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Motor carriers are required to keep their commercial motor vehicles in safe operating condition at all times, so a comprehensive inspection and maintenance program is key to compliance.
The inspection and maintenance requirements apply to motor carriers, drivers, and commercial motor vehicles.
Each motor carrier is required by 396.3 to “systematically inspect, repair, and maintain, or cause to be systematically inspected, repaired, and maintained, all motor vehicles ... subject to its control.”
The time period between “systematic” vehicle inspections and the items inspected are to be determined by the motor carrier. The intervals could be established on a mileage or time basis. While the time intervals are at the discretion of the motor carrier, the program must be reasonable and systematic.
One place to start when developing a systematic inspection and maintenance program is with preventive maintenance (PM) schedules and checklists. These are generally established by the motor carrier based on the original equipment manufacturer’s (OEM) recommendations. The carrier normally reviews the OEM’s recommended inspection, lubrication, and maintenance intervals, and bases their schedules on them. Once the schedules are established it is simply a matter of documenting the schedules, performing the inspections and maintenance on time, and documenting the maintenance and any repairs.
Typical maintenance programs involve the use of a designation system to identify and describe preventive inspection and maintenance schedules. Here is an example of a schedule:
Remember, these are preventive maintenance inspections. They are not to be confused or combined with the driver's daily inspection requirements.
In addition to being charged with systematically inspecting, repairing, and maintaining motor vehicles subject to their control, carriers are required to maintain records on all vehicles controlled for 30 days or more. Records to be maintained are as follows:
All records must be retained for at least one year where the vehicle is housed or maintained. However, after a vehicle leaves the motor carrier’s control, the records for that vehicle need only be kept for six months. The recordkeeping requirements do not apply to a non-business private motor carrier of passengers.
See topics on Driver vehicle inspection reports, Roadside inspections, Periodic inspection, Brake inspector requirements, and Intermodal equipment for other requirements related to maintenance.