Blair Schober, fleet, EH&S, and telecom manager for Red Hawk Fire & Security was named winner of the 2018 Fleet Safety award during the Fleet Safety Conference today.

Schober earned his award for his role in promoting safe driver training throughout his company, which resulted in a reduction in accidents, number of claims filed, and liability costs.

He has been in the industry for 15 years, with nine of those years at Red Hawk Fire & Security.

At Red Hawk Fire & Security Schober oversees a fleet of over 1,000 vehicles. There, he helped launch a two-pronged approach to driver safety with mandatory driver training and a robust telematics program as the two vital points.

Through this two-pronged approach, Schober has helped Red Hawk Fire & Security achieve a 68% year-over-year reduction in reported accidents and a 50% reduction in the number of claims filed and amounts paid in settlements in 2017; liability costs were also cut by more than $2 million.

In 2014, the company reported $204,354 losses per million miles; through the first eight months of this year, the company reported $20,000 in losses per million miles. Averaged out, the company has reduced its losses per million miles by 38% per year since 2014.

Driver training at Red Hawk Fire & Security requires the completion of six mandatory online safety modules focused on subjects such as fleet policy and driving habits to avoiding crashes. Drivers who score well are awarded incentives for their continued compliance and success.

Through Red Hawk’s telematics program, the company measures and identifies drivers exhibiting poor driving behaviors. Roughly 70% of the company’s vehicles are equipped with telematics devices that measure fast acceleration, harsh breaking, and both moderate and excessive speeding. Drivers identified that exhibit any of those behaviors are assigned driver training to correct the areas where they exhibited poor driving behavior.

The Fleet Safety Award, first presented in 2012, is co-sponsored by Bobit Business Media, publisher of Automotive Fleet, and the American Automotive Leasing Association. The award recognizes candidates who show leadership, innovation, and measureable results in enhancing the safety of their employees, those travelling with them, and everyone else who shares the road.