sleeper requirements

There is no requirement to sleep in a hotel,
or a motel.

Not in a bed,
or on your head.

You could sleep in a home,
or with a gnome,
or under a dome.

There is no requirement to sleep in a tent,
nor even to say, where in the night you spent.

No sir, not at all driver,
so get on with your day and send me a fiver.

 

Yeah moose, there isn't taking a fifth in trucking. Not every state abides by the federal regs, they can and often have additional regs on top of the Feds.

I tell my drivers don't be an idiot, they ask a question, answer it and back it up with proof because cops can ruin a driver's day by telling them they ain't going anywhere for ten hours and there isn't a thing a driver can do until it goes to court.

I know a few of the michigan and Indiana cops and they tell me stories of idiot drivers who just don't get it. These drivers try to make their job harder and they will make the drivers day hell if a driver pushes too hard back.

By the way, I know a lot of drivers who have been asked about where they slept, and had gotten false log tickets because they could not produce proof. You guys may not have, but it has happened.

 

I don't answer questions I don't have to (regardless if verbal or written).

It's happened several times.

Never been put OOS.

Even when the scale master looked like he was gonna stroke out because he was so mad.

Drivers get false log tickets because they try and outsmart enforcement and give false information. That's dumb.

 

You are correct. Even with eld I logged off duty and I have a sleeping bag in the back of my pick up. There are no requirements to sleep you just have to be off duty for 10 hours. Could spend it in a casino gambling. Also it’s not false log for sleeping in the back of a pick up and logging off duty. Your logging off duty not sleeper berth so the sleeper berth requirements don’t apply. Been logging off duty and never have been asked where I slept last night.

 

Not answering a question you're not required to does not equal being confrontational. That's the part guys that get themselves into trouble get wrong. But you have to know the rules and have the confidence that you know them as well as the other guy. I've even told them why I won't answer a specific question or provide specific information... because I don't have to. But I do it calmly and in carefully measured words.* Sometimes they grumble, sometimes they laugh, one guy subjected me to his poetry... it wasn't too bad.

*Except for the scale master when I said that if I told him my secret it wouldn't be a secret anymore. But I like occasionally poking the bear.

 

Don’t you know. He is never wrong.

 

Exactly correct, I’ve had to disagree with dot officers before. Most important is to do it with respect and be sure you are correct. I’ve done so calmly and knew I was right because I made sure that was the case before operating. One instance was not having a cab card because I’m registered under 26k and not having a CDL. My gcwr was 24,500 even though my trailer has 3 7k axles it was down rated by the manufacture to 14k plus my trucks gvwr of 10,500. The officer pointed to the 3 axles which are 7k each and I pointed right above where it states 14k gvwr and told him that’s exactly why I bought this trailer. He ended up letting me go without any violations.

 

I will say this much. I no longer drive. In fact, I am not even allowed to drive none Commercial Vehicles. If I were still an active driver and had to give up my right to remain silent when being questioned because of fear of peeving off a DOT cop to the point of being held up for hours, well that's the day I hang up the keys. I used to operate OTR as a drive-a-way operator AND as a recovery driver. In the years I did this I can't ever remember being asked for a hotel receipt EVER! I know this is difficult to grasp, but there is NO rule that says you must stay in a hotel or for that matter account for your off duty time. If a driver is getting a false log ticket for this they also did something else or they were an idiot for not fighting it.

 

At one time, the rule actually read that there had to be a letter but it was not required to be in the driver's possession nor was it required to be kept on file at the carrier. Truth. I remember that because of how stupid it is.