Cargo loading and securement - North Carolina

In North Carolina, no vehicle may be driven or moved on a highway unless it:

• Is constructed and loaded to prevent any of its load from falling, blowing, dropping, sifting, leaking, or otherwise escaping; and
• Does not contain any holes, cracks, or openings through which any of its load may escape.

This requirement does not apply to the following:

• The dropping of sand on the roadway for the purpose of securing traction;
• The sprinkling, dumping, or spreading of water or other substances on a roadway in cleaning or maintaining the roadway; or
• The transportation of seed cotton, poultry, livestock, silage, or other feed grain used to feed poultry or livestock.

A truck, trailer, or other vehicle that is loaded with rock, gravel, stone, or any other similar substance, other than sand, that could fall, blow, leak, sift, or drop must not be driven or moved on any highway unless:

• The height of the load against all four walls does not extend above a horizontal line six inches below their tops when loaded at the loading point; and
• The load is securely covered by tarpaulin or some other suitable covering to prevent any of its load from falling, dropping, sifting, leaking, blowing, or otherwise escaping.