Off duty vs sleeper berth

I’m sure you’re probably right about the regs, but that doesn’t make a lick of sense. Why bother having sleeper berth as a legal thing if you can log off duty?

 

I guess I forgot my own post. Oops!

 

We are talking laws. Logic has no place there.
And to be honest I would like to see sleeper go away. Off duty is off duty. Where one is off duty should not matter.

 

I think the only reason why line 2 still exists is because of the way the 8 and 2 split break works; it makes you log line 2 sleeper birth for 8 hours consecutively to use the split break.

 

So I can drive from Miami to Sacramento in a day cab and not have to produce any hotel receipts? How will a dot officer or scale house respond if inspected?

 

They have no right to ask you for receipts from anything you do during your off duty time.
You could off stayed with a friend or even a girl Friend...
they have no right to ask you for personal information from non commercial unregulated time.

 

The regulations DO NOT have to make sense. And using logic is NOT a good way to understand them. The regs say what they say and you will/may be judged by them, or what the officer remembers, when you are in the truck. 90% of the answers you will get online about what the regs allow ARE NOT based on the regs. The answers online usually are "my first company allowed us to do X" or "my trainer said I could do X." Copying a mistake that was taught to you by your first company or your first trainer does not protect you.

The regs require your logs be accurate. The logs give you 4 options (Driving, On-Duty Not Driving, Sleeper Berth, Off-Duty). There are regs concerning each of those status. BEWARE, someone telling you they haven't gotten a ticket for doing/not doing something IS NOT the same as proving that thing is legal. For example, driving 10 over the speed limit is illegal and getting somewhere without getting a ticket doesn't make it legal or prove you won't get a ticket for doing it.

 

I would remind to take a look at 395.11. (g) that states >>>
(g) Supporting documents at roadside. (1) Upon request during a roadside inspection, a driver must make available to an authorized Federal, State, or local official for the official's review any supporting document in the driver's possession.

(2) A driver need not produce a supporting document under paragraph (g)(1) of this section in a format other than the format in which the driver possesses it.

Take special note of that term (in the driver's possession). Based on this I would suggest a DOT officer's request to see a hotel receipt would be legit. However, be aware there is no legal requirement anywhere that I know of in title 49 CFR that mandates you stay in a hotel. @brian991219 should pipe in here later on that topic. Because rule 395 is the rule that covers HOS it can be argued a driver should produce anything IN THEIR POSSESSION that supports their logs.