CLEVELAND — Every pest control company has its own rulebook. While many companies might share the same policies and regulations, there are some rules that companies have different stances on, like vehicle operation.
In PCT’s latest Reader’s Poll, we polled respondents on whether their company allows service technicians to take a service vehicle home with them every night.
Eighty-five percent of respondents said they allow service technicians to take their service vehicles home with them every night, compared to 15 percent who said they do not allow this.
Len Oppenberg, president at Victory Pest, Boonton, N.J., said with GPS systems installed in the company’s service vehicles, most of his technicians are able to take them home each night.
“We have a large coverage footprint; therefore, we have staff that lives in certain areas far from our offices, so it’s best for them to take them home,” he said.
Jacob Cohn, A.C.E., operator at Arrow Termite and Pest Control, Baton Rouge, La., said at Arrow, it varies from employee to employee, taking factors like having a clean driving record, where technicians live, driver safety training, insurance and geography of their route into consideration.
“Taking a vehicle home, for the most part, is a privilege and not a right,” Cohn said. “With transporting chemicals and equipment in the vehicle, security and safety are issues, and the safest place to park the vehicle is at our office.”
Cohn said companies with more than 15 trucks need to consider limiting their liability as much as possible, especially if they’re operating in high insurance states with large claim.
“In a perfect world, we would be able to let all technicians take the trucks home, as it would be very convenient and more efficient,” he said. “Unfortunately, there is too much risk out there with insurance, liability, crime, that prevents us from doing that with all of our drivers.”
Arrow tracks their drivers’ safety with a camera system in the vehicle, ensuring safety and vehicle maintenance is a top priority.
“Drivers must maintain good scores and stay in their routed assigned areas,” Cohn said. “In general, if a tech has a questionable [motor vehicle record], and they are still hired, they will have to prove themselves immensely before we let them take their vehicle home.”