Weight stations question

"PartyPooper2012" (PartyPooper2012) 10/03/2018 at 08:47 • Filed to: None

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Say you rent a Uhaul truck to transport your belongings and you get on the road and come upon a weight station. Do you need to pull in?

My understanding is that weight stations are for commercial vehicles/trucks.

Is Uhaul rented truck considered commercial?

Say you need to pull in and you don’t. What are the penalties?

E90M3 > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 08:55

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I don’t believe you have to pull in. Plus without a CDL, you shouldn’t be over 26,000 lbs anyways. 

Pickup_man > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 08:56

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I’ve always driven right past them and no one has ever come to pull us over so ¯\_()_/¯. I’m pretty sure it’s only for commercial vehicles, which is why you don’t need to pull in with a camper, boat, or anything recreational.   

Arrivederci > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 08:56

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Generally not as it isn’t commercial, but laws vary by state.

PartyPooper2012 > E90M3 10/03/2018 at 08:56

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Say you’re hauling bricks... for argument’s sake. No CDL and you heavy AF. What then?

PartyPooper2012 > Arrivederci 10/03/2018 at 08:57

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isn’t a rented vehicle a commercial vehicle by definition? 

PartyPooper2012 > Pickup_man 10/03/2018 at 08:58

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commercial vehicle is the key phrase... isn’t a rented vehicle a commercial vehicle?

I don’t think one would have to pull in either, but im curious what are the actual requirements to pull in

E90M3 > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 08:59

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Well, after a quick google search, it looks like it varies state to state. 

Pickup_man > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:02

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¯\_()_/¯, I helped a buddy of mine move to Florida from South Dakota, we had a 24' Uhaul, with a car in tow and didn’t stop at a single weigh station . We even blew by one that had a Pensky moving truck that pulled in, but no one came out to pull us over so I’m not sure. I don’t think you have to, but I don’t know the official rules. 

Tekamul > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:06

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I f you’re over 26k, those rental motor and brakes that have spent their entire life being abused and poorly maintained are  going to be your limiter. And not in a long haul, probably the first turn or first stop sign. I think the largest trucks are rated for 7500 pounds max. Those are the 26 footers. The shorties are like 25 00.

PartyPooper2012 > Pickup_man 10/03/2018 at 09:06

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Yep. I just googled it and have even more questions than answers.

Say you hire movers and they stick your crap in their truck and they get on the road, then that’s a commercial move, isn’t it? They would have to pull in. But if you are the one moving then you don’t?

What if you have a business and you move your office from one location to another and there is weight station between. Is that commercial move? AHHHHH

I should just ignore laws and speed past weight stations and if i get pulled over, remind officer that my taxes pay their salary. I hear they like to know the source of their income. 

Arrivederci > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:07

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Not if it’s being used for a private purpose, such as you’re moving yourself.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:10

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When I was driving from CA to MO six years ago in a 24 ft truck I did stop at weigh stations, but without exception they waved me through in every single state. This is just my experience - YMMV.

So Shiney. So Chrome! So Frunky > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:10

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I don’t think you need to stop however entering and leaving Fl orida there are agricultural check points that you will need to stop at to show them you are n’t hauling any produce or farm animals. I got pulled over for not doing this. They just check your truck and give you a warn ing so no legal harm.

I moved Florida to Michigan and never stopped at any other check points

PartyPooper2012 > Tekamul 10/03/2018 at 09:10

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in my experience, most trucks I’ve ever rented had less than 10,000 miles on them. Fairly new. I don’t know how much abuse they would have seen.

I have rented some econoshitboxes tho. Unresponsive steering wheel with a sudden jerk eventually - like russian roulette.

But that’s not the question. I guess you sort of answer it but as an average joe loading up his lead sinkers into a rented uhaul truck, how would he know how much it weighs. I guess when exhaust is dragging on pavement you know you outdone yourself. 

PartyPooper2012 > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 10/03/2018 at 09:12

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fascinating. Thanks! 

PartyPooper2012 > Arrivederci 10/03/2018 at 09:12

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I guess that makes sense

Zaxbys > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:14

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If a U-haul was a considered a Commercial vehicle, then you’d need a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL)

Also, see the 4th point here:

https://www.uhaul.com/FrequentlyAskedQuestions/

Edit: The FAQ specifically talks about Weigh Stations further down. If in doubt, stop.

PartyPooper2012 > Zaxbys 10/03/2018 at 09:16

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Ahhhh!!! perfect! Thanks for that. 

Zaxbys > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:17

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Make sure you see my edit. It’s as clear as mud.

Wacko > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:20

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10000 miles of novice truck drivers, so I would say that’s about 10000 miles of abuse.

