Up to $5000 fine for the loss of a large item

Contributed by Norm Nyhuis, Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council
In recent weeks, we’ve had opportunity here at ESC to focus on the necessity to secure your load, regardless of the size of the vehicle. This means that there is a possibility for damage and injury from the loss of a load, not just for commercial vehicles, but for those of us who only make an occasional trip to the local transfer station.

With this recent emphasis on secure loads, I’ve noticed an increasing number of vehicles, of all sizes, on the highways, with marginally secured loads that caused me to change lanes, to get as far away as possible. Here are the facts:

• approximately 40% of the litter on our highways comes from unsecured loads.
• Debris on the roadways are accountable for 25,000 accidents in north America, annually – causing about a hundred fatalities.
• In Washington State, road debris contribute to 400 accidents, annually.

Perhaps you’ve seen the billboards stating; “Litter and it will hurt”. Here are the real numbers:

• $216 for transporting an unsecured load.
• $103 fine for losing a small thing like a piece of paper.
• Up to $5000 for the loss of a large item.
• Loss of a load that results in property damage or in an injury may result in a fine of up to $5000 and jail time.

Don’t be like the person in the accompanying photo – secure any load you carry, to keep our roadways both safe and litter free.

Thanks to the Washington State DOE for the above statistics and the Navy Safety Center for the photo.