The safety of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers and the public is paramount, which is why the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires companies to perform random testing on their drivers. However, the question remains: how frequently do companies carry out random drug and alcohol testing to ensure compliance with FMCSA regulations?
The FMCSA estimates that the cost of drug and alcohol-related crashes is over $120 billion annually. According to a study conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), approximately 10% of all commercial drivers use drugs and/or alcohol while on the job. Drivers who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol have impaired judgment, reduced reaction times, and diminished awareness of their surroundings. This behavior not only puts the driver at risk but also endangers other motorists on the road.
The DOT random testing rates are the minimum percentages of your employees who must be tested for drugs and alcohol each year. The DOT Agency that regulates your specific transportation industry sets the random testing rates. You must ensure that at least 50% of your safety-sensitive employees are tested for drugs and at least 10% are tested for alcohol during the calendar year. However, you can test more than the minimum rates if you wish to do so.
The DOT Agency can also increase or decrease the random testing rates based on the industry-wide positive test results. For example, if the FMCSA finds that the positive drug test rate for commercial drivers is higher than 1%, it can increase the drug testing rate to 75%.
According to DOT, “An employer may perform testing beyond that required by the DOT rules, but the employer may not represent such testing as a DOT test and must place non-DOT covered employee drug and alcohol testing in a pool aka stand-alone pool that is completely separate from the DOT random testing pool to make a random testing consortium.
Must read:
DOT Random Testing Pool vs Stand-Alone Pool
Difference Between DOT and Non-DOT
To conduct random testing effectively, you need to follow some best practices recommended by the DOT. Here are some of them:
Random drug and alcohol testing is a powerful tool for trucking companies looking to improve their compliance and safety records while staying ahead of the competition. goMDnow offers a wide range of online FMCSA Drug & Alcohol Consortium services by making sure that they are affordable, convenient, easy, and quick.