Initial Follow-up Report Fleet Management Review: Motor Vehicle Crashes and Loss Mitigation (Report Number A-1213BPR-031)

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2 DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL REGULATION OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL Initial Follow-up Report Fleet Management Review: Motor Vehicle Crashes and Loss Mitigation (Report Number A-1213BPR-031) Section , Florida Statutes, and internal auditing standards require that we monitor and report to the agency head on the status of actions taken by management to correct deficiencies noted in internal audit reports. Accordingly, we undertook a review of the status of implementation of audit findings and recommendations made in Internal Audit Report A-1213BPR-31, Fleet Management Review: Motor Vehicle Crashes and Loss Mitigation (released October 3, 2013). AUDIT REPORT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS As currently designed, the Safety and Loss Prevention Program within the Division of Administration and Financial Management (Division of Administration) does not provide the framework needed to manage issues related to motor vehicle crashes and loss mitigation. The Program offers few driver safety or other initiatives to help reduce the likelihood of future incidents. The department does not have an effective crash reporting and review process. Consequently, the department cannot accurately determine the number of motor vehicle crashes that have occurred or assess the risk of future occurrences. The department cannot readily identify the underlying causes of motor vehicle crashes or the costs incurred as a result of these incidents. Without such information and analysis, the department is missing opportunities to develop effective loss mitigation strategies in this area. We also found that disciplinary action taken in response to at-fault motor vehicle crashes was inconsistent across divisions. We recommended the Division of Administration establish a fleet safety and loss mitigation component within its Safety and Loss Prevention Program. We recommended that at a minimum, the fleet safety component include: 1) procedures for reporting motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage involving department-owned vehicles to the department s Safety Coordinator; 2) establishment and maintenance of a central repository of detailed data and information on motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage; 3) evaluation and analysis of the data to help formulate loss mitigation initiatives for implementation by the fleet safety component; and 4) on-going driver training/driver safety programs. We recommended the Division of Administration coordinate with the Inspector General to revise Administrative Policy 1.2 Complaint Policy to remove the requirement that divisions report incidents involving motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage to the OIG. We also recommended the Division of Administration revise Administrative Policy 1.11 on State Motor Vehicle Usage to require that divisions report detailed data and information on all motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage in department-owned vehicles to the Safety Coordinator. We recommended the Division of Administration establish a Motor Vehicle Crash Review Board within the Safety and Loss Prevention Program. The Motor Vehicle Crash Review Board should be responsible for establishing a disciplinary action system related to motor vehicle crashes; reviewing all motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage involving department-owned vehicles; and making recommendations to management regarding disciplinary action to be taken in response to motor vehicle crashes in department-owned vehicles. 1 of 4

3 MANAGEMENT S REPORT ON THE STATUS OF CORRECTIVE ACTION AS OF MAY 2014 Pursuant to the Department s Administrative Policy 1.11 on State Motor Vehicle Usage, we have begun to establish and implement procedures to develop a framework to manage issues for reporting, documenting, and managing issues related to motor vehicle crashes and developing effective loss mitigation initiatives. A Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager position was created pursuant to Section , Florida Statutes, to specifically develop a plan of action to address reporting protocol, a centralized repository of specific Fleet information and revisions to Administrative policy regarding the safety practices of employees while operating department-owned vehicles, as well as driving their own vehicles for state authorized business. The goal is to continue to create a safe environment for the employees of the agency and develop directives in which the assets of DBPR are managed to reflect best safety practices. Procedures for reporting motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage involving department-owned vehicles to the department s Safety Coordinator. The Division of Administration has developed an Accident Reporting Flow Chart based in part on Florida Administrative Code 60B-1. Section E-F 1-3, State Vehicle Accidents, which requires the employee involved in an accident, if not incapacitated, to immediately contact their supervisor. The prescribed flow of activity covers all appropriate law enforcement to be contacted, information needed by the worker s compensation administrator, photographs, and all pertinent documentation to constitute a complete accident report file. The reporting protocol makes clear that DBPR employees driving their personal vehicles for state business are also included. These charts will be distributed to the vehicle coordinators to be distributed to employees who are assigned vehicles. We have also developed an accident packet to be placed in all department-owned vehicles and made available to all DBPR employees who are using their personal vehicles for state business. Its contents will consist of the following: current monthly log (DFS D0-261) DFS Auto Accident Report, AmeriSys What to Do in Case of An Automobile Accident brochure, and contact information for the Worker s Compensation provider and Administrator. Establishment and maintenance of a central repository of detailed data and information on motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic damage. The Division has recently submitted a proposal to the IT department to develop a feature in OnBase which would allow Administration to store all key documentation for department-owned motor vehicle accidents and non-traffic crash damage as well as accidents involving privately owned vehicles when being used by employees for state related business. OnBase is a data storage and retrieval system which would allow the agency to digitally store all information regarding accidents by scanning the documents into the system and subsequently index and retrieve the information statewide. We would also be able to create reports which identify factors such as weather, driver awareness, road conditions, and other variables that possibly contributed to the accidents. We have identified the parameters, business logic, fields, and sort requirements necessary to configure this as a repository. The projected deployment date for this resource is expected to be prior to December of Evaluation and analysis of the data to help formulate loss mitigation initiative for implementation by the fleet safety component. A request was submitted to all of the division vehicle coordinators to submit copies of all documentation for motor vehicle accidents and non-traffic crash damage within the past fiscal year. The Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager collaborated with Mike Hawkes, the FLEET coordinator, to gather a wide range of data from the FLEET reporting system concerning vehicle 2 of 4

