Good idea to carry common parts like mudflaps and lights,also fuel filters and a few tools.Also recommend a book of blank invoices so you can bill the company for your time.
i'm sorry, what? no, but in all seriousness, i've said the same thing before. Charge the driver $50 for dropping a trailer that isnt 100% legal. If there is a tire that needs replaced, or a hinge that needs fixed...the least i'll do is send in a breakdown macro to get someone to the final i'm at dropping said trailer within a few hours. I'll also let ECT know i'm not staying (if time dont permit) and wait 2+ hrs for service to show up. I'll have done my part to get the trailer fixed, let the security guys know on the way out that the trailer i dropped needs work, what that work is, and that someone should be here within an hour or two to work on it. dont forget about a nice cordless drill to put in your truck, otherhalf. Sometimes you can take those existing mudflaps, drill a hole in the other end, and rehang it. i've done that before.....takes forever.....but sure gets the miles out of them.
It's illegal, in most cases, to "dock" a W-2 employee's pay. That said, you have to get someone to actually follow up on any procedure that's set forth to enforce fines like this anyway, and since we don't actually matter, who would care enough to do that?
I carry a cordless drill and a leather punch. Both work fine. Sometimes I'll carry oversized washers when I get my hands on them. Then reuse the old broken holes. That works too.
i was to p/u an mt trailer at one of our yards last month, when i checked the dot sticker on the trailer the date on it was 01 of 2007....! last year (it's 01/01/11 now) i had 8 fedex loads that were late because i had to take the loaded trailer to the shop for repairs and 10 loads that were almost late. that works out to $8,000 (after tax) that my wife and i didn't make last year all because some Dipstick WOULDN'T do their job. i think back charging drivers $75 for NOT DOING THEIR JOB is a good idea after all it is a log book violation..? pre/post trip..... i always call in a bad trailer and i tag them OUT OF SERVICE
aaaah....more and more lazy drivers with the "Wendy's" philosophy for getting a paycheck. By that, i mean you can see it at any Wendy's fast food joint. There is always a few back there who do just want needs to be done, to eek by and get a paycheck. There could be 20 boxes that need broke down and taken to the dumpster, but they'd rather ignore that, along with paying customers, to text "LOL" on their cell phone. the OP does have a valid point...as well as flood. 'working drivers' post trip their trailer. professional drivers will call it in and get it worked on, so it wont be OoS for the next driver to get screwed on. flood does have a valid point. you, the driver, say you post-tripped a trailer, which, if it had a tire off the bead, or non-working trailer lights, or a door with a broken seal or hinge....you didnt do what you said you did, and thus IT IS a logbook violation. its pretty simple........DO YO JOB.
Sorry dude, but hit these losers where it hurts...in the pocket book, other wise they will never change. The lack of common courtesy out here is bad enough, but when a fellow driver that works for the company can't take a few minutes out of his time to do a post trip on a trailer and notify maintenance that something is deficient on the equipment then there should be a fine of some sort. Companies that I have worked for that institute this type of program...things change drastically pretty quickly.