Modern farm tractors are the workhorses of agriculture and the safety advances made in their construction in recent years make them safer than ever. But tragic accidents do still occur on a regular basis. According to OSHA there are 200 tractor-related deaths annually that happen in the U.S alone along with many more accidents that result in serious injury.

These accidents don’t need to happen. Make sure that you don’t become part of these unfortunate statistics by following these basic guidelines; train all operators on tractor safety issues and the proper use of the particular piece of machinery, be sure that the tractor is serviced regularly, and be sure that all safety devices are installed and used properly.

Each CAS unit that utilizes tractors in their operations should have a policy detailing who is authorized to use a tractor, training requirements, service schedule, or any other information pertinent to the safe use of their machines. At a minimum, all operators must demonstrate the skills necessary to operate each piece of equipment and must be trained annually on the nine points of safety as outlined in the SAIF Tractor Safety Elements video.