Common Sense?

Illegal operation...find another job...FAST!

 

Well, it's a good rule of thumb that if there's any kind of security measure involved... You should document and involve others when that state changes.

Seal broken? Call someone as soon as you see it.

Seal applied? Write it down on the bills.

Seal removed? Write down the when and have the receiving party sign in.

Carry a pen with you, consider it your new handshake when the deal is done.

That being said... If someone refused to sign or annotate on the bills the change of seal state, I will not back my truck into, or pull my truck out of the dock. They lose money for each minute there's not a dock being used. Even if the freight has already been paid for, the employee wages haven't.

Stand your ground on that one even if they threaten to call the police or tow you. There's no cop that'll give you a ticket for making sure your job is done right.

Some docks I back into don't apply a seal. If it's marked "high value" I won't move until they find an unbroken seal. Otherwise I may apply a seal of my own, call my dispatcher, note it on the bills and then send a Qualcomm message. After that, or at bare minimum, I'll add a padlock.

 

Ah. Okay I see.

No, usually the guard will verify the seal is in tact and wave me on. Some have gone a step further and verified the numbers, but I've never had the guard themselves sign it.

The shipping office? Yes, they usually are the ones to sign that the seal is correct. Otherwise it's one of the dock workers.

If I were you, it sounds like this is coming from your boss...so I would march in there and demand to have the company's policy explain and shown in writing to you. If it's company policy for you, that's one thing; but they need to have it documented so every driver can see it easy.

 

Load securement is always your responsibility unless you're picking up an already sealed trailer. If they won't allow you on the dock while loading notify your dispatch or claims dept. When they're finished, pull up a few feet and climb up there and check the load. Locks or straps are about the only thing you can do with a box.

Most places I go won't auto sign for the seal. You have to ask specifically. If they refuse to sign seal intact, then I sign the seal intact and note the receiver refused to sign for the seal. Notify dispatch and or claims to the situation. That's about all you can do short of refusing to deliver.

 

When you sign the bills write SL&C then your name.
Shipper load and count.

 

Post six and post eight. Words to live by. Also, if you pick up a trailer that is already loaded and sealed, in addition to the "Shipper Load and Count" add "Shipper Sealed" and copy down the number. It SHOULD already be on your paperwork, but SHOULD is not the same as "ALWAYS IS."
CYA all the way in this job, as in most others. If you don't watch your back side, nobody else will.
Don't worry about them telling you it is your inexperience that is a problem. They know your experience level, and you got the job anyway. And just how are you supposed to gain that experience.
I guarantee that neither your boss, nor your dispatcher were born with the knowledge to do their job. They may not want to admit it, or maybe they forgot it, but they were rookies too at one time.
Consider the source and get on with your job.

 

I've done some high value loads, even ones with escorts and I never had a guard look at a seal let alone confirm that it was intact. It was always a dock worker, manager normally who came to the truck, confirmed the seal number and then either told me to break it open or he did it himself.

 

Ever deliver to a WM DC?