When do you sheet a package as emergency conditions?

[What'dyabringmetoday???]

A good rule of thumb is you will get charged for an accident if it costs the company money. If you are willing to pay for the tow or can get someone to pull you out without damaging the truck you won't get charged.

Finally discussing something that you have experience with. Lol.

 

[joeboodog]

We had a bunch of drivers get stuck this week. I thought the center manager's head was going to explode.

 

[Thebrownstreak]

The new trucks are a joke in snow . I got stuck in a flat parking lot today. And the shift inhibit makes it even harder to rock it out of bad spots . The old 800s could go thru pretty much anything . And now in our district if we have to get towed out they charge us with a accident .

Its so odd. In our area you aren't charged with an accident unless you cause damage to the vehicle or to the customers property. I got stuck on an icy hill. The OMS made it sound like i went down a cliff and they sent one of those huge tow trucks that can pull a semi with the trailer still on. It was an $800 tow…never charged

 

[Brownslave688]

We had a bunch of drivers get stuck this week. I thought the center manager's head was going to explode.

We had a driver get stuck 100ft from the building. First driver out of the building too. Lol

Still sent everyone out for the day. Even though that was 45 minutes into a 6 hour snow....

 

[Brownslave688]

Its so odd. In our area you aren't charged with an accident unless you cause damage to the vehicle or to the customers property. I got stuck on an icy hill. The OMS made it sound like i went down a cliff and they sent one of those huge tow trucks that can pull a semi with the trailer still on. It was an $800 tow…never charged

Lol. They sent me one of those once when I was stuck in a narrow country drive. Sent a tow company that was 50+ miles away. I ended up riding back to the center with the tow truck driver so I would not go over 14 (got stuck before it was dark). Said they finally rolled in with my truck at like 2 am.

 

[joeboodog]

Lol. They sent me one of those once when I was stuck in a narrow country drive. Sent a tow company that was 50+ miles away. I ended up riding back to the center with the tow truck driver so I would not go over 14 (got stuck before it was dark). Said they finally rolled in with my truck at like 2 am.

Been there, done that. I was stuck in a driveway one night and I punched out at 2:00 a.m. Easiest money I ever made.

 

[nayrsiem]

Got a message Thursday about 19:30 telling us to bring it in and sheet the rest as EC. The snow had stopped hours before. It was below zero but that's nothing new. I'm still not sure why we were called in but I didn't like the idea of sheeting the rest as EC so I finished what I had (only 4 rural route stops). I did EC one earlier in the day that had a 1/2 mile drive with 3ft tall snow drifts.

 

[soberups]

A good rule of thumb is you will get charged for an accident if it costs the company money. If you are willing to pay for the tow or can get someone to pull you out without damaging the truck you won't get charged.

I get stuck and need a tow truck about once every two years on average and I have never been charged for an accident.

 

[soberups]

I've run all kinds of routes and you can get stuck anywhere.
If I get stuck and can't get free with my chains, grit or traction strips, I for sure call in before anybody hooks up anything to UPS's vehicle.

I always make my problem, their problem.

I agree with you 99% of the time but on this one we differ.

I keep a tow strap in the truck and there have been many occasions where I have gotten unstuck with help from a customer with a tractor or a 4x4. I only call in for a tow truck as a last resort.

A few years back we had a horrible snow storm here with multiple drivers being stuck in drifts or ruts and 8-hour waits for tow trucks. That evening, I was chained up with two tons of pickup volume in the back and having no problems getting around. The center actually wound up pressing me into service as a "tow truck" and they sent me to "tow" 3 stuck drivers with my tow rope. It was kind of fun, actually, and since I was working as instructed (with verifiable DIAD messages) there is no way I could have gotten in trouble for inadvertent damage to the vehicle.

 

[soberups]

Before I had my own tow rope, there was one time when a farmer pulled me out of the mud with a chain hooked to his tractor. The front bumper of my truck got slightly bent and the chain scratched the paint. I reported the damage to my supervisor, and was instructed to "see the mechanic" that night when I returned to the building, which I did. He fixed the scratch with some brown touch-up paint, and the bend in the bumper was fixed by having me nose the front of the truck into the "bumper pole" and creep forward under the direction of the mechanic until it was bent back into its original shape. The shop was happy because they didn't get charged for a tow, and my center was happy because I didn't get charged for an accident. I love common sense, too bad we aren't allowed to use it any more.

 

[Bubblehead]

I agree with you 99% of the time but on this one we differ.

I keep a tow strap in the truck and there have been many occasions where I have gotten unstuck with help from a customer with a tractor or a 4x4. I only call in for a tow truck as a last resort.

A few years back we had a horrible snow storm here with multiple drivers being stuck in drifts or ruts and 8-hour waits for tow trucks. That evening, I was chained up with two tons of pickup volume in the back and having no problems getting around. The center actually wound up using me as a "tow truck" and they sent me to "tow" 3 stuck drivers with my tow rope. It was kind of fun, actually, and since I was working as instructed (with verifiable DIAD messages) there is no way I could have gotten in trouble for inadvertent damage to the vehicle.

I think you misunderstood what I was trying to say.
I am not adverse to doing anything to get "unstuck".

What I am saying is, I would not do any of it without calling in and telling management the situation and my proposed remedy.
That way, they can say yes or no and the onus is on them for the results.

If the package car or the good Samaritan's vehicle or property are damaged in the process, I for sure want to be able to tell whoever that I had permission from my Center Manager.

 

[Bubblehead]

Before I had my own tow rope, there was one time when a farmer pulled me out of the mud with a chain hooked to his tractor. The front bumper of my truck got slightly bent and the chain scratched the paint. I reported the damage to my supervisor, and was instructed to "see the mechanic" that night when I returned to the building, which I did. He fixed the scratch with some brown touch-up paint, and the bend in the bumper was fixed by having me nose the front of the truck into the "bumper pole" and creep forward under the direction of the mechanic until it was bent back into its original shape. The shop was happy because they didn't get charged for a tow, and my center was happy because I didn't get charged for an accident. I love common sense, too bad we aren't allowed to use it any more.

I'm glad it worked out for you, but with the company I work for, it could have went the other way.

I prefer to CYA.

 

[Brownslave688]

I get stuck and need a tow truck about once every two years on average and I have never been charged for an accident.

Me either. The day that happens is the day I pull the truck over and the gas station just outside the center sheet it all as EC then head back.

 

[barnyard]

We used to be able to get unstuck by 'whatever it took', only calling in a tow when all else failed. Thennnnnnn, we had a good Samaritan hook a tow strap up to our stuck truck and gave it a pull. The strap broke and it flew into the back window of the pickup, breaking it. Thankfully, there was no other damage and no one got hurt, but that bring an end to farmers pulling us out.

 

[soberups]

We used to be able to get unstuck by 'whatever it took', only calling in a tow when all else failed. Thennnnnnn, we had a good Samaritan hook a tow strap up to our stuck truck and gave it a pull. The strap broke and it flew into the back window of the pickup, breaking it. Thankfully, there was no other damage and no one got hurt, but that bring an end to farmers pulling us out.

The simple way to prevent this from happening is to drape a blanket or a tarp (or even your jacket if nothing else is available) over the middle of the tow strap. If the strap snaps, the blanket/tarp/jacket acts as a sort of "parachute" that creates drag and absorbs the kinetic energy of the broken strap, preventing it from flying back with enough velocity to damage anything.