Not long ago, we had a blog that outlined some upcoming major changes for haulers. If you operate trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 10,000 pounds, alone or in combination with a trailer, you’ll want to be sure you take a look at that blog. Basically, we discussed the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA’s) final ruling requiring the adoption of Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) and the upcoming compliance date of December 18, 2017.

I know it doesn’t seem possible, but we’re only six months away from that rapidly approaching date, and time isn’t slowing down.

While this changeover from paper to electronic logs has been discussed at great length, there are other changes related to this event that haven’t received as much attention. For example: Did you know the rules regarding the retention of supporting documents have been revised for ELDs? It’s an important aspect, and one you should be concerned with if you have a fleet of trucks!

Here’s the deal. Although ELDs automatically record driving time, motor carriers will be required to retain up to eight supporting documents for every 24-hour period to verify the driver’s on-duty time. These documents must be retained for six months. These are documents that are generated in the normal course of conducting business and can come from these categories:

• Bills of lading, itineraries, schedules, or documents that indicate the origin and destination of each trip
• Dispatch records, trip records, or equivalent documents
• Expense receipts related to any on-duty not-driving time
• Electronic mobile communication records reflecting communications transported through a fleet management system
• Payroll records, settlement sheets, or equivalent documents that indicate what and how a driver was paid

Supporting documents must contain the following elements:

• Driver’s name or identification number (the unit number can be used if it can be linked to the driver)
• Date
• Location
• Time

If there are more than eight documents for a 24-hour period, the motor carrier must retain the first and last documents for that day, as well as six other documents. If there are fewer than eight documents that include all of these elements, then a document that contains all of the elements except the “Time” is considered a supporting document and the motor carrier must retain all of them.

I realize this regulation is a lot to digest. If you have any questions, I’d encourage you to take a look at the FMCSA’s Frequently Asked Questions — ELD Rule document.

Additionally, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Holmes Murphy! We’ve teamed up with National Transportation Consultants (NTCI). These consultants, alongside our team, bring a wealth of experience in transportation and law enforcement. So we’d be happy to help you review your current practices and provide guidance on how to ensure you’re compliant without compromising the effectiveness and profitability of your fleet.