First dot level one inspection!

382.303

But they use the term "as soon as practicable". I think they do this much like their disclaimer that in no way should post accident testing interfere with needed medical care so people do not get held up because they are waiting to pee.

The only time mentioned is if your ticketed inside of 8 hoursor 32 hours.



§ 382.303Post-accident testing.
(a) As soon as practicable following an occurrence involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public road in commerce, each employer shall test for alcohol for each of its surviving drivers:

(1) Who was performing safety-sensitive functions with respect to the vehicle, if the accident involved the loss of human life; or

(2) Who receives a citation within 8 hours of the occurrence under State or local law for a moving traffic violation arising from the accident, if the accident involved:

(i) Bodily injury to any person who, as a result of the injury, immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene of the accident; or

(ii) One or more motor vehicles incurring disabling damage as a result of the accident, requiring the motor vehicle to be transported away from the scene by a tow truck or other motor vehicle.

(b) As soon as practicable following an occurrence involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public road in commerce, each employer shall test for controlled substances for each of its surviving drivers:

(1) Who was performing safety-sensitive functions with respect to the vehicle, if the accident involved the loss of human life; or

(2) Who receives a citation within thirty-two hours of the occurrence under State or local law for a moving traffic violation arising from the accident, if the accident involved:

(i) Bodily injury to any person who, as a result of the injury, immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene of the accident; or

(ii) One or more motor vehicles incurring disabling damage as a result of the accident, requiring the motor vehicle to be transported away from the scene by a tow truck or other motor vehicle.

(c) The following table notes when a post-accident test is required to be conducted by paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(2), (b)(1), and (b)(2) of this section:

 

While I was not at fault, I have been involved in three crashes where at least one vehicle had to be towed. I asked the officers who investigated the accidents as well as my company's insurance adjuster on the scene. In every case I was told I didn't need to be tested. I thought since two were injury accidents I would need to be tested, but was told I was fine. Personally, I would have thought the company would have had me tested for their own protection.

Before anyone gets the idea that somehow I contributed let me explain the three. The first I was bobtail waiting to make a left turn when a drunk, unlicensed driver rearended me while I was bobtail. The second I was cruising along in the right lane, when an SUV in the far inside lane lost control trying to avoid something in the road. She crossed three lanes of traffic and ran under my trailer, bounced out and back across the road. The last was when I stopped to avoid hitting a sofa in the middle of I-75 at Chattanooga. The truck behind me also stopped, but the truck behind him didn't.

 

By definition you should have been, and just me personally I would have gone and gotten my own because of possible lawsuits.

Not sure why your company didn't. If it was local cops they are in general ignorant of testing regulations for CDL holders. But your company should have known better.

 

I don't think your being truthful. If you are you are very inconsiderate of others having your dog pee and crap on the parking lot. Have you ever accidentally layed on your dogs crap? Please quit having your dog doing her business where we park at. That goes for you other drivers as well. No need to pee on the parking lots.

 

Think of this sammy, you may be not be on drugs or other stuff , but think of this , every time you opean a bottle nyquil that is a drug or pain pills , any over the counter medicine is a drug, heck even some health food's is a drug, like mushrooms and if you get the wroung one , o -boy, but yes sammy you are right , and glad you got outa there okay beside what you got ,i myself went for drug test myself an i was rolling hard on 80 , cause this was a repower and due yesterday, beep beep goes quail com, go too lincoln, go to the clinic to get drug tested, someboby drew my number and it wasnt a lotto number, so i called up dispacth, parked the truck caught a cab , all outa my pocket, if they let me go too omha too snap brothers , they had the place too do it there, but no i had too stop now and do it. no please lower the caps that yelling in here thanks

 

Accident Kit, maybe, drug kit - no... this would lead to the idea it was tampered with. DOT provides the screening so it is all nice and legal.

Mark

 

But if he is one of the few people that actually does a proper inspection on the trailer, he will in all likely hood find problems with it. This will cause major delays, and a loss of the 10 cents per mile carriers pay, and guarantees he will run out of hours. In the mean time, someone who does not really care, will get rolling down the road in no time make lots of money, and just pass the trailer on to the next guy.

Don't get me wrong. I know this is the totally wrong attitude to have, but carriers really don't care if their tractors are up to spec. They care about moving freight. When they do get hit because the trailers are falling apart they will just blame the little guy, and say he didn't to a proper pretrip. In the meantime, you are just kind of rolling the dice, and hoping for the best.

If there were only a way the DOT could ban all mega carriers, and claim they were inherently unsafe, things might change. Then owner operators would rule the road, the world would be full of rainbows.


my 2 cents

 

You mentioned that at the inspection you passed and 3 hrs later your wheel seal blew, but they wrote you up for it? Wheel seal leaks are something you should watch for. If it was fresh then you should have left the yard and straight to the shop. Takes about 30 min.

If the Brake pads are at a minimum, cleaning would not help, but if the wheel seal is blown then the oil is on the outside of the rim. Easy to spot.

Power steering fuel leak - this is on the tractor not the trailer, so it was missed during your Pre/post PTI's?

Mark