MEET SAM
I did not learn trucking from a textbook or a boardroom. I started washing trailers at 14 years old. Since then, I have spent the majority of my time working in the trucking industry in various roles like dispatch, operations, management, safety, compliance, and insurance loss control. That experience gave me a real understanding of the pressure, risk, and decisions that shape a trucking operation on a daily basis.
Today, I serve as the Director of Safety and Loss Control for Ten Four Truck Insurance and am regularly invited onto national trucking programs to speak about safety, compliance, insurance, and operational risk. I have also turned that knowledge into books, training programs, and practical safety systems that help both large and small operations. My true passion is to help everyone in the industry understand that safety and compliance is crucial, and can truly make or break your company. With my background, I am able to give direct and relevant insight from someone who not only knows the industry, but understands how it works.
In trucking, you will pay for safety.
The only question is when
Safety problems in trucking rarely appear overnight. They build slowly. A few more roadside violations. A preventable crash that shouldn’t have happened. Driver turnover creeping higher. Then renewal season arrives and the insurance premium jumps without a clear explanation. Most fleets assume these problems start with drivers or bad luck. But the truth is usually closer to home. In The Cost of Safety, Sam Watts draws on decades of experience inside the trucking industry to explain how leadership decisions, operational pressure, and company culture shape safety outcomes long before a crash ever occurs. Through practical insights and real-world perspective, this book shows fleet leaders how to recognize the hidden patterns driving risk—and how to build an operation where safety and performance work together instead of against each other.
FEATURED NEWS
Launching a Fleet Safety Program — My Latest Contribution to Linxup
I’m excited to share that I recently authored a new article for Linxup titled “How to Start a Fleet Safety Program: Earn Trust, Get Driver Buy-In, and Make Safety Stick.” In that piece, I explore how companies can move beyond ad-hoc safety efforts to build...
Talking Safety, Solutions, and the Future of Trucking on Trucking Sense with Charles Gracey
I recently had the opportunity to join Charles Gracey on his XM show Trucking Sense to talk about some of the most pressing issues in trucking today. Our conversation covered a lot of ground, from tragic crashes to the future of hiring, but it all centered on one...
Sam Talks To Linxup About The Importance of Dash Cams
I recently sat down with the team at Linxup for a conversation that cuts straight to the heart of a hot-button topic in trucking: dash cams and driver coaching. For some fleets, dash cams feel like “Big Brother” in the cab. For others, they’re a game-changing tool...
The Bulkloads Podcast Welcomes Sam To Their Show
I recently joined Jared Flinn on the BulkLoads Podcast, and we tackled a tough truth about the trucking industry: Most trucking companies are running unsafe—and they don’t even know it. In our conversation, we pulled back the curtain on the hidden risks, legal traps,...
Talking Safety, Compliance, and Smart Solutions on Taking the Hire Road
I recently had the chance to join Jeremy Reymer on the Taking the Hire Road podcast — and we dove deep into a topic that’s close to my heart (and my career): safety and compliance in trucking. For me, it all started with a tough early audit — the kind that makes you...
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SAM@WATTSMEN.COM
612.619.1180