Fuel for Thought

$1,000,000 Pre-Trip Inspection

Did you hear about the driver who found $1,000,000 during a pre-trip inspection ?

Well, I found $1,000,000 under my truck while I was doing my pre-trip inspection the other day. I was just going around the truck, doing my usual checks and there it was, just lying there under the rear of my truck. I did not see it the night before when I parked, it was a dark parking lot. But you can imagine my surprise to find it there in the early morning sun.

Okay, so here is what I found.

Now it wasn’t a real $1,000,000 sitting under my truck, but it did get me to thinking about pre-trip inspections.

You could say that every pre-trip inspection has the potential to save a million dollars. We have all heard the stories, seen the attorney billboards and the maybe even seen a tv commercial about how much money can be gained from taking the carrier and driver of a commercial motor vehicle to court for just about any type of negligence.

In essence, a proper pre-trip can alert you, the driver, of potential defects or hazards prior to entering the highways with the rest of the motoring public and causing a crash resulting in million dollar or multi-million dollar lawsuits. So performing a proper pre-trip inspection and avoiding potential problems on the road is like finding a million dollars. At the very least, it could help save you or your carrier a million or more.

Each time you get ready to hit the road, think of this and you might be more likely to not dread or even worse skip a pre-trip inspection.You never know what you might find, maybe not a million dollars but if you do find a defect, go ahead and fix it. Trucks always need maintenance, so putting it off until later just means there will be more to repair when you get around to it, if the defect doesn’t cut your trip short for road service or worse. It can also help make your trip more enjoyable knowing that the machine you rely on to get you where you need to go, will do so. When one part breaks it affects the overall harmony of the vehicle. Something that may seem minor, such as a worn shock or out of balance wheel can cause excessive vibration, thus prematurely wearing down other components. Not to mention the rougher ride for the driver.

See you down the road,

Greg

It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.

- John Wooden