Dac observation

[truckn4u2day]

I retired from Teamsters 34 years, all of it in Foodservice. Foodservice doesnt use DAC. Just your dmv report. After I retired I still wanted to drive , I got a tanker job with Tri mac. I hit a low hanging pole at night in the Trimac yard. Since then I just signed up with Schneider and this incident came up on my Dac. I didnt even know it would show. I hit a stationary object, guilty as charged, no excuses.

Here is my problem, if a secretary made a few mistakes in the office, and then quits goes to another job, she doesnt have a life history of every mistake big or small to her next employer. It just seems very unfair to keep such a very long history on a person. The part that gets me is that the employee (driver) should be notified by the employer if they put something on it, I didnt find out anything until I applied with Sni, and I looked like a fool for not saying anything about it. My dmv record is 0 accidents and 0 tickets.

In my opinion a dmv record should be enough info for any employer. Truck drivers seem to really be at a big disadvantage in terms of fairness, your thoughts ?

[chris1]

Question is when you applied did you tell them about the accident? I'm sure that was asked.
As far as food service not using DAC that is not true. If they only operate intrastate they don't fall under federal regulations only state. I deal with food service and have had drivers go back and forth and they did use DAC.

[zipy46]

The DAC is like a shadow that haunts drivers.

Just be hyper careful and not make a mistake that will be recorded on the DAC.

Most companies view it in like a time window,

If you have had 2 mishaps in 3 years...it much different that 2 mishaps in 3 months.

Best to be at no more than 1 preventable in 3 yrs if u can pull it off.

[Windwalker]

We need a similar service with reference to the companies. A place for drivers to go and see how the company rates. (No, an opinion poll on CAD won't do it) Something that is available to ALL drivers, not just he ones that have internet access. A "mirror image" of DAC.

[truckn4u2day]

Chris 1

I didnt tell Schneider about the incident because I didnt think it was a big deal, and also didnt think it would be recorded. Im still getting the job at Schneider, but it did look like I was trying to hide it. I told my side of the story , and they obviously thought I was telling the truth, but that was my whole point, is that drivers should be informed if a company puts something on their dac report. This way you wont be caught off guard. This dac report is a real awakning for me, opens up a whole world lol,

[SickRick]

Chris 1

I didnt tell Schneider about the incident because I didnt think it was a big deal, and also didnt think it would be recorded. Im still getting the job at Schneider, but it did look like I was trying to hide it. I told my side of the story , and they obviously thought I was telling the truth, but that was my whole point, is that drivers should be informed if a company puts something on their dac report. This way you wont be caught off guard. This dac report is a real awakning for me, opens up a whole world lol,

DAC reports fall under the same type of Federal Regs as credit reports. You are permitted to get a FREE COPY of your DAC directly from HireRight (DACS new name) and can PAY FOR ONE (similarly, like credit reports) as often as you want. Any DISPUTED information on a DAC has to be dealt with similar to disputed info on a credit report. There are also organizations (google is your friend) that you can HIRE to clean up your DAC. Similarly, if a disputed report WAS NOT RESOLVED to your satisfaction, DAC must include YOUR STATEMENT in the report also.

Most employers do not file a DAC report, until AFTER you have left their employment - another reason to job hunt WHILE YOU STILL HAVE A JOB - as you will probably be onboard with the new employer, before the DAC report from your current employer hits the computer. It would behoove EVERYONE to get their "free DAC" as often as possible, as the longer you wait to dispute a report, the more likely you will be UNSUCCESSFUL at doing so...

Rick

[truckn4u2day]

great info rick, I never thought about it, but the part where you said go out and look for a job while you have one is great advice, especially if you had a mishap with present employer. thanks

[SickRick]

great info rick, I never thought about it, but the part where you said go out and look for a job while you have one is great advice, especially if you had a mishap with present employer. thanks

This wasn't meant to infer that one should LIE about a verifiable "mishap" - just that some companies have a rep for slamming ex-employee's on their DAC report. Folks need to be aware of what's on them, so they can be corrected (if inaccurate) sooner, than later...

Rick

[Old Salt_19]

Chris1, quite possibly the DAC reporting that you're speaking of is a regional thing, but I'm not 100% sure. I recently started a new job and when my employer checked my DAC, only my OTR time with Roehl appeared.

I was with North Star / US Foodservice, and we (the drivers) ran MN, WI, MI, ND, SD, IA, and NE, but nothing about my foodservice time appeared, and this was only a couple of weeks ago.