4 usage, maintenance, scheduled repairs, and how information was inputted into the electronic equipment tracking system. By gathering data from the accident reports, we are presently developing parameters that would serve as metrics to determine patterns and or extenuating circumstances that contribute to the occurrence of vehicle accidents. By evaluating factors like weather, road conditions, traffic flow, speed at impact, manner of collision, and type of roadway, we can begin to compile data that may be able to allow us to identify particular trends and develop preventative training and help us formulate effective loss mitigation initiatives. On-going driver training/driver safety programs. The Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager, the Safety Coordinator and the Worker s Compensation Administrator completed the Florida Department of Transportation s Online Defensive Driver s Course. The course consists of eleven modules covering the following topics: Traffic Safety Problem, Risk Awareness, Visual Search, Impaired Driving, Safe Driving Practices, Maintaining Safe Margins of Space, Sharing the Road, Intersections, and Reducing Collision Consequences. The impressive feature about the training course is that it incorporates live footage of scenarios that simulate the module topics. We believe that an emphasis on defensive driving can be effective in reducing the frequency of motor vehicle crashes and accidents. We are developing a recommendation that all employees who have as part of their job duties regular travel using stateowned vehicles be required to complete the online defensive driving course within the first week of employment orientation. Additionally, we are going to recommend that the course be offered to all employees agency wide. We believe this to be an effective preventative measure to address opportunities for loss mitigation department-wide. We will be assisted by Christia Nunnery and Deidra Jones with the state of Florida Loss Prevention office. Because DBPR does not have a Learning Management System at this time, the DOT has offered to assist by allowing employees to go to a link provided by DOT, register, and complete the module at their workstations. The benefit to this approach is that the Department of Risk Management will be able to track the activity internally and verify that the employees have satisfactorily completed the online course in addition to an end of course exam with a certificate of completion being given once the exam is satisfactorily done. Recommend that the Division of Administration coordinate with the Inspector General to revise Administrative Policy 1.2 Complaint Policy to remove the requirement that divisions report incidents involving motor vehicles crashes and non-traffic crash damage to the OIG. It was also recommended that divisions report detailed data and information on all motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage in department-owned vehicles to the Safety Coordinator. The Division of Administration has revised Administrative Policy 1.2 Complaint Policy to require the divisions to report incidents involving motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage to the Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager in the Division of Administration. The revision to Administrative Policy 1.11 is addressed in the development of the Accident Reporting Flow Chart which requires that detailed data and information on all motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage in department-owned vehicles be submitted to the Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager. This requirement will also include employees who drive privately owned vehicles for state business. In addition, an was sent out on April 28, 2014 by Director Dillard communicating that all accidents should be reported to Theo Stallworth, who serves in the capacity of the agency s Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager within the Bureau of Agency Services. Recommended that the Division of Administration establish a Motor Vehicle Crash Review Board within the Safety and Loss Prevention Program. The Motor Vehicle Crash Review Board should be responsible for establishing a disciplinary action system related to motor vehicle crashes; 3 of 4

5 reviewing all motor vehicle crashes and non-traffic crash damage involving department-owned vehicles; and making recommendations to management regarding disciplinary action to be taken in response to motor vehicle crashes in department-owned vehicles. The agency is continuing to explore the possibility of options as it relates to this recommendation. Based on our preliminary survey of the Division Directors, we are continuing to gather information on how best to implement a Motor Vehicle Crash Review committee with progressive disciplinary guidelines similar to the FHP template recommended by the Office of the Inspector General. We are presently consulting with the City of Tallahassee, as well as the Florida Department of Transportation to get feedback on how they administer their vehicle accident review committees and the disciplinary guidelines used. The Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager would be responsible for scheduling all meetings, which would be subject to the frequency of motor vehicle accidents. The Safety and Loss Prevention Program Manager would also be responsible for the crash review board s minutes and providing all supporting documentation associated with the accidents. The Crash Disciplinary Action Scale used by the FHP is being reviewed as a template in administering recommendations for disciplinary action. OIG ASSESSMENT Our review of the Division s status report and supporting documentation showed that management has made substantial progress in addressing audit findings and recommendations. However, additional work is needed to fully implement audit recommendations. We will therefore continue to monitor management s actions in this regard. 4 of 4