has anyone heard of this regulation? or is this true?

Ohhhhh, I though you were talking pre and post trip checks. Gotcha.

 

As an old company driver setting out on my own as an independent O/O, I fully intend to be 100% compliant with DOT regs so I pass my new Entrant audit. Will I lose out on 15 minutes a day? Yes. But the alternative is fail my audit and get parked for 30-45 days until my numbers are reinstated plus paying astronomical fines.
One can argue semantics of regs all day long. What a company requires and what DOT want may be two dogs of a different color and NO employer can tell you to do something if you feel it is illegal. If you think they are operating or asking you to operate in a gray area, get it in writing so as to cover your gluteous maximus and anal sphincter. Those are the two places the DOT will attack first when you are caught operating outside the regs...and for some reason, the DOT does not offer lube or even the courtesy of a wrap around when they attack.

 

nevermindddddddddddd

 

This is where e-logs are a nice thing. I log what it takes to walk around and check only. No blocks of 15 min stuff anymore. Usually the time is around 7-8 minutes. Sometimes a little less, sometimes a minute or two more.

 

So are we required to flag the 15min or however long it takes at the end of each day? And is the post trip an actual FMCSA rule for single truck operator?

 

There is no FMCSA rule dictating how much time must be spent looking over the vehicle. Not before the shift, and not at the end of the shift. ALL the regulations say is that you cannot drive the vehicle until you are satisfied that it is safe to be driven (which implies you have a look at it before you roll out), and that you have to sign off on the condition of the truck at the end of your shift (daily vehicle inspection report, again implying that you have physically looked the truck over to ensure there are no defects). The amount of time to be logged is NOT specified, other than in accordance with your duty status. If it takes you 15 minutes, you log 15 minutes. If it takes you an hour, you log an hour. If it takes 5 minutes, you flag it as a duty status change.

If the company wants to see a minimum amount of time being spent, then you should spend at least that minimum amount of time looking over the truck so that you are not falsifying your log. They shouldn't be telling you to log a specific amount of time, but rather stating the minimum amount of time they want you to spend performing a given task.

 

My theory is that I'd like to sleep at some point after working 14 hours, so I'll deal with it before driving (and it is more difficult to accurately assess a vehicle when it's hot). Generally, you know what's going on with a vehicle that you drive exclusively, so I think the post trip dvir is more important for slip seating vehicles, and covering your behind, or theirs, in case the other guy doesn't do a pre trip (which never happens, of course).

 

How's that lost time when it is on-duty not driving?