Accidents Happen

Yesterday, I was involved in an automobile accident in which another driver failed to change lanes properly resulting in hitting my vehicle.  Fortunately, the driver that hit me and I weren't injured!  That's the good news!

The bad news is that the driver that hit me wasn't a licensed driver, did not speak English, and was not a legal resident of the United States.  Police were called, vehicles were moved, and traffic again flowed freely along this busy roadway.  In most states, the standard protocol when involved in a motor vehicle accident is to contact the local authorities, exchange information with each other, and contact the 'at fault' driver's insurance company.  Exchanging information was challenging to say the least.  The driver was unable to read or write, didn't speak English, and even through a translator, I was still given false information. 

As one can imagine, I have to carry alot of insurance for my business.  The driver was not the owner of the vehicle that hit me and the owner of the vehicle carried a small liability policy. 

Last night I began to think about how this one accident will affect me and my business.  I calculated that I will lose more than 150 hours of my time with the insurance company, with the body shop, with my company, and with my employees.  My time is valuable to me, my family, and my customers.  At the end of the day, my vehicle with never be the same.  Yes, it will be repaired, but with the ever increasing 'CarFax' reports, this one accident will negatively affect the re-sale value of my vehicle. 

When you hire someone to work on your property, do you really think about the implications of damage done to your property?  Employee injuries?  Do you actually verify the contractor or are you verifying references only?

Do you think about how you would recoup your loss?  How you would get in touch with your contractor?

Once upon a time, when I was working my way through graduate school, I was a Credit Card Fraud Investigator.  I was trained to prove identity.  Recall earlier when I stated that I was given invalid personal information?  When you hire a contractor, you should know beyond a shadow of a doubt your contractor's information.  Remember, anyone can have business cards and vehicle magnets made!  Call me paranoid, but you can't take anyone's word anymore! 

When hiring a contractor, become an investigator!  Here's a few things I evaluate when I hire a contractor:

• Is the vehicle lettered?  I'm not saying that if a vehicle isn't lettered, the contractor isn't legitimate, but it's just something I look at from the perspective of perception. 
• Is the phone number a cell phone?  You can buy pre-paid phones at 7-11.  Cell phones are virtually un-traceable.  Request the contractor's landline number and verify!  If something happens, will you be able to reach your contractor?
• Verify the business with the state
• Verify insurance - Make darn sure the contractor name and/or the business name are the same on the insurance!  Also, verify the contractor has specific endorsements which cover the work that you'll need done
• Verify the contractor's license - Same here.  The contractor's name and/or the business trade name must be the same on the contractor's license
• Verify the contractor's address
• Ask to see their driver's license
• Search the internet!