in writing, with your name on it.

All opinions are our own and do not represent the views of any carrier, employer, or underwriting department that occasionally wishes we were quieter on LinkedIn.