The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a lawsuit challenging the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration mandate requiring motor carriers and drivers to use electronic logging devices (ELDs) to track hours of service. 

Needless to say, truckers are not happy.  

The June 12th decision means the Court will not hold hearings on the constitutionality of the mandate, and leaves in place the December 18, 2017 ELD rule deadline.

Under the ELD rule, carriers must evaluate and select ELDs, and ensure they are installed and drivers and administrative staff are trained to use them by December 18th. 

Carriers using compliant automatic onboard recording devices (AOBRDs) may continue to do so through December 16, 2019.  Don't know what an AOBRD is?  Keep reading.  

Owner Operator Direct has published some information to help stakeholders be aware of the ELD requirements necessary to stay competitive in business and “Ahead of the Curve.” 

Policyholders are urged to take action now regarding the ELD mandate in order to meet the upcoming compliance deadline.

In case no one feels like clicking the above link, here's the ELD information we have so far....

Scheduled to become effective on December 18, 2017, the ELD mandate will significantly impact federally-regulated carriers in both the commercial and passenger transportation (bus & motorcoach) and trucking industries until and beyond its final full compliance deadline of December 16, 2019.

To help understand the rule, who it affects, the timeline for implementation and the penalties for drivers and carriers found to be non-compliant, Owner Operator Direct has prepared the following summary.

We urge you to immediately begin your company's review and analysis of the rule and its requirements to avoid the consequences and penalties associated with non-compliance that will affect your drivers and potentially your USDOT rating.

FMCSA'S ELECTRONIC LOGGING DEVICE (ELD) MANDATE

• Key Requirements

• Compliance Deadlines

• Affected Drivers

• Exemptions

• Rented or Leased Vehicles

• Grandfathered AOBRDs

• Non-Compliance Penalties For Drivers

• Non-Compliance Penalties For Carriers

• ELD Vendor Options

THE ELD RULE

The FAQs document published by the FMCSA (found on https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/hours-service/elds/faqs) provides a good amount of details on the ELD mandate. Excerpts of general pertinence are reflected below. For more information, please refer to the list of additional resources at the end of this document.

(CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING OWNER OPERATOR DIRECT's GUIDE TO ELD's.....)

Owner Operator Direct provides top notch commercial trucking insurance to owner operators, whether operating with authority or as leased drivers. For a no-obligation quote, give us a ring at 800-499-1044 (Monday-Friday 9-5 pm ET) or answer some questions online and we'll email you one.