Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How much is the School Bus Driver Safety and Risk Index?
A: The price is only $40 per index.
Q: How long does the index take to complete?
A: The index assessment process is quick and simple. It takes most people 10-15 minutes to complete, start-to-finish.
Q: How accurate is the index assessment?
A: It is extremely accurate. The scientist behind the index assessment was nominated for a Nobel Prize for his research which became the basis for this instrument. There have been numerous validity studies conducted over the course of five decades to support the credibility and reliability of the assessment and its results. The index assessment is very difficult to game. It is not a self-reporting questionnaire and it does not ask what a person thinks of himself or herself; but it does require them to think. In addition, if someone does attempt to trick the index assessment, validity indicators will suggest a retake.
Q: How will the School Bus Driver Safety and Risk Index help me?
A: The School Bus Driver Safety and Risk Index will do several things for you:
- It will give you a front-line screening tool to ensure a potential employee has the judgment capacity needed to be successful in their role as a school bus driver.
- It will let you know which of your current employees have the capacity for good judgment and which ones may be more at-risk for an accident.
- It will help mitigate risk and improve safety for your pupil transportation program.
- It will demonstrate a deeper level of due diligence in hiring.
- It will keep your students safer.
Q: How will this help with costs?
A: The School Bus Driver Safety and Risk Index can help with costs in the following ways:
- This will be a screening tool that will weed out people that you would not want to hire due to his or her poor assessment results. This reduces your costs on background and DMV checks, as well as drug and alcohol screenings.
- Demonstrating a deeper level of due diligence in putting drivers behind the wheel can cut down on litigious costs should a driver-related accident occur.
- Hiring drivers with good judgment can lower attrition (turnover) and the costs associated with hiring, training, and developing.
- Insurance companies may lower your premiums if you can demonstrate that you are assessing the judgment capacity of your drivers on a consistent basis. Drivers with stronger judgment will be much less likely to be involved in safety related incidents.
- Showing that you have exhausted your due diligence in hiring drivers can help with costs associated with bad press should a driver-related accident occur.
Q: How often should a person take it?
A: It is suggested that drivers complete the index on an annual basis.
Q: How are the results scored?
A: Scoring is automated and quick. You will see scoring results on the index tagged as “Preferred”, “Moderate”, “Weak”, and “Very Weak”.
Q: How quickly will I get the index results for a driver?
A: Once a driver completes the assessment, the School Bus Driver Safety and Risk Index results will be constructed and quickly communicated back by email, normally in less than five minutes.
Q: What should I do if a current driver’s results show they are in the weak to very weak category?
A: That is entirely up to you, but it gives you great information you didn’t have before. We will offer e-training modules for anyone that scores “Weak” or “Very Weak” on individual indicators and will give an assessment after the module is completed. Since these are your employees, we can’t tell you what to do but you will have an opportunity to have them go through training and you will have information to do any additional training or mentoring you think would benefit them.
Q: Does the School Bus Driver Safety and Risk Index discriminate against any particular group of people?
A: Numerous studies demonstrate that results are not skewed based on any race, religion, disability, age or gender. It meets all EEOC guideline requirements.
Q: What about insurance premiums?
A: It would be worth it to approach your particular insurance company and ask if they would be willing to look at this assessment as a way to lower your premiums. NAPT and The Dash Group are approaching insurance carriers to see if we can find some that would agree to that and, at that time, we will make that information available to you. In the meantime, approach your insurance carrier and see if they would be willing to work with you.
Q: What if I have questions about the assessment or understanding the results?
A: Much of the information you would need to know on can be found on our website. We also have a customer service department for assessment questions: 1-800-576-7261.
Q: What if I am having a technical problem?
A: Most technical issues you may have with accessing the assessment system can be quickly resolved by:
- Entering access credentials EXACTLY as they have been provided to you
- Be sure to type in the correct website address
- When entering assessment access credentials, you must use the correct letter case
- If you get stuck in a browser trying to gain access to the assessment, please close out the browser and reopen it to the assessment website
- You must allow browser popups to move through the assessment