[chris1]

Many times DAC is confused with any means used to convey past employment history. Phone calls, faxed requests,ect. If you drive interstate, of the past 10 years driving history, the past three years must be verified. Again many drivers confuse any means of job history report as "DAC Report"

[Twilight Flyer]

I was with North Star / US Foodservice, and we (the drivers) ran MN, WI, MI, ND, SD, IA, and NE, but nothing about my foodservice time appeared, and this was only a couple of weeks ago.

US Food Service no longer subscribes to DAC. They now use a system called The Work Number For Everyone, which ensures they make a little money off drivers long gone, providing a company is desperate enough to drop the cash to order a Work Number report on a potential driver. A lot of companies deep six applications from drivers working for Work Number companies because it’s not worth the headache, the time, and the money to attempt to get a report. And if you think DAC is difficult to navigate around, just wait until you have to deal with the people at Work Number…that is, if you can even get ahold of anyone there. But that’s another discussion altogether.

It’s been said forty trillion times on this board and I am going to say it again because this topic comes up so many times. Bear in mind, I have no vested interest in DAC. I simply know the value of it and other companies that do the same thing they do.

So here is your DAC lesson for today, entitled "Why DAC Is A Good Thing"

DAC is nothing more than a repository of information that companies share in order to speed up and streamline the hiring process for both the company and the driver. It helps both the companies and the drivers and most of the time, it works the way it’s supposed to work. That’s not to say there are not hiccups and that’s not to say there are not a couple companies out there that use DAC for retaliatory purposes. It happens, unfortunately, and hurts both the driver and other companies. But by and large, it works the way it’s supposed to work and until someone comes up with a better method (which would be great) or it’s declared unconstitutional (which would be very bad for the driver), it will continue to be used.

I’ll go into that shortly.

There are also organizations (google is your friend) that you can HIRE to clean up your DAC. Similarly, if a disputed report WAS NOT RESOLVED to your satisfaction, DAC must include YOUR STATEMENT in the report also.

These “organizations” are as bad as trucking schools and lease purchase programs. “For $149, we can clean up your DAC!” Do you know what they do? They take your statement and submit it to DAC as a rebuttal, something you can do yourself in 5 minutes and for free, and they spend your money on booze and cheap hookers.

DAC is actually pretty easy to work with and the guidelines are as straight-forward as can be.

First, the driver works for company and ends their employment, either by quitting (good) or by being terminated (not good).

Then, the Company submits work record consisting of dates of employment, type of work (OTR, local, etc.), reason for leaving (term, quit, lay off, retired, etc) incident /accident information, and work record. Work Record can be any of the following PRESET entries:

Outstanding Work Record
Superior Work Record
Satisfactory Work Record
No Show
Quit Under Dispatch
Unauthorized Equipment Use
Unauthorized Passenger
Unauthorized Safety Record
Unauthorized Use of Company Funds
Falsified Employment Application
Equipment / Cargo Loss
Excessive Complaints
Late Pick Up / Delivery
Company Policy Violation

That’s right, they are PRESET entries and you’ll notice that failing a drug test is not one of them. Companies do not have the ability to write up anything regarding a driver…they simply choose which of those entries best describes the driver and MOST DAC entries are coded “Satisfactory Work Record”.

Now, what can you do if there is a “bad” entry on your DAC? Follow these guidelines in THIS order:

1. In the event something bad is put on your DAC and you don’t agree with it, the process is simple. Many times, you can simply call the company and speak with the safety director regarding it. If it’s an erroneous entry (such as a ticked off dispatcher playing nasty), the company will usually put forth the change themselves and it changes in DAC’s database within 24 to 48 hours. I have seen dispatchers and other personnel with other companies given their walking papers for using DAC in this way. Sometimes, it’s a completely honest mistake – the entry person keying in the wrong code. Again, many times a call to the company gets things fixed.

2. If you get nowhere with that, you can contact DAC directly and challenge the entry. DAC then contacts the company with the challenge and the company has 30 days to reply. Most of the time, the company will simply change the DAC and be done with it, whether the driver is right or not. Sometimes, they will stand firm.

3. If the company stands firm and will not change it, usually there is a reason for it. But you can then put your rebuttal into DAC. You have a limited number of words, so be brief. Your rebuttal gives your side of the story and will usually be enough for a potential company to get in touch with you and get the specifics.

