Report a violation or not?

PULL into the next scale house that is legitmately OPEN.

Show them the failed inspection report and tell them a little birdie sings a song on that poor trailer. Can the kind DOT man start working on that problem and protect you from having to be fired for something that isnt a actual documented fact from a official motor vehicle enforcement agency.

So that when and if you do get fired you will have a copy of that inspection and all the other revelant documentation to take with you to the state unemployment office and explain to them you were told to get loaded with a defective trailer against federal laws that require the vehicle to be fixed prior to loading out.

Follow me?

There are laws against Corection. Laws that are relatively new. In the old days if I had a cheap tightfisted bossman refusing to fix ####... he was a recipeient of a very very expensive and horrifying DOT inspection. I sometimes were fired. But I document everything and go to the state. They take care of it and give me some pay too while i find another company to run for.

As long as being fired over something YOU ARE REQUIRED to do ensuring that truck and trailer has NO defects and protect people's lives out there is not a bad firing at all. You have no fear.

Now...

If you were afraid and rolled with a bad equiptment and something finally snapped on sandstone mountain and you killed three people... You get to sit for 30 years regretting ever taking something broken out while your boss evolves into a 10,000 truck fleet, half which is defective.

 

HORRIBLE ADVICE!!!!!!!

While that might have been a bad option a decade or so ago, once 2010 rolled around and CSA started looking back 3 years that's an excellent way to make yourself unhireable. Even back then, though, it was STILL foolish, because that scale man could still write YOU up for all of the "defects". YOU will be the one placed OOS and stuck at that scale until your boss (who was hesitent to fix the truck at his own shop) gets around to sending out a service truck to fix the truck...might be a few days if the boss wants to make a point of his own, and there you sit at some scale in BFE. Congrats...you really made your point, didn't you?

Absolutely ridiclous that people still throw this out as something to even remotely be considered.

 

I understand you.

Things have changed then I suppose. Especially the revelation about going back 3 years on your particular history of inspections. That's like a form of DAC isnt it?

I guess I'll just amend and delete half of the showboat and simply tell the truckstop mechanic to have at it and start fixing. Everything on that list.

I have done that before with thousands of dollars incurred in a TA a time or two. Called the HQ shop boss for a comcheck to pay the TA Shop and that is when the yelling started. The louder they roared, the softly I repeat, You did not listen to me when I told you this that and other stuff is busted and needing fixed.

And repeat as necessary. They'll stop yelling as soon they run out of oxygen and write the comcheck for that bill to pay.

 

...or they send that comcheck with another driver to relieve you of the truck for having unauthorized work performed on THEIR truck, leaving you to find your own way home.

And like I said, the CSA program is nothing new at this point...fully rolled out in 2010, based off inspection history going back to 2007. Anyone who doesn't know about CSA at this point probably shouldn't be dishing out advice.

 

Indeed.

For those not familiar with me, I have a taste for sort of over the top in writing. I have had situations where they either fixed me, fired me, fixed then fired or any combination of a thousand other possible endings to the sad sick truck that's broken. The best companies fixed me without question. Provided I hit the dealership. Because it's a lease tractor and it needs to be fixed.

I recall one situation most expecially at the state line 76 mm1 between Fla and GA, sat night two am, truck throws the alternator putting me onto battery with bad weather looming in the summer distance. Ugh.

A 18 year old mechanic trainee swapped out the bad alternator with me standing on his shoulder so to speak eyeballing every move he made... And it was TIME TO GO already, #### that time tick tick tick tick.

40 minutes finished. paid in 8 signed thank you. And coffee thermos in 3. GONE.

That was such a epic morning when all things became possible at 15.5 volts.

 

Except most call that truck stop counter b.s.

 

If there is anything a driver should learn how to thoroughly inspect himself,.... It's the BRAKES! This is the most safety critical system on the vehicle. Don't trust a mechanic at a truckstop, know yourself. That way, if something is wrong, you can clearly show why, and make a clear judgement call as to whether to drive or not.

As for pulling up to scales to report..... BAD IDEA! First,... you had to make a decision to drive it in "out of service" condition to get to the scales. Because of that, second...... you will get the tickets!

Also, be aware that slack adjusters have changed a lot of things on how to check brakes. Sometimes THEY malfunction and cause out of adjustment conditions. This can be too much slack, or brake drag from too little slack.

 

Lol this is hilarious, who's going to be my next plan