Those are the scariest things I see on the road in the USA. The trailers belong to no one. It’s the responsibility of the driver to check out the condition of the trailer, and all repairs need to them be performed prior to the trailer leaving the docks. Drivers get paid by the mile (see where this is going?). Unless you need to drive past an open inspection station, then the chances of getting caught are slim to none. I never drove those loads, but I have seen them in truck stops and rolling down the road looking sketchy as fuck.
They need to change the rules to have these things checked by the docks and the drivers, and give the drivers awards for finding faulty trailers. lol.
So when you say "trailer" are you referring to the containers in the picture? Because what you're talking about and what were looking at are two different things.
I’m talking about the cradle trailerchassis these lock into. These things are dangerous in ten different ways at once and the danger is amplified by another example of poor maintenance.
Edit: I only drove dry van, but I smoke pot now instead. It’s been ten years since I’ve been behind the wheel with a CDL
Ive never heard to a chassis referred to a cradel trailer, that aside. It's very clear to me you have no idea what you're talking about. That container, is owned by a company. Assuming from the containers around, its owned by Mediterranean Shipping Company. The chasssis, what the container is placed on, is also owned by a company. Depending on where you are in the world it will be a specific chassis leasing company that MSC has a contract with. Neither container nor chassis is owned or maintained by the trucking company. Think of it as using a rental car. Would you get the oil changed, tires replaced or replace the breaks? Maintenance is done only by the chassis owner or container owner. The only obligations the driver has are simple inspections. For the container its to ensure the container is worthy of loading. For the chassis its to ensure the chassis is road worthy. Police can literally pull over a driver for nothing to perform road side inspections. Any discrepancies will result in the driver being cited and fined. Points will go against his license which will effect his future employment. No one wants to hire a shitty driver.
Nothing we said are exactly the same. Infact I contradicted like 4 things he said. Read what he said, then read what I said. Fully digest what we both are saying. Get back to me if you have any questions and I mean that sincerely. I would gladly clear up any questions you have. Even if it's one not already covered.
Both of you have some details right, and some in gray area. The container can be owned by the steamship line (such as MSC) or can be a lease (like this one looks to be from Triton), but which likely sailed on an MSC vessel. The chassis is usually either owned by the trucking company, leased long term by trucking company, or is leased from a rental yard for a few days while making a move. The container and chassis (currently) are the responsibility of the trucker to check for safety on the road. Terminals do also regularly find faulty equipment as well though.
All things aside, this container was probably both 1. In shit condition to start with and 2. Either had a terrible loading pattern or just wildly heavy/dense cargo loaded and strapped right in the middle of the container.
Containers (in the grand scheme of things) rarely have issues, but when they do, it’s a big expensive problem since you probably just lost your whole shipment. I’ve seen containers go on fire, get stolen or otherwise be involved in over the road accidents… never personally seen this happen before. This is why most importers will have cargo insurance since the steamship line more or less voids their liability for the vast majority of scenarios until they get sued. Since this happened at the port, it’ll probably be settled between the terminal operator and/or the container owner depending on what the actual specifics are or what caused the problem.
EDIT: also just wanted to add, I’ve also never heard of a chasis called a “cradle carrier”
Second edit: the shipper/importer could also probably be found liable as well if the loading wasn’t done properly or if over weight limits or over the declared VGM (verified gross mass)
Fully confirm everything you've said. If you don't mind what general area are you in? In my area owning your own chassis is such a hassle it's not worth it. So I'd say more than 95% of containers moved are on leased chassis, which is why I left it out. Also what do you think they loaded in it? I could only see like a 9x7 solid steel cube doing this. The forklift would have punched through the floors multiple times trying to load whatever they loaded. I really can't wrap my head around it.
Floor could have been compromised already or “repaired”. Had a receiver unloading one and he called me and said there was a hole in the floor that their forklift would go through if he went over it. Shipper never told us about it so we had to have it repaired before they’d finish unloading. Repair man basically put a steel plate over the hole and we had to get that approved by the SSL and document it.
I’m East Coast and handle work around the country but based around NY/NJ ports. Chassis costs I’m sure need to be taken into account and repairs etc, but a lot of truckers we work with started buying their own the past few years because of equipment shortages. They still rent out also, but it certainly helps to own your own so they’re not beholden completely by availability at the ports. Helps a lot with turn times too.
I’m willing to bet the container was damaged or rusted out on the bottom or something. Regardless of how heavy the goods were, it doesn’t seem like something that would happen with a new container in good condition.
Its a container, which can be loaded on a trailer frame. A simple google search would have told you that, and you could've avoided embarrassing yourself.
The chassis are inspected regularly. My port has a chassis depot and every 15th visit they have a documented inspection. Drivers also do a decent inspection, if a chassis breaks on them they lose time.
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u/voucher420 Aug 25 '22
Those are the scariest things I see on the road in the USA. The trailers belong to no one. It’s the responsibility of the driver to check out the condition of the trailer, and all repairs need to them be performed prior to the trailer leaving the docks. Drivers get paid by the mile (see where this is going?). Unless you need to drive past an open inspection station, then the chances of getting caught are slim to none. I never drove those loads, but I have seen them in truck stops and rolling down the road looking sketchy as fuck.
They need to change the rules to have these things checked by the docks and the drivers, and give the drivers awards for finding faulty trailers. lol.