Should my agent provide me with MVR’s?

The short and quick answer, No.

A Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) is a report of someone’s driving history, as reported from your state Department of Motor Vehicles.  Information on this report may include Driver’s License information, point history, violations, convictions, and license status on your driving record.  There is a small fee for each MVR charged by the BMV.  (Ohio charges $5 each)

An insurance agent, broker, company, or employer may all order an MVR, but for different purposes.

The Agent or Broker

An agent, broker, or insurance company may ONLY order an MVR for underwriting purposes.  Agents typically review driving records when adding a new driver, and they review all drivers prior to the policy renewal each year.  However, they can not share the contents of the MVR with a client unless the agency follows all requirements of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Employers

As employers, commercial insureds not only have a right to conduct background checks on employees, in today’s legal climate, they almost certainly also have a duty to do so.  As part of the employment application process, the employer is the only one who has a legal right to run an MVR.

It should be the responsibility of an employer to request an MVR on each applicant at the time of employment.  Applicants should be informed that employment is subject to the receipt of an MVR that meets the recommended guidelines.  Employers should purchase MVRs directly at any credit agency, or through vendors such as IntelliCorp.

Should Employers use a Driving Record Abstract?

Ultimately, that is up to each employer, but they should should be aware of the differences between an MVR and abstract.  Some states, such as Ohio, will provide a 2 year “Abstract,” or Unofficial 2-Year Driving Record free of charge.  The danger is you can obviously miss any violation over 2 years old, and serious violations that occurred in the 4 to 5 year range.  You can generate an Abstract from the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicle website with the following information by clicking here;

  • License #
  • Date of Birth
  • First Letter of Last Name or Full Name
  • Last 4 Digits of SSN

If you have questions about what drivers & records will be acceptable on commercial or business insurance policies, please check out my article; Business Auto Insurance Driver Guidelines.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me using any of the options below to discuss.

JOHN DUMBAUGH

 

 

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