You know, over the years I’ve been in this industry, DAC gets a pretty bad rap and I can certainly understand the reasoning for it, but the reasoning is based on emotion and a complete lack of logic. By and large, DAC is used right and speeds things up for the driver and company. However, many of the times when someone is whining about a bad DAC report, it’s because the DAC entry is right on the mark. I would need a Cray computer to calculate all the times I talked to a driver that said there was a ‘lie’ on their DAC report, only to get their explanation and find out that not only was the DAC right, but probably should have had a few more entries as well. Again, I don’t discount the times when a good driver gets shafted, because it does happen. I have seen it. But it doesn’t happen anywhere near as often as people think. It’s actually a rarity.

Now, all that said, I’ll give you something else to consider. DOT regulations as of a couple years ago, requires companies to release all that same above information to a driver’s potential new employer, with the exception of the work record piece, although most companies still do that. This information is to be furnished via fax or online and in the case of drug and alcohol information, must be accompanied by a signed release from the driver. Obviously, most of that – with the exception of the D&A piece – can be done through DAC, which is where DAC comes in handy. What you might not know is that the DOT also gives companies 30 days to complete any faxed verification and without DAC or other employment reporting companies, most companies will take that 30 days or more, since DOT does not enforce penalties on companies not adhering to it.

And for you drivers that swear up and down you will never work for a DAC company, you risk putting yourself into a far more dire predicament as those companies still have to be verified by a potential employer, which then has to be done by fax (remember that 30 days) and gives your former company the ability to say anything they want and many times, they can and will say a lot.

So, in the end, despite the few instances of abuse, DAC is your friend. If DAC is outlawed, so to will be the Work Number, DriverFacts.com, and other pay employment history sites. Without these services, you will be waiting 30 days or more between jobs and none of us can afford to do that. Why? Because technically a company cannot hire you until your last 3 years of history is verified, including D&A tests. DAC allows a company to bring a driver with good work records right on board, contingent on the required fax coming back, which comes back just fine 99.9999% of the time.

I could go into more detail, but I won’t. What I have above is sufficient for why DAC works for the most part. However, I’ll take a quick moment to touch on the accident/incident part of the DAC, because this causes confusion, too.

Most companies will indicate accidents and incidents on the DAC. These hits cover BOTH preventables and non-preventables. Some companies will simply list the number that occurred and others will provide more information such as date, location, preventable/non, DOT recordable/non, and a short PRESET entry for what it was (backing, lane change, head on, turning, hit while parked, struck stationary object). IN the latter case, all a potential company then has to do is get the specifics from the driver.

Incidents, no matter how minor, will be reported to DAC, the same as accidents. Incidents, unless you have a bunch of them, are generally not going to be an issue. Incidents are incidents because they do not have accident reports associated with them. Accidents are accidents because they have an accident report filled out by an LEO associated with them. There is a difference. The incident will only require your verbage on what happened. An accident will require the actual accident report, so always get a copy of an accident report when filled out, so you are prepared when your potentially new employer asks about it.

Now, remember this, because this is the important part. If you are applying for a job, make sure you list any incident or accident. Don’t assume that because it was minor, it won’t show up. Minor incidents do show up and most companies, DAC or not, will supply that information.

Whew! OK, I’m done. Who do I send my consulting services bill to?

[golfhobo]

Send it to DAC/Usis. Their address is available somewhere on this site.

[chris1]

Then, the Company submits work record consisting of dates of employment, type of work (OTR, local, etc.), reason for leaving (term, quit, lay off, retired, etc) incident /accident information, and work record. Work Record can be any of the following PRESET entries:

Outstanding Work Record
Superior Work Record
Satisfactory Work Record
No Show
Quit Under Dispatch
Unauthorized Equipment Use
Unauthorized Passenger
Unauthorized Safety Record
Unauthorized Use of Company Funds
Falsified Employment Application
Equipment / Cargo Loss
Excessive Complaints
Late Pick Up / Delivery
Company Policy Violation

That’s right, they are PRESET entries and you’ll notice that failing a drug test is not one of them.

If there was a failed D/A test it will show up. The report sequence is:
Employment record

period of service
eligible for rehire
reason for leaving
status
driver's experience
equipment operated
loads hauled
work record

Accident/incident record

Drug/alcohol record

It will only indicate that there was a positive test result. With a signed release the company must supply the MRO report and/if there was a substance abuse program completed and the report from such program.

Great explanation of DAC. It gets old reading about how DAC has screwed someone over.

