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When you did your annual vehicle inspections this year, did you remember to include the rear impact guard?
The FMCSA issued a rule last year that added rear impact guards to the list of criteria for passing an annual inspection, as found in Appendix A to Part 396. The criteria include details on the condition, placement, and size of the bumper, depending on vehicle type and year of manufacture.
The rule change applies to all annual vehicle inspections as of December 9, 2021, meaning your inspections in the past year were affected.
The rule change means:
The rear impact guard – sometimes called an “ICC bumper” after the name of the agency that first required them in 1952 – is required by 49 CFR 393.86, as well as by DOT manufacturing standards in Part 571.
As part of the new rule, the FMCSA revised 393.86 to exempt “road construction controlled horizontal discharge trailers” (as defined in 393.5) from the need for a rear impact guard.
One item missing from the new inspection criteria is the DOT certification label that manufacturers are required to place on each bumper. A missing label will not result in a failed inspection.
The FMCSA did change the rules, however, to allow the label to be placed on either the front or back side of the bumper, rather than strictly on the forward-facing surface. This rule change simply aligns the FMCSA’s rules with current manufacturing standards.
The following bumper inspection standards are found in Appendix A to Part 396 and must be used when performing DOT annual vehicle inspections (as of December 9, 2021). Refer to 393.86 for exceptions. (Note that a vehicle meeting any of the following standards will FAIL its inspection.)
Trailers and semitrailers with a GVWR of 10,001 pounds or more, manufactured on or after January 26, 1998:
Other commercial vehicles (1953 or newer) on which the vertical distance between the rear bottom edge of the body (or the chassis assembly if the chassis is the rearmost part of the vehicle) and the ground is greater than 30 inches when the vehicle is empty:
Key to remember: If you haven’t already, be sure to add rear impact guards to the list of items you need to inspect annually on your commercial vehicles.
When you did your annual vehicle inspections this year, did you remember to include the rear impact guard?
The FMCSA issued a rule last year that added rear impact guards to the list of criteria for passing an annual inspection, as found in Appendix A to Part 396. The criteria include details on the condition, placement, and size of the bumper, depending on vehicle type and year of manufacture.
The rule change applies to all annual vehicle inspections as of December 9, 2021, meaning your inspections in the past year were affected.
The rule change means:
The rear impact guard – sometimes called an “ICC bumper” after the name of the agency that first required them in 1952 – is required by 49 CFR 393.86, as well as by DOT manufacturing standards in Part 571.
As part of the new rule, the FMCSA revised 393.86 to exempt “road construction controlled horizontal discharge trailers” (as defined in 393.5) from the need for a rear impact guard.
One item missing from the new inspection criteria is the DOT certification label that manufacturers are required to place on each bumper. A missing label will not result in a failed inspection.
The FMCSA did change the rules, however, to allow the label to be placed on either the front or back side of the bumper, rather than strictly on the forward-facing surface. This rule change simply aligns the FMCSA’s rules with current manufacturing standards.
The following bumper inspection standards are found in Appendix A to Part 396 and must be used when performing DOT annual vehicle inspections (as of December 9, 2021). Refer to 393.86 for exceptions. (Note that a vehicle meeting any of the following standards will FAIL its inspection.)
Trailers and semitrailers with a GVWR of 10,001 pounds or more, manufactured on or after January 26, 1998:
Other commercial vehicles (1953 or newer) on which the vertical distance between the rear bottom edge of the body (or the chassis assembly if the chassis is the rearmost part of the vehicle) and the ground is greater than 30 inches when the vehicle is empty:
Key to remember: If you haven’t already, be sure to add rear impact guards to the list of items you need to inspect annually on your commercial vehicles.