PartyPooper2012 > Zaxbys 10/03/2018 at 09:23

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Yeah. Thanks. I was sweating bullets a while back moving my crap and ignoring the weight station. Truck I rented had.... issues. Someone allegedly stole the license plate and manager of the truck rental place had placed a license plate shape plastic where the plate would be and had a crayon/sharpie numbers/letters written on it. Said headquarters approved it.

Cops pulled me over and had to investigate the whole ordeal. Wrote a bunch of tickets in the name of Uhaul and let me go. Said - don’t take the truck next time if there are issues like this.

Cops pulled me over in one state and i had to traverse two more to get to where i was going. That was loads of fun!

My mistake for taking it for sure, but alternative was to postpone moving till next week when there would be more trucks available

PartyPooper2012 > Wacko 10/03/2018 at 09:26

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it’s sort of hard to abuse tho... engines are built to haul heavy crap so if the truck is empty, sure you can hoon it a bit but it’s big and scary... and when its full of your crap, you don’t want to have it unloaded on the side of a highway so i don’t know how much abuse they get really.

Mostly it’s the neglect in maintenance is what i’ve seen. Some bruises here and there - scratches and mirror issues.

My X-type is too a real Jaguar > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:27

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Honestly I’d call your local state patrol or whoever runs the weigh stations in your state. 

PartyPooper2012 > My X-type is too a real Jaguar 10/03/2018 at 09:29

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that’s probably the safest bet. 

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 09:42

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I think only trucks over a certain weight need to pull in 

PartyPooper2012 > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 10/03/2018 at 09:54

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Somehow there seems to be a flaw in that logic. How would one know how much one weighs before deciding if one needs to pull in to get weighed? 

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 10:03

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If you loaded a dinky uhaul to the same weight as a flatbed trailer it wouldn't be able to move. That's how you know.

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 10:11

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Over 26000LBs GVRW need to pull in. Many trucks close to that have a label on the door indicating that they are under.

The door tag says it if you don’t know:

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > Tekamul 10/03/2018 at 10:13

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The GVWR on the 26' is 22000LBs, which is under the 26000 that requires a stop.

Neil drives a beetle and a fancy beetle > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 10:31

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When I was moving the Penske people told me I didn’t need to. I had a 20 foot truck I think. And they seemed pretty on the up and up; which not all truck rental places seem to be. So I didn’t stop and never had an issue.

Tekamul > Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. 10/03/2018 at 10:40

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Right, so if he's over 26k, he's way over rated payload. 

Urambo Tauro > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 11:08

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It’s based on GVWR, not actual weight.

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 11:57

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If the vehicle does not require a CDL to operate and is not oversize or over a certain length (literally 1.5 school buses,)  weight stations are NOT required. That’s the gist of the rule in all 50 states.

Nom De Plume > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 12:00

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Alternative was denying they met the terms of any contract you signed, requesting a full refund, contacting* the requisite authorities and U-Haul corporate in that order, and maneuvering the entire situation towards safe resolution that made multiple parties want to provide you with a truck in the greatest of haste.

* This is dependent on how the situation unfolded.  This particular business broke multiple laws in the process.  Had they simply explained an inability to meet your need it would be more worthy to suggest they move heaven and earth to get you a replacement truck in a timely manner.

PartyPooper2012 > Nom De Plume 10/03/2018 at 13:27

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Yeah. This might work in most places in USA and maybe even most places on earth, but the place where this truck was rented was an exception to that logic. Place was Northern New Jersey. They have their own rules, regulations and laws. Not always common sense. Not always followed by themselves.

BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 13:34

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Short answer to your longer post, as it was told to me by a Ryder store operator:

Below 26k lbs, keep going.

If it’s your own stuff no matter how heavy , keep going.

If it’s not your stuff and it’s over 26k lbs, stop.

Nom De Plume > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 13:54

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The garden state you say... too late for me to avoid typing a civil response.

Monkey B > PartyPooper2012 10/03/2018 at 14:45

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if you don’t need a special license to drive it you can safely pass the weigh station.

gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee > PartyPooper2012 10/04/2018 at 23:36

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https://www.uhaul.com/FrequentlyAskedQuestions/

Uhaul themselves say “it depends”. Check the local regs, generally they go by the truck’s GVWR. 10,000 lbs is generally a cutoff, all of UHaul’s trucks bigger than a 10' would need to at that point. The rest are all around 14,500 until you get to the 26' which is 22,000.

The worst that could happen if you stop and shouldn’t have is that you’ll get waved through. You’ll kill some time waiting in line, too. Uhaul recommends checking regulations and then  pulling in if you’re uncertain.

If you don’t stop but should have, either nothing happens, or DOT will pull you over, in which case your best bet is probably to be patient and cooperative but play dumb, or “I’m sorry, they didn’t tell me I had to stop at scales when I picked up the truck ”. UHaul trucks usually are a free pass for getting away with shit you shouldn’t do, and it’s not generally expected that someone who has no knowledge or experience driving a commercial vehicle is going to know what the scales are for.