In order to receive authorization to operate a university motor vehicle, an employee or student must:

• Possess a current and valid United States driver's license issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles from his/her state of residence or the District of Columbia for at least three years (International driver's licenses are not acceptable).
• All students driving an insured vehicle (owned or leased by the University) must be 18 years of age or older.  The rental company used by Bentley University requires students to be at least 21 years of age to rent a vehicle.
• Fall within the "approved" or "approved on probation" status on the driver acceptability guidelines after an RMV driving background check is complete.
• Students must successfully complete the university's safe driver training program.

Cars and Small Vans:

1. All faculty/staff/students of the University that drive a Bentley University owned, leased or rented vehicle must have a driving background check if one was not performed at the start of employment.  Their supervisor must submit their name and email address to risk@bentley.edu to start the online process* for the background check.

   *If the individual does not have access to a computer to complete the online process, operators must complete a vehicle use application through their manager, and submit the completed application with a copy of their driver's license, to risk@bentley.edu for authorization to drive Bentley vehicles. This process could take up to 10 business days.

2. The individual will receive a link via email from Intellicorp. This link provides the individual the opportunity to choose the state where they are licensed and complete an online form authorizing Intellicorp to perform a driving (only) background check.

3. Once this is completed, Intellicorp will process the request.  When the information is available for review, Risk Management will be notified.

4. The driving record will be reviewed by Risk Management. If the individual's record falls under the "poor" or "borderline" category as noted in the matrix, the application will be denied and that person will not be able to drive any Bentley owned, leased or rented vehicles. All driving privileges will be suspended immediately.

   1. University faculty/staff -- If the record is clean, the supervisor and individual will receive an email that they are authorized to drive Bentley vehicles.

      1. The driving record of all employees must be reviewed every three years. An email request will be sent by Risk Management when the updated authorization is due.

   2. Student employees/students -- If the record is clean, a link to an online training will be emailed to them and must be completed in order to obtain authorization to drive Bentley vehicles. All students must take the training, which includes modules for van driving, and defensive driving. When those trainings are successfully completed, the individual and person requesting the training will receive an email that they are authorized to drive Bentley vehicles.

Drivers must not drive University vehicles until authorization is obtained.

As a minimum requirement, each department or group that may use a university motor vehicle is required to maintain the program procedures outlined below. The development of department specific procedures is the responsibility of individual deans, directors, or department heads. Deans, directors, or department heads may institute additional policies or procedures, as they deem necessary. Failure to adhere to these rules could result in uninsured losses and expenses.

List of Responsibilities:

• Use of vehicles is confined to university business
• Transport of passengers, other than employees or affiliates, is prohibited.
• Ensure only those individuals, who have been determined eligible and are authorized by the sponsoring department or group, operate a university motor vehicle
• In the event of an accident on public property, drivers must follow the following procedures:
  • Notify the local police department by telephoning 911 and providing pertinent information concerning the accident. Do not leave the accident scene until the local police have responded.
  • Notify the Department of Public Safety at 202-885-3636.
  • Obtain the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all witnesses.
  • Complete the accident report form (and accident questionnaire, if necessary) located in the motor vehicle glove box.
  • Report the accident immediately to your supervisor. 
  • Never admit liability while at the scene of the incident. Insurance adjusters, and in some cases the courts, will determine liability after an investigation of the facts in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Drivers should speak freely and accurately to law enforcement personnel and university insurance adjusters.
  • For further guidance, note the instructions found in the Emergency Action Packet claims brochure. For additional copies of the brochure, contact the risk management office.

Failure to adhere to these rules could result in uninsured losses and expenses to the University and may result in the revocation of the authorization to drive Bentley vehicles.

These procedures do not pertain to driving golf carts. Please see Facilities Management Life-Safety-Services for information on obtaining authorization to drive golf carts.

Department managers can only rent vehicles for six months or less and must contact the Purchasing Department (x3456) when renting vehicles for more than one month. If you require vehicles for longer than six months, you must contact the Purchasing Department since the vehicle must be leased or purchased. Insurance does not need to be purchased for rental vehicles in the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico. The university's preferred vendor for rental vehicles is Enterprise Rent-A-Car, 140 Moody Street, Waltham, MA 02452, 781.894.6770.

When renting a vehicle, you must make sure that you include Bentley University's name on the rental agreement or there may be no insurance provided through Bentley University's insurance policy.

Employees using their personal vehicles for Bentley University business use must maintain a minimum of $300,000 auto liability coverage on their personal insurance policy.  Bentley's policy serves as excess insurance coverage over an Employee's Automobile Policy Limits when these vehicles are used for University business. University limits are $1,000,000 for liability and are subject to a $1,000 deductible for physical damage. The most notable exclusions on this policy are the use of a University vehicle for personal reasons and driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Please note the use of personal vehicles for university business is discouraged because:

• At the time of the accident it is often difficult to determine whether the person was on personal business or University business.
• If an accident occurred, the employee would have to submit the claim to their insurer for payment and the University's insurance would only be used if the employee's limits were not high enough.
• Employees are required to have minimum limits of $100,000/$300,000 and submit proof of this coverage prior to using their personal vehicle for University business. Please submit a copy of your policy limits with your vehicle use application.