The Limos.com Forum Has Moved!!!

we just found out 1 of our drivers was driving 105miles an hour to get one of our customers to the airport on time. this happen two seperate times at about 5:30am in the morning. the customer was in our office telling us he was greatful to make the flights both times and than told us about how fast the driver was going.
we dont know what to do i mean the customer was in a hurry and asked him to speed on the one hand but on the other hand it doesnt seem right

Fire both of them: the customer, and the driver. Seriously.

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Vehicle_Maintenance_Report.doc (76 Kb, 41 downloads)

Good for you Nicole! Maybe, just maybe, you kids will never speed at 105 mph out of respect for the laws of the land. I know this topic has gotten off thread but not realy......

It is all a matter of exercising right from wrong. Recognizing right from wrong is the first step in adhering to right and wrong and whether it is Nicole's kids or your employees, the ground rules must be established and followed.

It takes good leaders to keep followers in line and once again, just because you own a limousine service does not make you a good leader. Sometimes you have to hire one to get the job done.

Principles? Morals? Decency? Who knows if those words are even in our dictionary anymore? Not many live by "trying to do the right thing" anymore. It is everyone for him/herself. I still wash my kids' mouth out with soap when they back-talk, say bad words, etc. It's all about having respect for themselves and others, if we don't teach them this, who will? (I do remember my principal getting out his "board of education" once, that was all it took, plus my father reinforcing it when I got home.)

quote:

Originally posted by Limo Scene:
Wade, that is because..........at some point we decided that principals could no longer use wooden paddles with holes cut out of the board. It was called, "the board of education" and it served a great purpose. I had the misfortune of experiencing it only twice in my life. That was all I needed!

Wade, that is because..........at some point we decided that principals could no longer use wooden paddles with holes cut out of the board. It was called, "the board of education" and it served a great purpose. I had the misfortune of experiencing it only twice in my life. That was all I needed!

quote:

Originally posted by Limo Scene:
As I mentioned below, our speed thresholds are set at 75 mph for management notification. The highest posted speed limit in California is 70 mph. So, you could assume I feel that 5 mph over the highest limit is acceptable. That would transcend down. If the speed limit is 25, 30 would be tolerable.

As far as having the GPS on the car, of course it is legal.....it is MY car and I have a right to know where MY car is at anytime and I have an equal right to know what you are doing with MY car.

I think HOW understood exactly what I was saying..... there is no "talking to" or "discipline" for driving 105 mph. You are simply dismissed. Every single person in my company knows that because it is the "climate" we create. It is NEVER, EVER acceptable and no matter who you are, how long you have been with the company etc. will not save you. You just don't do it.

Once of my largest clients is a company called Aera Energy. They are a division of Shell Oil. They have a corporate policy that is this easy in a company car/truck: Engine ON = Cell Phone OFF. Our chauffeurs know that they are forbidden to use their cell phone while driving an Aera executive. If they do it and the pax reports it, Aera could terminate my contract to provide daily service. Any chauffeur assigned to Aera Energy knows this is the policy. Aera employees know they could lose their cush oil industry job over a cell phone call. You think they are going to risk their job over a cell phone call?

Rules are rules and if you strictly enforce the rules they will be followed. I believe this type of training in our lives starts at the age of about 5. You know, say a bad word, get your mouth washed out with soap? Oh, I forgot, parents don't do that anymore!

Luff don't you know that nobody is responsible for their own actions anymore?

As I mentioned below, our speed thresholds are set at 75 mph for management notification. The highest posted speed limit in California is 70 mph. So, you could assume I feel that 5 mph over the highest limit is acceptable. That would transcend down. If the speed limit is 25, 30 would be tolerable.

As far as having the GPS on the car, of course it is legal.....it is MY car and I have a right to know where MY car is at anytime and I have an equal right to know what you are doing with MY car.

I think HOW understood exactly what I was saying..... there is no "talking to" or "discipline" for driving 105 mph. You are simply dismissed. Every single person in my company knows that because it is the "climate" we create. It is NEVER, EVER acceptable and no matter who you are, how long you have been with the company etc. will not save you. You just don't do it.

Once of my largest clients is a company called Aera Energy. They are a division of Shell Oil. They have a corporate policy that is this easy in a company car/truck: Engine ON = Cell Phone OFF. Our chauffeurs know that they are forbidden to use their cell phone while driving an Aera executive. If they do it and the pax reports it, Aera could terminate my contract to provide daily service. Any chauffeur assigned to Aera Energy knows this is the policy. Aera employees know they could lose their cush oil industry job over a cell phone call. You think they are going to risk their job over a cell phone call?

