Broke a fence while backing, how much trouble am I in ?

They ain't gonna do the right thing by replacing a couple boards.

If it's your typical Home Depot fence, they sell the whole 6 foot panel and that's how it will be repaired. With labor you are probably looking at $300-400. That's if the bonehead doesn't push for a whole new fence saying the color won't match or something.

When I was in training I was in the sleeper. My 60 year female trainer woke me up at the customer after driving all night. She begged me to back the trailer because she was too tired. Sure I crawled out of the bunk while she went outside. I could see she was lined up wrong. I also seen a ragged out weatherhead around the dock. It was ripped, the top was hanging way down. Just a piece of garbage.

Anyways, she waved me frantically back even though I wanted to do a pull up. I backed up maybe 8" off center and all I did was crack a 2 foot piece of 2x4 that was jury rigged holding the side of the weatherhead. I didn't even break it, just cracked it and had no proof at that because I recentered.

Instead of just replacing that little 2x4, I had to buy them a whole new weatherhead to the tune of $440. Maybe it was the company, maybe the customer?

I didn't get in trouble other than a tongue lashing. No report, no nothing but being ripped off. That made me mad and the fact my trainer didn't stand up for me even though she contributed to the situation.

Werner might be a little more trigger happy because of their size. It's impossible to read their mind. But it's your job to contact safety and take pictures. They'll advise you to call the law or not, on private property. Don't take that step on your own. Your employee handbook should cover what to do.

But at minimum, you can expect to pay out a couple hundred and a tongue lashing.

Learn from your mistakes. It could of been alot worse.

Let us know how it turns out. Good luck!

 

Whats HOS have to do with anything? The 50% unsafe driving is way more eye catching. As I and many others have said before new HOS rules, e-logs and the like wont stop deaths.

 

Once again, a non driver like you giving out such an opinion. I'd hate to see what you do, (if you ever become a driver) and come here crying about it.

I think that "most probationary periods" are for about 90 days. Some companies 6 months.

What you need to understand is what anyone will do, in order to get more "bang for the buck". Yes, maybe all of $40 to repair the few sticks that are broken, but if that fence was weak LONG BEFORE you hit it, the store will have a new one installed, and what can your company say to disprove the fence was in good shape BEFORE the accident ?

Nothing.

The company will pay out the claim.

As stated, always take LOTS of pictures. You did your best, and also as stated GET OUT AND LOOK, (GOAL) ALL the time, as you NEVER want to take anything for granted.

You will do fine, you will NOT be fired, but you might have to go through some sort of safety class next time you get to the home terminal.

Good luck to you, and please let us know how you make out with this.

 

One cannot, as there were no pictures taken before or after arriving. I know you were just making a statement, not really asking.

 

The head of safety at Werners main terminal in Az is a real DB.Mark fired my son for hard braking on a test.Hope you don't get called in there.My son's twin brother worked for Swift.Swift is much more forgiving,they allow 3 preventables before termination.Let us know the outcome.

 

Maybe we should start a new thread on here..."How many #### ups can I have before I get fired at so and so companies?"

Seriously, why on earth would a new driver need to look into how many preventable accidents a company allows before termination? I thought the goal here was NOT to run #### over?

 

I lol'd. You are like a kid trying to get papa's attention. I notice you son. Now go play with your toys.

 

There are two kinds of accidents. The first, are the accidents that make you a better driver/employee. Lucky for you, you learned via a few pieces of wood. The second are the kind that cannot be easily overlooked. For example, jack-knifing, fatality accidents, roll-over when shifting isn't involved, and so on.

Turn your accident into a positive thing by learning from it. If you don't, you'll find yourself in similar situations in the future. I think companies that hire new drivers, kind of expect small things like this to happen. It's when you start making them a habit.

To give you a piece of mind, my trainer, when a newb worked for werner. His first month on the job he crushed his cab going under a low clearance bridge. Ultimately, he kept his job, and it made him a better driver. Now, he has 5 years of experience, and is a good driver/trainer.

 

Wrong...