monkeylove
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Roslyn, Pa.
Really???
Here is what about a half hour with a really nice DOT rep has yielded. I might be off a few pounds and I am paraphrasing but.....(Pennsylvania)
Rep: what does the door jam say?
Me: 13,3000
Rep: nope
Me: I tow my boat some of the time
Rep: total towed weight?
Me: 5,000 give or take
Rep: yep you need a number
Me: but it's all my own personal stuff I thought numbers were for commercial use
Rep: nope, they are for commercial vehicles
Me: but I own it, it's not a commercial vehicle
Rep: ah, I see where the confusion is and you are not alone in the confusion. Commercial vehicles in our eyes have nothing to do with business nor drivers licenses. If the door jam is more than 17,000 (I might be off on that number since it did not apply) or if the total weight of the combo is over 17,000 (That one I remember fairly well as it applied) then you are considered a commercial vehicle in our minds.
Me: great, now lets just say every now and then I might use the Nj boat ramps instead on the Pa ramps.
Rep: well now you definitely need a USDOT# since you crossed state lines.
Me: okay so how does this differ from a business that owns trucks and tows trailers.
Rep: it doesn't really but that depends on how the business is structured and it's classification. The one that really gets people in trouble is when specialty equipment is being towed. Welder, generators, wood chipper etc, many of them depending on the state don't require registration and many of them don't have a weight tag on them from the manufacturer. The guy gets pulled over with a 8,5000lb truck and a generator in tow with no weight on it. They take him to a weigh station and weigh the combo and it reads 16,000lbs. The guy still thinks he is good. They now weigh just the trailer, it has a weight of 7,500lbs. Now the cop goes to the door jam a shows him where it says 10,000 GVW. Take that 10,000 and add the 7,500 and you are over the 17,000. This is usually where the argument starts but in the end the poor guy has to leave the trailer since he has no DOT# and can not legally tow it away. He also leaves on average of about $2500-$3000 dollars worth of fines. If the truck had gotten a number the 500lbs would have cost him nothing but time.
So I now have a DOT# in the works and need to figure out what other compliance crap comes along with this privilege, lol.
Here is what about a half hour with a really nice DOT rep has yielded. I might be off a few pounds and I am paraphrasing but.....(Pennsylvania)
Rep: what does the door jam say?
Me: 13,3000
Rep: nope
Me: I tow my boat some of the time
Rep: total towed weight?
Me: 5,000 give or take
Rep: yep you need a number
Me: but it's all my own personal stuff I thought numbers were for commercial use
Rep: nope, they are for commercial vehicles
Me: but I own it, it's not a commercial vehicle
Rep: ah, I see where the confusion is and you are not alone in the confusion. Commercial vehicles in our eyes have nothing to do with business nor drivers licenses. If the door jam is more than 17,000 (I might be off on that number since it did not apply) or if the total weight of the combo is over 17,000 (That one I remember fairly well as it applied) then you are considered a commercial vehicle in our minds.
Me: great, now lets just say every now and then I might use the Nj boat ramps instead on the Pa ramps.
Rep: well now you definitely need a USDOT# since you crossed state lines.
Me: okay so how does this differ from a business that owns trucks and tows trailers.
Rep: it doesn't really but that depends on how the business is structured and it's classification. The one that really gets people in trouble is when specialty equipment is being towed. Welder, generators, wood chipper etc, many of them depending on the state don't require registration and many of them don't have a weight tag on them from the manufacturer. The guy gets pulled over with a 8,5000lb truck and a generator in tow with no weight on it. They take him to a weigh station and weigh the combo and it reads 16,000lbs. The guy still thinks he is good. They now weigh just the trailer, it has a weight of 7,500lbs. Now the cop goes to the door jam a shows him where it says 10,000 GVW. Take that 10,000 and add the 7,500 and you are over the 17,000. This is usually where the argument starts but in the end the poor guy has to leave the trailer since he has no DOT# and can not legally tow it away. He also leaves on average of about $2500-$3000 dollars worth of fines. If the truck had gotten a number the 500lbs would have cost him nothing but time.
So I now have a DOT# in the works and need to figure out what other compliance crap comes along with this privilege, lol.