Rules are rules and if you strictly enforce the rules they will be followed. I believe this type of training in our lives starts at the age of about 5. You know, say a bad word, get your mouth washed out with soap? Oh, I forgot, parents don't do that anymore!

quote:

Originally posted by Mr.Frugality:
Hey Mark, in last reply you wrote, you mentioned "the owner talked to the driver". So if your not the owner, are you a driver?

no i work mainly in the office. hope you not in hinsdale

Hey Mark, in last reply you wrote, you mentioned "the owner talked to the driver". So if your not the owner, are you a driver?

quote:

Originally posted by HeavenOnWheels:
Here's my opinion. Let's say this driver is not fired or disciplined. The problem will continue, and more frequent as well. One bad driver can and will cause other drivers to think it is "ok" to speed and do whatever it takes to get the clients on time to their destination.

Worst of all, if this is NOT dealt with appropriately, and, say the driver DOES get in the inevitable accident and someone is injured, the police & attorneys WILL find out that this is a habitual problem with this particular driver or other drivers as well and who is to blame? Definitely not only the driver! The owner is just as much to blame as the driver himself for knowingly allowing the driver to continue to work and provide transportation services negligently.

I don't see any other solution other than to let the driver go. 105mph is completely unacceptable and needs to be dealt with immediately if not done so already.

we all now that drivers speed sometime. how much over the limit is it ok for them to drive before you think they should get disciplined?

as far as gps, etc is it ok to have it on the car concealed so the driver dont know about it or it it ilegal to do that?

the owner talked to the driver today which was doing 105 and told him to not do it again and told him business isnt so good now but he real wants to keep him on the list.this was a hint

the problem is the drivers who speeds big time isnt the ones getting in wrecks so they dont think its dangerous.

Here's my opinion. Let's say this driver is not fired or disciplined. The problem will continue, and more frequent as well. One bad driver can and will cause other drivers to think it is "ok" to speed and do whatever it takes to get the clients on time to their destination.

Worst of all, if this is NOT dealt with appropriately, and, say the driver DOES get in the inevitable accident and someone is injured, the police & attorneys WILL find out that this is a habitual problem with this particular driver or other drivers as well and who is to blame? Definitely not only the driver! The owner is just as much to blame as the driver himself for knowingly allowing the driver to continue to work and provide transportation services negligently.

I don't see any other solution other than to let the driver go. 105mph is completely unacceptable and needs to be dealt with immediately if not done so already.

Reply to Limo Scene, everyone reading:
In my earlier reply to this post, I mentioned the word(s): MAYBE A "fine" which read as a monetary definition. "Fine" was a word which ONLY intent was for illustration and path/guide for reader(s). PLEASE listen to limo scene, do NOT fine for money. I can see it now, MR. FRUGAL told me on limoscom that he does this.
No, I don't fine for money, if I find, the speeder who's costing me $$ for maintance (speed kills the stretch limo's drivetrain/brake's/suspension/tire's, oh yeah and most importantly speed kill's people--- I really don't think you want to see gory pics I have of people being splattered/ejected/decapitated/vids of what limo's look like after hitting wall's...you get the picture!!...haha, had to say it... Hint, this is a good idea to put on a d.v.d. (plus it's cheap!!) when hiring a new driver (or when repremending the driver for being bad) and ASKING (preferably in front of a witness, co-worker, etc...)if they wouldn't mind watching a driver safety video, by asking you are not requiring new driver's to watch video, but please if you do this, mention before showing, or have a title on beginiing, stating the content on video. If they watch, odds are they will be reminded of the images at least once while driving, the way I see it, every bit count's!!!

That's the part I can't figure out Mark. Time is money. What is the hurry? The longer the run takes the more money the chauffeur and the company make. It just makes no sense to speed.

I am sure that you are right about some not knowing what goes on behind their back but I think that falls mostly for mom and pop little limo companies. I think most companies that invest in technology do so with an intent to benefit by it.

We use GPS as well as Drive-Cam. To equip 25 vehicles with this type equipment is very expensive. We download and analyze every Drive-Cam activation. We use FastTrak software and every time a car changes status it is updated. Our clients can log on and check the status of their vehicle as well and without updating constantly, the information would be wrong.

