Hi everybody! I need your advice!

This is interesting. A third party wants to discuss the legal liability of a CDL holder using unvalidated hearsay to which she claims the first person said a company is alleged to be non compliant with the FMCSA DOT Rules part 395 of the safety manual for Regulated Interstate Commerce.

Where as there is no disclaimer to the use of in the terms of this post, prohibiting any legal responsibility for actions taken under advisement by the parties involved in a grievance against the owners and managers of a unknown company being accused of willful knowledge and intent to deceive the federal and state authorities. The legal responsiblity for conducting routine motor vehicle inspection according to guidelines for Commercial Motor Carriers falls on the Driver.

For more information: contact your state department of transportation under the section 1 part 395 regarding driver daily vehicle inspections and out of service violations.

The driver agrees as a certified class A licence holder to place any vehicle with unsafe equipment out of service until a state certified or licenced mechanic repairs or replaces defects that would jeopardize public safety IE broken, worn, malfunction, defective of and or any parts required by law enforcement to be in proper working order.

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov

 

Tell your boyfriend don't walk RUN from this company. The first 3 things you list are ALL illegal. Your boyfriend WILL be held responsible if he gets inspected regardless of who told him to knowingly run illegal. It's his CDL at stake, not his boss's. The last may or may not be legal but at the very least is unethical. Unless your bf intentionally caused the accident with the deer (highly unlikely) there's no reason he should be responsible. That truck is insured. That cargo is insured. Therefore there's no reason for a driver to pay for hitting an animal with the truck. You'll need to hire a lawyer if you want that $1k back.

 

Take a few days off by being sick. Let the paycheck catch up so the company doesn't owe him anything. Find a new job. There's plenty of flatbed companies that are good that will hire him.

SouthernAg Carriers pulls several different types of trailers and has a good reputation.

 

No offense meant to you, Cindy and this is probably NOT what you want to hear, but I don't think your boyfriend is telling you the complete truth, just his side of the story to get emotional support from you.

1. The brake rigging. Does he have brakes, yes or no? If he doesn't have brakes, he has difficulty stopping. If he is driving a truck that has difficulty stopping, he is the biggest fool on the planet and deserves anything that happens to him.

2. Tires. Bad tires are extremely easy to spot. His story is he's holding on to get some back money. That's not a bright move the way the CSA points system works nowadays.

3. They have to have insurance on the truck. They have to carry insurance for the cargo too. He's telling you that he got docked a grand for a cargo claim stemming from a deer hit? What did the deer do...try to jump over the trailer? If damage to the cargo was caused by a deer hit, there should be fur and blood and poop embedded in the cargo. The receiver would note this on the bill of lading. Now, if there was cargo MISSING...that's a whole different story...

Sorry to say Cindy, but it sounds to me like your boyfriend is part of the problem. But what about the money owed? Well, like Chinatown suggested, have him take some time off and get his last paycheck and jump ship.

"But what about the missing grand, Six?"

I would be looking at tomorrow, not today. Any legal issues caused by driving a POS truck will cost the both of you a lot more than $1000. Find another job to keep money rolling and then try to get your money through small claims court. I sure as hell wouldn't keep driving for someone who owes me back pay. That's plain foolish.

 

Well said, but let me dumb this down for the understanding of someone that doesn't really speak legalese:

OP it's on your boyfriend to put the truck out of service if he inspects it and it's not up to standards. If he chooses to drive it after all that is wrong with it and gets inspected, it will be on him and not on the company and HE will be responsible for the tickets. Not the repairs, but the tickets.

 

yeah. Stay there longer, give them more time to screw him over.

 

you sure he's not giving you a line of bull? Might just be him trying to cover up what he's doing.

 

Maybe he blew the G note on a hooka

 

Have him pull the truck into one of those GA scale houses and ask them to inspect the truck. He may need a ride home.