I guess I don't understand the question. No matter. Why is running legal a CYA thing? If the posted limit is 65 and the rest are running 75 why is my refusing to run illegal and informing dispatch of the problem CYA?
So you want to stay with the deflected tangential issue. OK, fine.
Because if you fail to inform dispatch of the problem and you are falling behind because of something the others are doing, and something happens to the load, then dispatch will look at you as being the odd man out and the one responsible for falling behind and possibly the one responsible for whatever happened to the load. I'm not saying that you shouldn't CYA by informing dispatch. Just the opposite, that CYA is the smart and prudent thing to do.
How is that falling behind?
Either you're keeping up, or you're falling behind. It's pretty cut and dry. If they're speeding and you're not, then you're falling behind.
They were breaking the law, not us. Should my truck be required to break the law to "keep up"?
Of course not.
Would you run illegal to "keep up"?
Newp
Smart.
In my opinion anyone who does should be cut from the fleet.
I share the same opinion. Safe, legal, on-time. Got to have all three. Any two without the third and it's meaningless.
I don't agree with posting truck numbers and carriers in this forum. It serves no purpose. No one would have "proof" so to speak and for all we know it is just a ploy to discredit someone. Calling a carrier to report a safety issue could be seen as different. They have the ability to investigate the issue, we in here, do not.
That answers the question, sort of. Of course, my question was more rhetorical than anything, and was used to make a point, a point of which you mention here. People won't post names and numbers here, because they have no proof and doing so would be considered a ploy to discredit someone, not to mention that in doing so here online they would open themselves up to libel.
On the other hand, people will call a carrier with the same amount of proof (none), knowing full well that they are pretty much absolved from any slander (and certainly libel) issues. There are certainly times when people call into a carrier to discredit someone. I have a friend who was driving 55 MPH in the right lane on the Ohio Turnpike, and some yahoo big truck driver apparently didn't want to change lanes to go around, so he flashed lights and honked horns, and could very well have called his carrier and reported anything he felt like reporting, that the driver was weaving in and out of his lane, speeding up and slowing down, driving like he was drunk, anything he wanted to say, because no proof is required.
Fact is, with few exceptions if you see something regarding safety that should be reported instead of talking directly to the driver about it, it should be reported to the police, not the carrier. If your story won't hold up with the police, then it probably shouldn't be reported to the carrier, either, since it's nothing more than a he-said she-said thing. Sure, carriers can do limited research, and someone with a history of call-ins could be seen as a problem, but by and large making an accusation without proof is at the very least icky. Wait until you're on the receiving end of one of those baseless complaints or having been accused of something you flat out did not do, and you'll understand what I mean.
As a side note, the one that cracks me up is that there are some people who think carriers track people in real-time via the QC or C-Link.
Everyone on the road, civilians and professionals alike, will do something stupid and unsafe every now and then. This includes all you holier-than-thou folks who are perfect, perfect, perfect, despite busting a lane every now and then (there are precious few drivers who have never veered even slightly across the zipper or inadvertently found themselves riding the warning rumble strips on the shoulder) or looking down at the speedometer and realizing that you're a few miles an hour over the limit, actually engaging the cruise control in a construction zone, typing on the QC wile driving, distracted driving even when you claim not to be distracted, following too closely, intentionally running significantly slower than the mass of traffic around them, or unintentionally cutting someone off when changing lanes.
An immediate safety situation, like someone driving the wrong way on the Interstate, or driving with no lights, or someone driving in a manner that indicates they are clearly drunk or otherwise impaired, sure, that's when you call the police. But calling a carrier in a self-deluded fantasy that you're making the roads safer for everyone is nothing more than feeling better about yourself for being a tattle-tail and some twisted desire to control others, because your phone calls to carriers have zero impact on the safety of our roads. At most, it will mean a bad driver is right back there on the road next week with a different logo on the truck. Good job. It's better to make sure your ducks are all in a row and that you're as safe as you can be, and then stay out of the way of the other guy, who almost certainly isn't as perfect as you.
See, the thing is, there is someone posting about calling carriers in this thread who I have personally witnessed doing something unsafe and just brain-dead stupid. I'm willing to bet that if he witnessed someone else doing the same thing that he'd have been on the phone toot sweet to the carrier. All I'm saying is, some of you may want to reconsider the wisdom of having that big pile of rocks in the living room of your glass house.
