Hi Everyone, My name is George and I live in Upstate New York. I am seriously considering a career change and I have been considering getting my CDL. I have a few questions I was hoping to get answered or at least some input. I have been a computer field technician for 7 years until I was laid off in May. I had been putting 150 to 300 miles a day on my car and I really enjoyed the freedom of being on the road and not having a boss watching over my back all the time. I have been having a hard time finding a job in the computer industry again but I was getting tired of them anyway and looking for a change. I have really come to miss turning on my Sirius satellite radio and driving. I enjoy driving and have been running a 150 mile radius for the past 15 years in a non-commercial vehicle. I am somewhat of a loner with no wife or children so I do not think being away form home is that big a deal for me. Now that I have given you a little background, hopefully you can give me some better informed input. My first question is regarding my criminal record. Fourteen years ago I was convicted of a non-violent, non-motor vehicle related felony. Grand larceny to be exact. Is this going to be an insurmountable obstacle in the trucking industry? It has be very troublesome in the computer field. My second is a question about riders. I have seen that some companies allow passengers but it seems to only be children or spouses? Do companies ever allow friends to ride along? I short, I guess I am asking if there are companies who will me drive for them with a non-spouse passenger while having a prior felony conviction on their record. I just want to thank everyone and anyone who responds or takes a minute to read my blabbering. I hope yo all have a great day and thanks for your time. Respectfully, George D.
While I can't attest to anything regarding your larceny charge, I can vouch for the passenger policies. This policy will vary from one company to another, but there are companies that do allow you to have any passenger over 18 on the truck with you. When I was with PAM I took my girlfriend at the time with me on a couple different occasions. All I had to do was have her sign a passenger release form and pay for additional insurance that covered her. I had to carry that passenger release form with me the entire time she was on the truck. This was in case of any emergency situation that could have happened. Also, DOT would require it upon request to verify that the passenger wasn't supposed to be a co-driver.
