Safe Driving Saves Lives, Protects Property
Defensive driving goes beyond following traffic laws and procedures. It involves anticipating situations, rather than reacting to them, and making safe, well-informed decisions based on road and environmental conditions.
Defensive driving means understanding a vehicle’s capabilities and limitations, and maintaining control while maneuvering it away from hazards.
Training drivers to be safe helps reduce the number and severity of auto collisions and crashes. Fewer and less severe auto incidents leads to lower costs for repairing damaged vehicles and reduces injuries to employees and citizens. No one wants to see co-workers or citizens injured.
Auto physical damage claims continue to be the most frequently reported loss by members.
MCIT Offers No-cost Defensive Driving Training for Members
The defensive driving training offered to members through MCIT is designed for those employees who drive as part of their job duties on behalf of the member organization.
MCIT offers two formats for defensive driving training: onsite and online. The options are provided through Minnesota Safety Council at no charge as part of MCIT membership. Details about both options are provided below.
Note: Members looking to provide general safe driving instruction and information to its employees regardless if they drive on behalf of the member for business are referred to the Minnesota Safety Council’s options.
2-hour On-site and In-person Training
- MCIT pays for up to two sessions of on-site training for defensive driving per member per year. Additional sessions can be scheduled at a cost to the member
- When a member requests two sessions, they must be scheduled for the same day.
- Each on-site session requires a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 30 participants.
- The programs provide students with written materials, the chance to ask questions and certificates of completion.*
- To cancel an on-site class, members must give five days of notice or be subject to a cancellation fee.
In-person Course Options
Experienced Passenger Vehicle Driver
This option covers:
- Human factors: distraction, speed, fatigue and aggressive driving
- Defensive driving framework: seeing, communicating and managing space
- Safe lane changing and merging techniques
- Intersection safety and high-risk scenarios
- Adapting to weather, visibility and road surface conditions
- Traffic law and signage updates
Maintenance Vehicle Operator
This course covers:
- Core defensive driving concepts for maintenance operators
- Understanding vehicle dynamics: weight, load and stopping distance
- Blind spots, mirror adjustments and visibility strategies
- Backing safety and spotter communication best practices
- Work zone awareness: entering, exiting and operating safely
- Managing traffic interactions: passing, merging and lane control
- Human factors: distraction, fatigue, stress and seasonal challenges
- Roadway hazards: shoulders, drop offs, gravel, uneven surfaces and weather
Multiple Passenger Vehicles: Van Driver and Bus Driver
Many organizations assume that van driving is the same as driving a car and expect their employees or volunteers to assume van-driving responsibilities without any training. The fact is most commercial vans are very different from passenger cars. They are bigger, heavier, have larger blind spots and require longer following and stopping distances. Bus drivers face similar challenges.
This class covers:
- Van/bus design, size and stability considerations
- Proper mirror use and blind spot awareness
- Speed control, following distance and braking techniques
- Backing and parking best practices
- Passenger management and communication
- Pre-trip inspections and safety equipment
- Adapting to weather, traffic and roadway conditions
- Preventing rollover and loss-of-control incidents
- Emergency preparedness and incident response
*Because these courses are two hours, the completion certificate may not be recognized for personal auto discounts.
Online Defensive Driving Videos
Online defensive driving training is available through a partnership with the Minnesota Safety Council’s free streaming video service. This is not an interactive course.
How It Works
- Select a defensive driving training video from multiple choices among the streaming videos.
- Once chosen, assign the video to an individual viewer/employee with a special login. The individual has access to the video for one week.
- The assigning person can send a quiz to the viewer. This can serve as both a tool to show understanding of the material and give proof the video has been watched and offer a record.
How to Access Streaming Defensive Driving Training Videos
The person assigning the training video must have both a login and password for the Minnesota Safety Council website and access to the streaming video website. See instructions below.
If the user has already opted in to using the streaming video service, proceed to “Create a Watch List and Choose Videos.”
Streaming Video Website Login
- Set up Admin access for the MSC streaming video service. Follow instructions at
- MSC sends a username and password to you to log in to the training video site.
Create a Watch List and Choose Videos
- Log in to the video streaming site with the username and password provided by MSC.
- Create a watch list by clicking on the account button in the top right and then choose “add a watch list.”
- Choose a name for the watch list and click “create.”
- Once you have a watch list, use the “find videos” tab near the top left of the screen to search for videos.
- In the dropdown menu of categories, select “safety,” and then choose “driving.” This takes you to several options for driving safety videos.
- Choose a video, and assign it to a watch list using the dropdown list of watch lists and the “add to watch list” button. You can download the leader guides for a quiz, answer key, and/or a list of key points from the video.
NOTE: Clicking on the “add to watch list” button, prompts a box asking if you are sure you want to rent the title. Click “Yes,” as you have unlimited no-cost rentals.
Assign a Viewer to a Watch List
- Under the account tab near the top right of the screen, select “Viewers.”
- On the viewer tab, you have the option to “Create Viewer.” It will prompt you to enter the viewer’s first and last name, and will provide you with a unique access code the viewer can use to access the site. It also allows you to assign particular watch lists to the viewer.
- Enter the information and select the appropriate watch list for the viewer.
- Provide the viewer with the access code and direct them to TrainingVideoNow.com. The website should direct the viewer to the video after logging in.
Most Popular Videos for Defensive Driving
Three Keys to Safe Driving, Driving Defensively—Prepare, Anticipate & Defend (17 minutes): Focuses on defensive driving topics to help avoid accidents and prevent injuries.
Driving Defensively (17 minutes): Covers defensive driving topics and situations. This video has been used for MCIT member online defensive driver training in the past.
Choices: Safe Driving (23 minutes): Offers significant information about distracted driving and choices drivers make to keep themselves and others safe. This was developed for California drivers, so some of the laws and regulations may differ from Minnesota.
Related Resources
Many driving-related resources are available in Resources, including:
- Videos
- Quick Takes on Safety (mini training scripts and employee handouts)
- Deer-vehicle collision prevention materials
Visit Resources and filter using the keyword, topic or type options to find what you need.