[Twilight Flyer]

If there was a failed D/A test it will show up.

Actually, I don’t believe it can or does, anymore. I know it at least used to be an ordering option, but with the new regs, one of the tops deals was that D&A test results can ONLY be released if the requesting company has a signed release from the driver, indicating that specific company can have those results. During a routine DOT audit of our paperwork a couple years ago, that was one of the big things they hit on and they helped us design a DOT acceptable form for just those purposes. The form even has entry lines for the specific companies and if a company is not entered on that form and initialized by the driver, it is technically illegal for that company to release the D&A testing information.

At least in a perfectly ordered world, that’s how it is supposed to be done and that was re-affirmed by the DOT representative we had on site during that time. Whether it always is or not, is a completely different question.

Here’s the REG link.

Part 391: Qualifications of drivers and longer combination vehicle (LCV) driver instructors - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

In particular, this paragraph excerpt:

(f) A prospective motor carrier employer must provide to the previous employer the driver’s written consent meeting the requirements of §40.321(b) for the release of the information in paragraph (e) of this section. If the driver refuses to provide this written consent, the prospective motor carrier employer must not permit the driver to operate a commercial motor vehicle for that motor carrier.

Paragraph (e) of this section deals with D&A testing and was one of the big changes during the last revamp of the regs, along with extending the time period to 3 years for the D&A testing from the original 2 years. You'll notice, too, that all those are simply YES or NO questions. So technically, DAC cannot legally indicate a positive drug test anymore because the driver has not signed a release for each company requesting it.

The regulation also goes into the release of accident information. There really is a lot of good information for drivers wondering what information their previous company can and will release to a prospective employer.

[chris1]

Your right,the test results cannot be released but the fact of a positive test can. A prospective employer doesn't have the right to know what drugs were used,only the fact that they were. I have a DAC that is 2 months old that show a positive test.(of course the driver said nothing about it before-hand. must have slipped his mind)

[Windwalker]

Your right,the test results cannot be released but the fact of a positive test can. A prospective employer doesn't have the right to know what drugs were used,only the fact that they were. I have a DAC that is 2 months old that show a positive test.(of course the driver said nothing about it before-hand. must have slipped his mind)

Never having used drugs of any kind, I do not have the experience. But I can't imagine not remembering a failed drug test. As tight as the hiring is right now in this industry, if I had one of them, I really don't think I would bother even filling out an app. How do you forget something like that? Selective memory???

[chris1]

You would be suprised how selective the driver's memory can be. Mainly if they think you won't find out.

[Twilight Flyer]

Your right,the test results cannot be released but the fact of a positive test can. A prospective employer doesn't have the right to know what drugs were used,only the fact that they were. I have a DAC that is 2 months old that show a positive test.(of course the driver said nothing about it before-hand. must have slipped his mind)

I’m not disputing that companies and even DAC gives out D&A information without a signed release, because we see it all the time from companies. I’m just saying that I don’t believe they legally can. The regs are pretty clear regarding it and the information we were given by the DOT delegation confirmed it. But it’s been a few years now since the regs were updated and adherence to them has not been much of a strong point. I think it’ll take a driver filing a suit in a federal court to open eyes to it.

You would be suprised how selective the driver's memory can be. Mainly if they think you won't find out.

Boy does that nail it.

[Gearjammin' Penguin]

I can't imagine not remembering a failed drug test. How do you forget something like that? Selective memory???

It's because drugs destroy your brain. Duh.

I mean, take long-term pot use for example...

...uh...

...dude, what were we talking about?

[chris1]

I’m not disputing that companies and even DAC gives out D&A information without a signed release, because we see it all the time from companies. I’m just saying that I don’t believe they legally can. The regs are pretty clear regarding it and the information we were given by the DOT delegation confirmed it. But it’s been a few years now since the regs were updated and adherence to them has not been much of a strong point. I think it’ll take a driver filing a suit in a federal court to open eyes to it.

This may clear up the people that are "approved" then at orientation dis-missed. I pull a quick transportation employment when first talking to someone,after they fill out the application i pull a full history.(At that time i would have a release.) I never pull the complete untill after i see what all they admit to and then see what they hide. (it really doesn't happen all that often,those just stick in your mind)



Boy does that nail it.

Have you EVER had a DUI ? No.
How come the MVR shows a DUI ? It's over (1)(3)(5) years old,you can't use that. I'll sue (you)(your insurance)(the state)(your first born)