A top notch company employs dispatchers who are experts in their field. For instance, this morning, we sent a car for a drop off at an amusement park 1.5 hours away. It then continued south another 45 minutes to do a pickup with a drop off in another city other than our home base. By monitoring traffic flows and freeway cameras on various websites, we were able to reroute the driver when a major fire shut his intended path. Our dispatchers are constantly looked "ahead" of the chauffeur's path to avoid delays.

By watching each car, the dispatcher can maximize usage of each vehicle as well as providing the best routes based on mileage and traffic conditions in real time.

Because our chauffeurs know the dispatcher is "watching them" on GPS they don't speed. It is all in the culture and expectations that are created in an organization as to how well people perform. If you accept mediocre, people will only give mediocre. If you demand perfection and adherence to rules and policies and swiftly eliminate those that can't follow, those that stay will always follow as well as teach the new people what is right and wrong.

quote:

Originally posted by Limo Scene:
We have an absolute duty to protect our clients as well as other users of the roadway. When I first read this post, my first thought was the same as most - FIRE HIM!

There are some suggestions offered here that I would not implement as you could find yourself in hot water with effects running deeper than an accident.

Of course your policy manual should contain statements about the safe operation of vehicles. This can only apply to your employees. If you use I/C's, you cannot ask them to do anything. Hence the term INDEPENDENT". As an I/C, you run your own business and as I learned the hard way many years ago, if the IRS says you have "direction and control over one's actions and performance", you my friend have an employee, not an I/C. That's a whole other subject.

We utilize a GPS tracking system that shows us in real time where each vehicle is, when it was turned on and off and how fast it is traveling. If it exceeds 75 mph, a text message is sent to myself, our operations manager and our fleet manager. Any activation of this speed threshold is dealt with within 24 hours.

We also refuse to provide pickup times and make the client state it for the same reason Frugality pointed out. We tell the client that as well. If WE decide the time and something goes wrong, it would allow you to blame us. We will provide the estimated travel time to a location but will not recommend pickup times based on flight times as some people simply need more time than others.

If you do implement a speeding policy, it would be against the law to "fine" anyone in dollars as there is no one in this industry that is a government agency and any such "fines" would be viewed as a theft of your employees money. We are not a court system and have no authority to issue monetary fines.

The bottom line here is, we have an obligation to be safe, to promote safety and to eliminate those that jeopardize our clients, our vehicles, our company name and innocent victims and if it causes a stress while you replace a terminated chauffeur, so be it. I guarantee you when you fire one for speeding, the rest of your crew will "wake up" and comply with your speeding policies as it shows how important safety is to your company. To ignore it and do nothing shows how unimportant it is and shows that you will in fact tolerate it.

when i set here in the office and the owners not here i here drivers say all kind of things. one thing they say is time is money. time is money is the favorate saying. all the drivers are speeding. when im up at the airport talking to drivers an a driver tells me he has to be at xyz by 8:45 and its 8:15 and it takes 30 minutes to get there he's gonna speed llol.
GPS tracking is only good if you use it an i know half the folks thats got it dont use it or ignore it, they way some of these guys drive its free rain
an another tthing you cant tell who the speeders are just by looking at them. sometime the ones that look proper are the worse ones and sometimes the not so proper ones are by the book. you would be surprised at what goes on behind youre back

We have an absolute duty to protect our clients as well as other users of the roadway. When I first read this post, my first thought was the same as most - FIRE HIM!

There are some suggestions offered here that I would not implement as you could find yourself in hot water with effects running deeper than an accident.

Of course your policy manual should contain statements about the safe operation of vehicles. This can only apply to your employees. If you use I/C's, you cannot ask them to do anything. Hence the term INDEPENDENT". As an I/C, you run your own business and as I learned the hard way many years ago, if the IRS says you have "direction and control over one's actions and performance", you my friend have an employee, not an I/C. That's a whole other subject.

We utilize a GPS tracking system that shows us in real time where each vehicle is, when it was turned on and off and how fast it is traveling. If it exceeds 75 mph, a text message is sent to myself, our operations manager and our fleet manager. Any activation of this speed threshold is dealt with within 24 hours.

We also refuse to provide pickup times and make the client state it for the same reason Frugality pointed out. We tell the client that as well. If WE decide the time and something goes wrong, it would allow you to blame us. We will provide the estimated travel time to a location but will not recommend pickup times based on flight times as some people simply need more time than others.

