Documents I need to carry in the truck?

Seat belt - the seat belt should be up to date as of the date of manufactor ( built in 75 / up to date in 75 ) , now that said if its wore out ( buclkles and snap ) then those are a citation)
As far as a road , yea - insurance registration , just like your car.
( even if its only a 100 yards)

 

When going onto a city street/road/highway etc., the yard dog legally should be licensed/tag/plates, all the paperwork for any commercial vehicle would have. As for the trailer, a bill of lading, registration, proper placards displayed, etc.,

 

I hauled new spotters sometimes called terminal tractors from the factory, Tico brand for a couple years. There was standard and DOT models. The DOT was a streetable one it came with safety equipment, triangles, fire ext. and a lot more paperwork. But I've delivered non DOT ones to companies that were driving sometimes a mile or more to a drop lot . I guess it's whatever the local law will put up with.

 

Rabies vaccination card.

 

Yeah thats a tricky situation and you very well could have special rules as far as logs and BOLs but Id think you would have to be responsible for any mechanical issues if you were stopped or in an accident. Do they have you moving Hazmat placarded trailers? That would increase the likelitude of being stopped or having a spill or problems and most certainly you would need the BOLs.

Id inquire about this with the safety dept. Through email is best because they will be a lot less likely to bs you because that is admissible in court. You would still be responsible at the end of the day but any safety dept has to be careful how they instruct employees. Don’t rely on management or even other drivers as this is a new thing for that location and they might be unsure themselves.

 

Don’t need logs on that short of a distance, yes you SHOULD have a BOL, but when I yard dogged in a similar situation when I was 18, we never carried a BOL. We carried all other paperwork however. As far as how concerned you should be, it all comes down to how far the warehouse and yard is apart and where. 7 miles apart in Cali? Better have your ducks in a row like any road truck. A mile apart in rural Kentucky? You’ll be fine.

 

Do you want the technical answer or the real-world situational answer?

Technically speaking when you put a CMV on the highway you are supposed to have all the legals required of an OTR truck. There should be an inspection sticker on it. You need proof of insurance. Legally there should be an IFTA sticker as well as a single state documentation. (the IFTA and single state might have some state-by-state exceptions). You will NOT need to keep logs, but you are required to have the means to keep track of your on duty time. (395.1(e)(1)(iv)) This can be satisfied by something as simple as a time card.

Real-world, just ask your boss and follow what they tell you. The only time I ever saw a yard dog pulled over was at the Mars plant in New Jersey coming out of an off-plant place where they staged trailers. In that case, I have no idea why the driver was stopped. I can only guess there was something wrong with the trailer.