{"id":2171,"date":"2019-10-15T20:45:10","date_gmt":"2019-10-15T20:45:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/?p=2171"},"modified":"2019-10-15T20:45:12","modified_gmt":"2019-10-15T20:45:12","slug":"how-to-carriers-ensure-stay-violation-free-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/how-to-carriers-ensure-stay-violation-free-part-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Carriers Ensure Stay Violation-Free \u2013 Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Welcome to Part II of our important series on violations. In <a href=\"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/how-to-ensure-carriers-stay-violation-free-part-i\/\">Part I<\/a>, we left off discussing Part 382 of the regulations. This is a big category \u2013 and has accounted for over 20 percent of acute violations so far this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>                                                [wp_ad_camp_2]           <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The key takeaway is this: if you\u2019re a motor carrier that\noperates trucks with a GVWR\/GVCR of 26,001 pounds or more, then the drivers of\nthose trucks must be enrolled in a DOT-compliant drug and alcohol testing\nprogram. This program must include a pre-employment drug test for every new\ndriver and enrollment in a random drug testing program, as well as\npost-accident, reasonable suspicion, return to duty and follow up tests, as needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A key part of any DOT-compliant drug and alcohol testing\nprogram is the enrollment of all drivers in a scientifically random selection\npool that meets the selection requirements set by the FMCSA. To be a true\nrandom selection program, every driver needs to have the same chances of being\npulled for a drug or alcohol test every time there\u2019s a selection for your\ncompany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2019, this has been the third most common acute\nviolation, accounting for over 12% of all violations. As you might expect, drug\nand alcohol violations typically result in a higher fine amount. For this\nviolation, the average fine has been over $9,000 this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Other Serious Violations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>An even more serious violation (according to FMCSA data), is\nusing a driver without having a negative pre-employment result on file. This\nwas the second most common critical violation for 2019 so far, accounting for\nalmost 10%of all violations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to regulation 382.301(a), employers are required\nto send all new drivers for a pre-employment drug test and wait for the\nnegative result before allowing the driver on the road. The one big exemption\nhere, is if the driver was enrolled in a DOT-compliant testing program within\nthe previous 30 days and was tested for drug use within the past six months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some other common violations related to the drug and alcohol\ntesting requirements resulted from: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Using a driver who tested positive for a drug\n(382.215)<\/li><li>Using a driver who refused to take a drug or\nalcohol test (382.211)<\/li><li>Failing to do random drug and\/or alcohol tests\nat the applicable annual rate (382.305(b))<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The best way to prevent a regulation Part 382 violation is\nto ensure you have all the key pieces of a drug and alcohol testing program in\nplace. To stay compliant, all safety sensitive employees must take a\npre-employment drug test prior to beginning work with your company and be\nenrolled in a scientifically random drug and alcohol testing program that tests\nat the rate set by the FMCSA. You must also provide post-accident, reasonable\nsuspicion, return-to-duty and follow-up testing as required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rather than managing all of these requirements, as well as the administrative functions, many carriers choose to partner with a DOT-compliant drug and alcohol testing provider that understands the regulations and will provide you and your drivers with a comprehensive program that will keep you compliant. Provided you work with a reputable provider, this partner will manage all aspects of your program, from policy creation to the random selection process, to help keep our roadways safe and ensure you\u2019re not at risk for a drug and alcohol testing violation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>                                                [wp_ad_camp_2]           <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On January 6, 2020, motor carriers will be required to\nreport all nonnegative test results to the Drug &amp; Alcohol Clearinghouse &#8211;\nas well as query the Clearinghouse both before and during a driver\u2019s\nemployment. To ensure you stay compliant, it\u2019s important that you partner with\na provider that understands this new regulation, as well as the privacy laws\nthat impact it. Are you prepared to be clearinghouse compliant?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Examining Part 391<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ecfr.gov\/cgi-bin\/retrieveECFR?gp=1&amp;ty=HTML&amp;h=L&amp;mc=true&amp;=PART&amp;n=pt49.5.391\">Part\n391<\/a> of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations deals with the\nqualification of drivers to ensure that every CDL driver who is operating on\npublic roadways has the required training, credentials and safety record. To\ncomply with the requirements of this section, employers are required to both\ngather a variety of documents from the driver and run a series of background\nscreens. All this information is then organized into two folders that must be\nmaintained for the duration of the driver\u2019s employment, as well as three years\nthereafter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Inquiries into Employment Record Not Kept in Driver\nQualification File (391.51(b)(2)) is the third most common critical violation\nfor 2019 so far, with employers either not completing the prior employer\ninquiry, or not filing the documentation in the correct place. To comply with\nregulation Part 391, all inquiries into a driver\u2019s previous employment must be\nwell documented and filed as part of their Safety Performance History. Because\nof the sensitive nature of the information contained within this file, it must\nbe kept in a secure location that is only accessible to those who are directly\ninvolved in the hiring process for your company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Failing to Maintain a Driver Qualification File on Each\nDriver (391.51(a)) is another big one. The driver qualification file