Summer Trucking: 5 Tips for Increasing Driving Safety in Hot Weather Conditions

Though it may be hot outside, that isn’t slowing down your trucking insurance policyholders!

For clients with trucking operations, it’s business as usual during the summer months – but hot weather can also create dangerous driving conditions and additional risk exposures.

Here, we’ll look at five tips for increasing driving safety in hot weather conditions that you can pass on to your clients to help them proactively reduce their risk.

1. Conduct Pre-Trip Inspections

Just as the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Fleet managers and drivers should perform regular inspections that, at the very least, should include:

Checking engine oil
Topping off coolants
Replacing worn or cracked belts
Replacing loose or weathered hoses
Checking electrical systems to help prevent heat-related failures

2. Check Tires

Checking tires is especially critical in hot weather.

“Air pressure increases with temperature, so a tire that starts at the proper psi in the morning may [yield a reading that is too high] in the afternoon heat. If the tire is too hot to touch, let the vehicle sit until it cools. A tire that is too hot is at risk of a blowout or fire.”
Source: Freight Waves

3. Check Brake Pads – Often

In hot weather, brakes can suffer from a loss of friction due to brake fluids overheating – often to the point of boiling. It’s important to replace brake pads often, as well as brake oil. In addition, the practice of downshifting when traveling down a long descent can help ease the stress on brakes.

4. Be Mindful of Bleeding Tar

Bleeding tar is a film of black or brown semisolid material on the surface of a road that creates a shiny, glasslike reflection. In hot weather, excessive amounts of tar expand and “bleed” onto the surface of a road, creating very slippery and hazardous driving conditions.

5. Keep the Cab Cool

Temperatures inside a cab can rise quickly in the summer, creating deadly conditions for a trucker. Rigs with air conditioning should have their systems serviced early in the summer. Most states have limits on idling, so truckers who don’t have an anti-idling system for air conditioning should find locations where they can get out of the cab and seek shade to avoid overheating while off duty. Drivers should also drink plenty of water while on the road.

To learn about our transportation insurance products and how we can best serve you, our retail broker clients, please email info@acrossamericainsurance.com.