Off-duty driving question

No, I'm saying safety auditors don't seem to have a problem with it as long as it is used in a sensible and prudent manner. In Virginia, it is illegal for unmarried couples to co-habitate. So why don't you get busy and go round them all up and put them on a firing line because I don't think the Virginia cops are too busy enforcing that law either.

It's "illegal" to drive with a tire that has a flat spot on it, but it's being done thousands of times across the nation as you read this and drivers are not being hauled off to jail en masse. Yes, they could be stopped and fined but they could also awaken in the bed of 8 beautiful 18 year-old female virgins, too. See my point?

I'm just saying "lighten up for Christ's sake". What, you think if you get caught "Driving Off Duty While Laden" they are going to jail you, withhold bail, and call in a judge who is going to immediately sentence you to death, all because you wanted to wash a load of clothes or go to Walmart for groceries on your 10?

 

The only issue l see to the OP question is that the company "told him to drive" while off duty..thats where the line should be drawn..

 

You dont say if you were out of hours but l guess and say you were,with a loaded trl,you are always on line 3 everytime it moves.

 

You're the one that needs to "lighten up, Francis." No one has suggested anything remotely close to what you are dreaming up. There is a vast difference between giving someone the correct information (which is: no, there is no legal provision to do what he said his company asked him to do) and saying, "this is what we do at my company..." Your company's experience is completely irrelevant with respect to this issue for a driver at another company. Although your company has decided it is an acceptable practise and, by your claim, auditors have allowed it (have you been part of said audits and privy to discussions with the auditors regarding same, or is this just what you have "heard," or are inferring?). BTW, while I am just about the furthest you can get from any of the "chicken little" or "doom & gloom" types you get around here, IF the SHTF at any point and it can be tied in any way to the (common?) practise of your carrier to violate a specific rule, you will break your neck trying to watch how quickly the aforementioned auditors will distance themselves from the company and the company in turn will distance itself from any involved driver.

None of your fantasy outcomes will happen, but a driver can be subject to as little as a citation (warning), possibly a time-out (OOS), or a violation (which can vary from not much to fairly severe for falsifying their logbook), but you should present the correct information so a driver can make their own decisions in that regard.

 

It is important for all drivers to read,understand,and (follow),optional.the FMCSA rules as they are written,no matter what the company or other drivers say..I carry the green pocket book bible with me at all times..But l have to ask myself sometimes...Who pays me ?..you sign the check,l might breakout another log book...hehe

 

Yes, driver exceed the speed limit all the time. Every once in a while a cop with a stick where the sun don't shine gives one a ticket.

It's up to every driver how much they want to break the law, what risk they want to take. It's their license, not yours, not mine. If I choose to drive 57, but not 58, and certainly not 60 (In california, with the 55 mph speed limit) then that is my business, and my decision, my risk. If you choose to do 62, but no more, that that is yours. If a driver wants to never do more than 55, that's his business. But if a driver asks if it is legal to drive above the speed limit, if there is a certain cut off point under which the police can not give a ticket, or a legal buffer built in, then no, the answer is that there is not, and yes, you can get a ticket for driving 56 in a 55. No, it likely will not happen in a lifetime of driving.

The same applies to HOS regulations and off duty driving. You might do it, millions of others might do it, thousands of cops might turn a blind eye to it, many companies may be under the impression that doing it this certain way is legal. If the OP chooses to break the law, no one is telling him that the feds are coming after him with their full weight. But, there is that chance that someone could rear end him, his logs could get reviewed, and if if is showing line 1 or line 5, he could get a ticket for a logbook violation, I do believe that would be falsifying log books. Will it happen? No, probably not. Could it happen? Could it have a negative impact on whether he keeps his current job or his future employment prospects? Certainly. So we give him the facts, and let him decide.

Now stop being such a drama queen.

 

One question for STexan: Have you ever had your logbook checked while you were pulling a loaded trailer and your duty status was "Off Duty"?
I doubt any cop looking to write a ticket would let that pass. Your company cannot make it's own laws. If the regional DOT auditor at your company let's the off-duty driving time slip by, good for your company. The auditor has limited time and tends to look at accidents and drivers who use cash receipts for fuel to avoid time matching logs. They don't scour every log.

We all choose which laws we break every day, we get your point, why you beating this dead horse so much?

 

Prom Noght Dumpster Baby..lmfao !! Excellent..

 

It's not a big deal until it is. If you get into an accident while driving off the clock with a load you're not gonna get a slap on the wrist.