isn\u2019t\nsimply a pre-hire process, it\u2019s a file that must be updated throughout the\nduration of a driver\u2019s employment. Confusion over that point \u2013 as well as the\nlack of an organizational system to alert carriers when an update is required \u2013\nmeans that many carriers don\u2019t have complete driver files for every driver they\nemploy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each file must contain a variety of important documents,\nincluding the driver\u2019s DOT application, motor vehicle report (updated\nannually), CDL, medical card and prior employer verifications. Every time a\ndocument is set to expire, it must be updated within the file to ensure it\nstays compliant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another big hit in this section is a lack of a medical\ncertificate in your driver qualification file. Given how important physical\nhealth is to both the safety of your drivers and the roadways, regulation Part\n391 requires that a legible copy of the truck driver\u2019s medical certificate be\nkept in the driver qualification file. This document must be kept current and\nreplaced with the driver\u2019s updated document each time it\u2019s renewed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Related to this violation, is the need for drivers to have a\ncopy of their medical certificate on them each time they drive. Although not\nspecific to audits, this has been one of the top roadside inspection violations\nthis year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, we get to using an unqualified truck driver. The\ngeneral qualifications of drivers in Part 391.11 outlines the basic requirements\ndrivers must meet in order to legally operate a commercial motor vehicle. These\ninclude being at least 21 years old, being able to speak and write English and\nhaving the training required to safely operate a CMV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Truck drivers must also meet the minimum physical\nrequirements, which will be vetted out by a DOT medical examiner when they go\nfor their medical card. Although these violations are quite common, they can be\neasily avoided through the driver file creation process. The DOT compliant\napplication, and the requirement to get a copy of the driver\u2019s medical card,\nwill help you determine whether a driver meets DOT qualification requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Key is Prevention<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The key to staying compliant with all the requirements of\nregulation Part 391 is a good organizational system \u2013 or a partner that can\nmanage the requirements on your behalf. If you\u2019re opting to manage the files\nyourself, make sure you have a checklist of all the required documents so that\nnothing slips through the cracks during the pre-hire process. Then, have an\nalert system in place so that you\u2019re reminded well in advance of CDL and\nmedical card expiration dates, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>An easier route is to utilize an electronic driver file\nmanagement system which will help create and manage files for you. For best results,\nmake sure you use a system that will provide instant alerts and notifications\nwhen a driver file is incomplete, or a document needs to be updated. This will\nhelp you stay on top of these important tasks without it consuming too much of\nyour time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a motor carrier, safety is a top priority for your\ncompany. And yet, as the data shows, even a commitment to operating a safe\nfleet doesn\u2019t mean that complying with all the FMCSA regulations is an easy\ntask. As you\u2019ll recall from the beginning of Part I of this series, only six\npercent of carriers have passed an audit without a violation in 2019 so far.\nThe rest have been dinged for at least one issue \u2013 many of which we\u2019ve outlined\nhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To have the best chance of ending up in that six percent, we recommend working with a compliance partner that has the regulatory expertise, technology and customer support to help your business thrive. Find someone who has an electronic compliance portal to allow carriers to manage their truck driver files and drug and alcohol testing requirements online, while still providing them with the one-on-one compliance support needed when questions arise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>                                                [wp_ad_camp_2]           <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In fact, carriers who use portals such as these don\u2019t have\nto worry about any of the violations described in this blog series \u2013 between\nthe back-end support and compliance alerts, transportation companies receive\nthe information they need to keep their company violation-free. Are you doing\neverything you can? Think about it and thanks for joining us in this blog\nseries!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to Part II of our important series on violations. In Part I, we left off discussing Part 382 of the regulations. This is a big category \u2013 and has accounted for over 20 percent of acute violations so far this year. [wp_ad_camp_2] The key takeaway is this: if you\u2019re a motor carrier that operates &#8230; <a title=\"How to Carriers Ensure Stay Violation-Free \u2013 Part II\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/how-to-carriers-ensure-stay-violation-free-part-ii\/\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">How to Carriers Ensure Stay Violation-Free \u2013 Part II<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-trucking"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v18.4.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Carriers Ensure Stay Violation-Free \u2013 Part II - Quick Transport Solutions Trucking Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/how-to-carriers-ensure-stay-violation-free-part-ii\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Carriers Ensure Stay Violation-Free \u2013 Part II - Quick Transport Solutions Trucking Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Welcome to Part II of our important series on violations. In Part I, we left off discussing Part 382 of the regulations. This is a big category \u2013 and has accounted for over 20 percent of acute violations so far this year. [wp_ad_camp_2] The key takeaway is this: if you\u2019re a motor carrier that operates ... 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In Part I, we left off discussing Part 382 of the regulations. This is a big category \u2013 and has accounted for over 20 percent of acute violations so far this year. [wp_ad_camp_2] The key takeaway is this: if you\u2019re a motor carrier that operates ... 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