The U.S. Department of Transportation has taken steps to improve its complaint hub for truckers.
Those steps include making the platform more user-friendly for truck drivers, providing a place to issue complaints against brokers who fail to comply with transparency regulations, and renaming the complaint center.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which has long criticized the National Consumer Complaint Database for being “ineffective” and poorly named, is mostly supportive of the work done by the DOT and FMCSA to improve the system.
“OOIDA members have already noticed a significant improvement in the general display, user interface and structure of the NCCDB website since the initial changes were announced (in September),” the Association wrote in comments signed by President Todd Spencer. “These overdue updates will assist drivers navigating the NCCDB and help them accurately file complaints.”
In June, the U.S. Department of Transportation unveiled nine “Pro-Trucker” initiatives. One of those initiatives was to modernize the National Consumer Complaint Database. At the time, the DOT announced that the NCCDB was being migrated to a modern customer service platform to be user-friendly and mobile-friendly.
The first updates were implemented in late September. One of the updates most meaningful to truck drivers was the addition of a place to file complaints against moving companies, trucking companies, bus companies, substance abuse professionals, electronic logging device providers and property brokers.
For years, many truck drivers have complained that brokers don’t comply with Regulation 371.3, which requires them to keep records of each transaction and to give each party the right to view the record.
The updated complaint center specifically mentions that truck drivers can submit complaints against brokers who fail to comply.
“Is your complaint about a property broker? This could include a property broker failing to maintain transaction records or financial accounts with the required information, failing to maintain FMCSA registration or insurance, misrepresenting services or conducting improper rebating or compensation practices,” FMCSA wrote on the website.
OOIDA said the addition was a big improvement, but told the DOT that more can be done.
“We especially thank USDOT for expanding the complaint categories to specifically include property brokers,” Spencer wrote. “However, FMCSA must add, ‘Refusing to Provide the Records of the Delivery’ under ‘Additional Details’ in the Property Broker section. We are optimistic these initial changes will contribute to a modern platform that will streamline the filing process, improve response timeliness and initiate enforcement action when applicable.”
The DOT also announced in October that the National Consumer Complaint Database would be renamed “FMCSA Complaint Center Records.”
OOIDA has long asked the DOT to change the name to something more easily identifiable to truck drivers. While OOIDA supports a name change, it suggests that the agency go back to the drawing board.
“We believe ongoing NCCDB changes can further be supplemented by choosing a more appropriate name for the system,” Spencer wrote. “The proposed new name remains misleading and only signifies a minimal connection to the trucking industry. Possible suggestions for a more logical name would be the National Truck Safety and Compliance Database or the Commercial Trucking Complaint Center. A more identifiable name would help raise the platform’s awareness among professional truckers and improve its utilization.”
OOIDA also said that the agency must be more responsive when a truck driver files a complaint. Without reason to believe that action will be taken, truck drivers will not be compelled to report violations to the agency.
“FMCSA should provide a confirmation that the complaint has been accepted, as well as real-time updates that monitor the complaint’s progress through the system,” Spencer wrote. “This would help drivers know where their complaint stands and provide a better understanding of FMCSA’s response level.” LL
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