Are you a candidate?
Crush your interview with our guide
Make sure that you are interviewing the best Truck driver candidates. Sign up for Workable's 15-day free trial to hire better, faster.
Truck Driver Interview Questions
Truck drivers transport goods over short or long distances. Being out on the road means they have immense responsibility so make sure you check their commercial driver’s license (CDL) and driving record. Often, you’ll want to hire someone with their own truck so, in this case, check their insurance papers too.
They need to be experienced drivers, able to maneuver their vehicle and drive occasionally in difficult roads. A test drive with each candidate will demonstrate their skills. Apart from that, you’ll want someone with knowledge of large vehicle maintenance, traffic regulations and a good sense of orientation. You can ask them to use GPS or plan a route on a map to see how they prepare their trips. Look for signs that they’re committed to meeting deadlines and value safety.
Depending on your industry, you may want your drivers to be familiar with your products or processes (e.g. how to handle a certain cargo). Add your own questions to find out if they meet your specific job requirements. You can use the following questions for truck driver candidates as a guide to plan an effective interview process.
Operational and Situational questions
- Imagine you’re involved in an accident that isn’t your fault. What do you do?
- If a client was dissatisfied because you arrived late with their delivery, how would you handle it?
- Imagine you are running late for a delivery because you encountered problems on the road. What could you do to preserve customer service quality without compromising safety?
- If I asked you to do basic maintenance to a truck, what steps would you follow?
Role-specific questions
- How much experience do you have as a professional delivery driver?
- What was your longest haul? How did you stay alert during this time?
- What states/counties have you been to as part of your job?
- How do you feel about a slip-seating setup?
- How do you ensure you always meet deadlines?
- What papers/logs should a truck driver keep? How do you ensure accuracy?
- How important is safety to you?
Behavioral questions
- Have you ever received incorrect information from a dispatcher or other colleague? What happened and how did you resolve the issues that occurred?
- Tell me about a time you almost lost your concentration on the road. What did you do to stay focused?
- Did you have good relationships with clients in your previous job? How did you do it?
Pro tip: Remember to request permission for a background check and drug test. Law also states that people with certain health conditions are prohibited from driving large or heavy vehicles.