According to recent figures, 72% of all goods in the US are delivered via truck at some point. Trucking companies have a lot of power in our economy, which means they need to be held to a certain standard to ensure truckers are being treated well. It also means when carriers act negligently, they need to address their wrongdoing without evasion or delay.
The largest trucking companies in the United States have an even greater responsibility. Unfortunately, some carriers do everything they can to shirk this responsibility. They put their drivers and everyone on the road at risk when they do so. When they do this, they must be held accountable.
The 10 Most Dangerous Trucking Companies
Today, we’re writing about the 10 most dangerous trucking companies and their safety records. Read below to learn more!
The 10 most dangerous trucking companies are:
- FedEx
- UPS
- Swift Transportation, Inc.
- Werner Enterprises
- Averitt
- US Xpress
- XPO Logistics Freight
- Estes Express Lines
- Schneider National Carriers
- JB Hunt Transportation
FedEx
FedEx actually owns two delivery firms: FedEx Ground and FedEx Freight. FedEx Ground employs over 124,000 drivers and a fleet of 101,000+ vehicles. FedEx Freight employs 42,000 employees (21,000 of whom are drivers) who collectively handle over 100,000 shipments on a daily basis.
From June 2020 to June 2022, both FedEx companies have been involved in 109 fatal crashes and 1,161 injury-causing crashes.
UPS
UPS employs over 127,000 drivers with a fleet of 134,000 vehicles. From June 2020 to June 2022, UPS vehicles were involved in 74 fatal crashes and 1,082 injury-causing crashes.
Swift Transportation, Inc.
With about 15,000 drivers and 16,000 vehicles, Swift Transportation is roughly comparable to FedEx Freight in size. Something of note about Swift: roughly 15% of their vehicles have been cited for violations (Source: FMCSA).
From June 2020 to June 2022, Swift Transportation trucks have been involved in 28 fatal crashes and 289 injury-causing crashes. These resemble the figures from FedEx Freight over the same period.
Werner Enterprises
Based in Nebraska, Werner Enterprises employs about 10,000 drivers worldwide, with roughly the same number of vehicles. Despite having thousands fewer drivers than FedEx Freight or Swift Transportation, their accident record is fairly similar.
From June 2020 to June 2022, Werner Enterprise was involved in 16 fatal crashes and 271 injury-causing crashes.
Averitt Express
Based in Tennessee, Averitt Express employs roughly 5,200 drivers and operates about the same number of vehicles. Though it only employs half as many drivers, Averitt was involved in the same number of fatal crashes as Werner Enterprise.
From June 2020 to June 2022, Averitt was involved in 16 fatal crashes and 118 injury-causing crashes.
US Xpress
Like Averitt, US Xpress is based in Tennessee with a fleet of 7,000 trucks and 6,000 truckers, although about 2,000 trucks of their fleet belong to ‘independent’ contractors. Independent contractors typically lease their big rigs from the carriers that once employed them; though they are independent in theory, many independent contractors rely on getting consistent jobs from company dispatchers. They can face serious consequences if they turn down jobs, essentially making them the same as employees.
From June 2020 to June 2022, US Xpress was involved in 20 fatal crashes and 173 injury-causing crashes.
XPO Logistics Freight
Based in Michigan, XPO Logistics employs roughly 11,000 drivers with a fleet of 8,500 vehicles. Notably, XPO Logistics outpaces the national average when it comes to hazmat-related OOS violations. In other words, more XPO Logistics vehicles were taken off the road due to hazmat-related problems than the national average.
From June 2020 to June 2022, XPO Logistics was involved in 21 fatal crashes and 181 injury-causing crashes.
Estes Express Lines
Based in Virginia, Estes Express Lines employs roughly 8,000 drivers with a fleet of 7,300 vehicles. Over the last two years, Estes Express Lines was involved in 15 fatal crashes and 163 injury-causing crashes.
Schneider National Carriers
Based in Wisconsin, Schneider National Carriers employs about 12,500 drivers and operates a fleet of 10,600 vehicles. From June 2020 to June 2022, Schneider vehicles were involved in 20 fatal crashes and 233 injury-causing crashes.
JB Hunt Transportation
Based in Arkansas, JB Hunt Transportation employs 25,700 drivers and runs a fleet of 22,500 vehicles. JB Hunt is among the largest carriers on this list, comparable to Swift Transportation and FedEx Freight.
From June 2020 to June 2022, JB Hunt Transportation was involved in 50 fatal crashes and 543 injury-causing crashes.
