wife wants to come on a trip

it depends on the state were you live and the states were you plan to go if they all have buckle up as a must then no
but if they have no law to buckle up then it would be ok. The kid must be buckled up at all times so the wife may have to be in the sleeper most of the time unless she is caring for the kid.

Do not take this as law just my oppinion I may be wrong.

 

I tried looking up the regulations for passengers on a cmv. But I could'nt find anything. Maybe someone else will have better results.
I'm curious myself what the laws are concerning this. I have always been told by hubby one rider. And said rider must be wearing a seatbelt at all times.
I have on occation seen several people(as many as 6) getting out of trucks, children...ect. I was thinking how did they do that without getting stopped?
i hope someone can find something on this topic.
Imho....I'm not sure I would be comfortable putting a small child on a big truck.

 

The "law" states absolutely nothing about the number of passengers allowed in a cmv unless you are moving them passengers for hire at which time you would need a passenger endorsement. The "law" concerning all motor vehicles in general states that there must be a safety restraint device for each passenger in a vehicle. So if you can find a way to safely restrain a child seat into the truck, it would be perfectly legal and acceptable. I know that there are "special" child restraint systems made exclusively for trucking operations but I couldn't begin to tell you where to find/buy one. One suggestion I would make there is to contact Crete Carrier Corp's safety dept. in Lincoln,Ne. They at one time provided a restraint system for children so that their husband/wife teams could take a small child on the road with them(they may still do this but last I knew of this practice is several years ago).

As for staying legal; Since you said you were an independent, contact your liability insurance provider and ask them to write you a "rider policy". This policy will cost you anywhere from $30 to $50 a month and will cover any liability issues should you have an accident. In addition to the insurance, you will need to write up a company authorization on company letterhead(this is a formality to satisfy some gung-ho DOT officers,most understand that you ARE the company and this is your family but others will be butts about it.), include on this authorization form a copy of your wife's drivers liscense, and a copy of the child's birth certificate. Make sure you also have the birth certificate in your possession.

The point is that there is some minor amounts of red tape to do it properly, but you can do it legally. Taking the ENTIRE family on a short trip is a really cool way to spend time with them and show them things they may not otherwise get a chance to see(and no I don't mean the trashy truck stops either.lol). Regardless of the opinions of some others on this forum, it is not a bad idea to take a child along in the truck. Provided you take the required steps to safely restrain them, they would be just as safe in the truck and most likely even safer than they would be with "momma" in the "grocery getter".

Hope this helps,and have fun with the family "road trip"

 

This is the industry standard with very few exceptions. This is a company policy issue though, and not the law.

 

Most co say one rider but I know that crete actually requires the childs mother to acompany you if the child is under 4 or something like that.

You don't have a co to answer to but you do have an insurance co to answer to and in the end it's always the insurance co. If you don't have a rider aer in your truck from the insurance co, and the dot finds them in there they WILL put them on a bus home. Go ahead and ask me how I know this!!!

On the other hand I always drove with my dad and he never had a rider agrement. Just jump in the bunk at scales. I have three little sisters who each sent at least the first year of there life in a truck as well.