'Safer' Hours May Not Cut Insurance Rates

May 16, 2000 9:20 AM, EDT

Estimates by the Department of Transportation show the proposed hours-of-service rules would prevent 2,600 accidents, 2,996 injuries and 115 fatalities annually, but fewer accidents do not necessarily translate into lower insurance costs for trucking.

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“Insurance really works off of the trends, and it will take some years probably to see what is happening,” said David Golden, director of commercial lines at the National Association of Independent Insurers.

“The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration believes the rules they are proposing will have an effect on crashes and fatal crashes in particular, and we certainly hope that this is what ends up being the case,” he said from his office in a Chicago suburb on May 8.

“All that being said, there are a lot of factors that will enter into claim costs,” Golden added.

For the full story, see the May 15 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.