Amazon trucking contractors have higher rates of safety violations, CBS News investigation finds
The death of a 19-year-old college student on a Texas highway has raised questions about Amazon’s fleet of drivers delivering packages between its facilities. College freshman Iliana Velez was killed in a car crash with a contractor who was driving to pick up an Amazon shipment.
Velez, a freshman at the University of Texas, works part-time at night sorting packages at an Amazon fulfillment center.
In the early morning hours of January 3, 2022, Velez, who was resting, was forced off the road by a box truck driven by contractor Jordan Sannicola, which was on its way to pick up an Amazon shipment. Velez’s car rolled several times. She died at the scene.
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Her mother, Trula Velez, received word from police that evening.
“The police knocked on my door He said she was in an accident and she didn’t survive. “I was very shocked,” she said. “
When Sannicola was arrested four weeks later, investigators learned he had a history of traffic violations, a suspended driver’s license and outstanding felony warrants, including one count of evading arrest with a vehicle. He told police he was using a handheld mobile device when he collided with Iliana Velez’s car.
“People with multiple warrants should not be hired,” Trula Velez said.
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The lawsuit filed by Trula Velez alleges that Amazon previously rejected Sonnicola’s application to ship packages for the company’s “flexible” home delivery service because Sonnicola failed a background check. Still, he was able to drive for companies signed by Amazon. Despite his criminal record and driving record, Take Flight with B, a North Carolina auto transport company, hired Sannicola to transport Amazon shipments.
Missed the warning signs?
Alex Hilliard, a lawyer for the Velez family, claimed that due to a background check, Amazon was “fully aware” of Sonnicola’s poor driving record and Criminal background, the company transports goods between Amazon facilities. The web is called the “middle mile.”
The lawsuit also accuses the company of providing tracking technology Relay phone application The company Amazon uses to monitor driver location and performance notified the company of Sannicola’s unsafe driving behavior, but the company failed to take action.
“Mr. Sannicola had 70 different speeding violations (while working for Take Flight) and Amazon was notified,” Hilliard said. “They’ve done nothing about it.”
A CBS News analysis of federal safety data shows that Amazon contractors primarily in the company’s “middle mile” delivery network are seeing higher rates of monthly violations, such as speeding and texting while driving, typically for carriers that don’t ship for Amazon. twice. The analysis examined six years of monthly unsafe driving rates from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and found that carriers shipping for Amazon had average monthly unsafe driving rates that were at least 89% higher.
“I’m shocked,” said Professor Jason Miller, a supply chain management expert at Michigan State University. “I’ve published a lot using this data. Typically, you don’t see an effect like this because one set of vectors is almost twice as unsafe as another.”
CBS News used roadside inspection reports from federal data to identify Amazon contractors. These reports are produced by law enforcement and show what the carrier said it was transporting at the time of the inspection. The analysis includes carriers that had shipped for Amazon at least once in the two years prior to each month’s review.
Miller said the sheer number of contractors Amazon uses for “middle mile” shipments poses a challenge to ensuring a unified safety culture.
“Your goods are basically being moved by hundreds, if not thousands, of small, young companies, which makes it more difficult to ensure that these companies operate safely, and what we call a strategic sourcing model, where you may have It’s rare that a large carrier you work with can handle a large volume of freight,” Miller said.
At least 57 people have died in more than four dozen accidents involving federally regulated Amazon carriers over the past two years, according to FMCSA data, although the data does not indicate who was responsible for the incidents. FMCSA provides carriers with accident participation scores, but the scores are not made public.
Amazon’s response
“Any death is heartbreaking,” said Tim Goodman, global legal director for road safety at Amazon. “Our condolences go out to all the families affected and our hearts go out to them.”
While Amazon requires background checks for contracted drivers who deliver directly to customers’ homes, Goodman said the company wants FMCSA to oversee “middle-mile” contractors who use larger vehicles to transport goods between facilities.
A spokesperson for FMCSA confirmed that as a condition of employment, it requires contractors dispatching commercial motor vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 pounds to conduct a background check on the driver’s safety performance history.
Amazon said that when the company learns that a contracted carrier has violated FMCSA guidelines, the carrier may face consequences including permanent suspension.
“We have taken disciplinary action against approximately 19,000 motor carriers for failing to meet FMCSA safety requirements,” Goodman said.
Among those carriers is Take Flight with B, the contractor that hired Jordan Sannicola. Amazon confirmed it has permanently suspended Take Flight with B from its contracted fleet. The auto transport company has since gone out of business.
Goodman defended Amazon’s continued reliance on third-party freight contractors to transport goods and deliver packages.
“In the United States, auto transport is driven by independent businesses, small businesses,” Goodman said. “That’s been the case at least since the Carter administration.”
“We are unique in Amazon in terms of scale,” Goodman said. “But it’s a proven business model that works well and we’re committed to making it a catalyst that improves road safety for us all.”
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Amazon disputes CBS News’ data findings. In a statement following the interview, a spokesperson said: “We have worked closely with CBS throughout the reporting process and are disappointed that they continue to use data based on flawed methodology. We take safety very seriously, The fact is, overall, the accident rates for the third-party carriers we work with have improved, our standards are more stringent than FMCSA’s requirements, and we will continue to work hard to ensure our partners are the safest carriers on the road.”
Among other complaints, the company has questioned how CBS News identifies Amazon contractors, saying inspection reports sometimes list the wrong shippers and how CBS News measures carrier safety.
Amazon measures safety using the FMCSA’s “Unsafe Driving Score,” which uses different criteria based on the size of the carrier. The score is not released by the government, but the underlying data is. CBS News did not rank carriers by size, but instead focused directly on the potential incidence of unsafe driving violations such as texting and speeding.
CBS News consulted with several leading supply chain researchers who have used FMCSA measures in peer-reviewed studies. Alex Scott, a University of Tennessee professor and supply chain management expert, said he doesn’t use FMCSA scores in part because they make small carriers look safer than they are.
“I don’t think it makes any sense,” Scott said. “If they’re not that safe, then they’re even less safe.”
What does the court system say?
On October 11, a judge sentenced Jordan Sannicola to 40 years in prison for “failure to prevent and render aid – an accident resulting in death” that resulted in the death of Ileana Velez.
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“A mistake took someone’s life, and it was my daughter’s life, which was just beginning,” Trula Valez said.
Her lawsuit against Amazon is scheduled to go to trial in early 2025.
