TRUTH ABOUT TRUCKING - BONUS FEATURE : âTHE DAC REPORTâ. Many professional CDL drivers have fallen prey to the infam
TRUTH ABOUT TRUCKING - BONUS FEATURE :
“THE DAC REPORT” Many professional CDL drivers have fallen prey to the infamous DAC report. The DAC report is to the professional truck driver as the credit report is to the consumer. This report is a detailed summary of a driver’s work history and contains information such as reasons for leaving the job, number of accidents, type of truck and trailer operated, type of driving, if they are eligible for rehire and much more. It also contains the driver’s social security number, D/L number, if they applied for worker’s compensation, and any criminal reports. Even though the agency is regulated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act, it is widely known by drivers that trucking companies abuse this tool by reporting unfair and unjust information about their drivers. Once an item has been placed on your DAC report, it almost takes an act of Congress to have it removed. In fact, it is nearly impossible. The DAC report consists of two parts. The first part is your MVR report from your home state. The second is your work history. The company overseeing this report is USIS Commercial Services, based out of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Subject to the FACT Act file disclosure, a driver is entitled to receive a free copy of their DAC report once every twelve months. You can receive additional copies, but at a cost of $9.50 each. To receive a copy of your DAC report you must do so per a written request, including a copy of your social security card and driver license. It normally takes 10 days to two weeks to receive the report. If your report does contain fraudulent information, you must follow the instructions for dispute resolution. Also, keep in mind that even if you are successful in having the item removed from your DAC report, you are still required to report the information, if accurate, to potential employers. Page 1
For example, if the former employer places an accident on your DAC report, which is true, and you are still able to get it removed, you MUST report the accident on future employment applications due to federal law. You can contact them at the following address : USIS Commercial Services Division 4500 South 129th East Avenue Suite 200 Tulsa, Oklahoma 74134-5885 1-800-381-0645 The DAC report will normally keep the information on it for 10 years. After seven years, items such as accidents, rehire eligibility and work history will be removed. Also, if the company closes down, these items are supposed to be removed automatically. Simply contacting the trucking company and requesting that the items be removed normally will not work. This type of request is simply ignored by the company. As stated above, it is nearly impossible to get items removed from your DAC report. If all else fails, you can contact a transportation attorney and have them handle the situation, but this can be very costly. There have been drivers who have successfully had items removed, but it was a long, hard battle. The best way to keep your DAC report clean is to ALWAYS leave a company on good terms. Always give at least two weeks notice, return the equipment to the right place, clean and in good order. By operating at a professional level, and giving the company no excuses for improper reporting, your DAC report will not come back and haunt you. Aubrey “Allen” Smith www.truthabouttrucking.com
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