If you do implement a speeding policy, it would be against the law to "fine" anyone in dollars as there is no one in this industry that is a government agency and any such "fines" would be viewed as a theft of your employees money. We are not a court system and have no authority to issue monetary fines.

The bottom line here is, we have an obligation to be safe, to promote safety and to eliminate those that jeopardize our clients, our vehicles, our company name and innocent victims and if it causes a stress while you replace a terminated chauffeur, so be it. I guarantee you when you fire one for speeding, the rest of your crew will "wake up" and comply with your speeding policies as it shows how important safety is to your company. To ignore it and do nothing shows how unimportant it is and shows that you will in fact tolerate it.

If I thought for half a second that one of my drivers was not the safest driver on the road, he'd be looking for a new job.

Can you imagine the lawsuits if he had an accident at that speed?

quote:

Originally posted by Limo Insurance King:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Salicete:
People will so often deny themselves huge payoffs and success down the road for a relatively small reward today. I wish your owner luck with this guy.[QUOTE]

Sal, one of the best sayings I have ever heard is "I'd rather make a nickle twice than a dime once."

Phil, I've never had a 10, but I've had two 5's.

Mark, I undersatand the "real world" problem that you're facing. I've had(nobody put a gun to my head) to speed for clients many times, but 105mph is way out of line. I think you(or the owner) need to have a talk with the driver and document it in writing with his signature. After that, post your speeding policies(zero tolerance) and make all your drivers initial it.

My Excursion limo is governed to go no more than 96mph, but if you put it in reverse down a big hill it'll get up to 110mph.

What I would do is make a general company policy handbook for all employee/IC's if one is not already made. I would have the new/current driver's read/sign stating driver has read and understand's the handbook in front of a manager as a witness, have manager sign as witness when driver sign's. In handbook I would include rules for speeding, maybe a fine to be paid for first, higher fine for second offense, termination on third offense. How can one prove a driver was speeding? Easy, just install a "black box" tracking device. I recently seen jcwhitney.com advertising these boxes for less than $300 (cheap price compared to a lawsuit). The software is easy to use and it saves all point's that vehicle moved including speed. There's a feature to notify when a vehicle being tracked is going over a speed that the user chooses. The screen shot's can be saved to a computer for proof if driver disagree's or for any lawsuit. Plus doing this may save a company from liability showing that the company will not tolerate and has a policy against speeding driver's. It can also help against liability if the driver was accused of speeding when the fact's show the driver was not, this is important in a lawsuit involving an accident.
Now, with regard's to the customer's, we have a policy for phone operator's NOT to give/make or suggest a time for pick-up. When a customer request's a phone operator to suggest a time, they are required to tell customer they are not allowed to suggest a time, but availability can be checked for time/date requested. We have never had a customer not make a reservation because of this, if anything, we have had customer's call back with a time if they were unsure upon first call. Then after the first time, the next time customer know's to have time ready. This maintain's a higher efficency rate for phone's (calls take less time to complete a reservation when customer has time ready) and a possible reduction in payroll/phone operator's. Also, for liability, a customer cannot hold a company liable when they are running late since they choose the time, not us.

Example (and yes this happened to me when I first started which made me start a policy handbook): Airport pick-up, 7 people, taking a domestic flight which require's passenger's to be ontime for a connecting flight. When client called us, they asked operator for time suggestion, at the time we had a list containing driving time estimate's to/from all town's we serve. Operator gives client a time, customer agree's to time. On day of pick-up, driver/limo arrived ontime, arrived at airport, customer's exited vehicle frantically because upon arriving, realized the time and how close it was to the time the plane was leaving. I get an urgent call later that day from client explaining that upon arriving to the airport, they were going to be late, so THEY DECIDED to run down the long walkway in terminal after a lengthly security check-in. One of the people in group of 7 was an elderly man. Yeah, if your your smart you know what's next, if not, read on. The elderly man while running started having difficulty breathing. Almost had a heart attack, had plane wait until paramedic's at airport arrived to make sure he didn't need medical attention. Blames us. Tried to sue us, but there wasn't sufficent evidence to hold us liable. We ended up suing the client in small claim's court for the amount he chargedback on creditcard, attorney/court fee's and won. In the end, we realized we needed a policy addressing phone operator's, including a script, faq sheet, etc...
Hope this help's!!

quote:

Sal, one of the best sayings I have ever heard is "I'd rather make a nickle twice than a dime once."

It would depend on the tax consequences.