Driver's Daily Log
Article by Igor GavricOut of the entire transportation industry, one of the most common issues is regarding this particular form. For most drivers, from the driver's perspective, hours of service regulations can be your best friend or your worst enemy. They direct how many hours you can work, how much time you have to spend resting, how much time you spend on the road, whether you can make your delivery on time all while balancing the safety of drivers and public on the roadways.
As the time goes on, and drivers gain more over the road experience, some learn how to work this form to their advantage, some learn how complicated things can get when things don't add up, some may never understand it fully at all, and for some learn how much they can cost once Ministry of Transportation, Transport Canada and US Department of Transportation get involved.
There is, like in any other industry, a lot of discrepancy regarding the rules at hand. In order to be a successful driver, you must learn all the rules, in every jurisdiction you travel in. For instance, in Canada, from your day's start time, you have 14 hours to complete your work, however, if you take two hours off-duty throughout your day, you're allowed 16 hours to complete your day's work. Basically, you have 14 hours to cram in up to 13 hours driving and up to 14 hours on-duty time (yes, driving time counts to your total on-duty time); while in the USA, you have a strict 14 hour window, where you need to cram in up to 11 hours driving time and up to 14 hours total on-duty time), after which you need to park your truck for 10 hours rest period, of which 8 hours needs to be in the sleeper berth.
Of course, I can babble on about the rules for pages on end, but there is a few rules which I wish to write about today. One is “Enter False or Inaccurate Information on Daily Log”, and the other is concerning Daily Log legibility and issues with properly filling out required information.
Transport Industry still relies on paperwork. While paperwork received at the shipper or consignee can vary, depending on the load you have, it can also vary in format. For the first issue, this format can make it difficult to spot time stamps on your paperwork, and verify their accuracy, which is an important thing all drivers should be doing. Bills of Lading and other invoices like Delivery Receipts, Lumper Receipts, Load Weight (Scale Tickets), etc., mostly have time stamps on them. Before you depart the shipper or consignee, drivers should be checking these time/date stamps, and ensure they match the time they were actually at that particular location. If adjustment is required, a re-print should be issued, or a correction must be made and include a shipper/consignee’s signature (initials) which would validate the changes made on the paperwork. Having a time stamp not match your daily log entry can cost you $490 and 5 CVOR points to you and $490 and 5 CVOR points to your company for allowing you to enter this information into your log. Getting $1000 in fines and 10 CVOR points seems hardly justifiable for something a 2 second check can fix.
When at the truck stop, or any location where you're purchasing services, drivers must ensure the receipt handed to you is not damaged, smudged or covered in any way. Having a mutilated, defaced or damaged receipt can earn you the same amount in fines as a bad time stamp. Ask for a re-print if the receipt is damaged, and once you have an immaculate copy of your receipt, you should consider storing it in your trip envelope, or another safe location that doesn't include your wallet or some place where you might spill coffee on it or otherwise damage it.
Most Flying J and Pilot travel centers offer drivers to print out receipts from another location, and do not include time stamps on their fuel receipts. It is important to record your fuel time correctly in your daily log, even if you do not have the receipt with you. Enforcement has access to this information, and can tell when you're not telling the truth. Print your receipts at every location you're fueling and record the time you fueled in your log right away to avoid confusion later on.
Daily Log legibility issues fines are not all that rare.
Drivers who have messy writing, don't have proper equipment when filling out their logs (ruler, blue or black ball-point pen, clip board, etc.) are going to have this issue.
Having a neatly written log may be the difference in how you are perceived from the authority's perspective. A driver who takes time, fills out all the information on the Daily Log form in a legible manner, and has some sort of a mistake, may just be viewed as such and given a chance to fix it, while a driver who's log is messy, has empty required fields, might be reminded to take more time filling out their log in a way which makes us all cringe. Fines for these issues can start at $305 and 2 CVOR points and end with a $490 fine and 5 CVOR points.
My suggestion, if you have messy writing, is to practice writing and sharpen you penmanship skills a little. Use a ruler, and answer any questions your Daily Log, Daily Vehicle Inspection Report and any other form/box which may be located on your log page.
Parting Words: Before you start jamming the gears, go over your Daily Log and Daily Vehicle Inspection Report. Make sure all the required information is filled in, and proper lines are drawn. Keep your log current with every duty status change. Make sure you properly identify your time stamps and don't enter false or inaccurate information in your daily log, and once you're done your day, before putting your log away, make sure you've filled out all the information asked of you. Doing a once-over on your logs can help you steer clear of fines and out of service suspensions. Remember, your logs are kept on file for at least 6 months after you've handed them in at your place of employment. Always assume an audit will take place. That should be enough to keep you in check.
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