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Over 40 foot drivers license? In Calif
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I don’t know why I read that yesterday as the certifier was checking out the vehicle rather than ensuring that the driver can demonstrate the pre-trip checks. I’ll just be over here hopping around looking for a pry bar to remove my foot from my mouth.
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Put “CDL pre-trip test” into YouTube. Then you can see what it is and what to do. It’s pretty easy if you know anything about cars.
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Well if we are really talking about obeying the law then you dont need a drivers license, registration, OR insurance. The supreme court has ruled on this over a dozen times. You only need these things if you are transporting for a fee.
If you want proof just send me your email and Ill send you everything.
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Really?
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Many of us have seen the whacky YouTube video’s of people confronting police when they’re stopped and claiming they are “traveling” or they’re a sovereign citizen and don’t need a license or insurance to operate a motor vehicle. Doesn’t usually end well for them.
This isn’t the place to argue that logic, nuff said…
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When i got my NON- CDL license in Texas .. Had to do the written ( Pretty easy it took me about 15 min to complete ) and then schedule a driving test. The skills test was pretty simple.. Break Check test and explain what you are testing and why, then he had me back up 50 to 75 ft , without using the backup camera only using the mirrors without hitting the cones ( hit a cone you FAIL) then went on a 30 min drive around town. PASS that was it .. they might ask for a demo of parallel parking and shift lanes backing up without hitting a cone. ( He let me slide as i didn’t have a permit and i drove myself to the DMV and asked me who drove me to the location , i was honest and told him I DID , he was like you know you were not suppose to? .. The examiner was not an officer as when you take a auto driving test .
I took the exam just in case i ever got into an accident , so many out there looking for a reason to SUE IMHO.. better to be safe than sorry ..
plus it didn’t take much effort on my part. there are alot of youtube videos out there on CDL exams , but there are much more detailed than a NON CDL. What i took from them was the break test and explanation. There was no need to expalin all the parts and or mechanical of the rig..
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Only a limited number of states require residents to possess a CDL or non-commercial CDL. Thise states include TX which requires one for vehicles in excess of 26,000# and CA for vehicles in excess of 40 feet.
However, and this is important, if it is determined the coach is used for commercial purposes then the coach must meet the commercial requirements, including inspections, plus the driver must possess a CDL appropriate for the class. Usually a Class B is acceptable, but if the trailer or toad exceeds 10,000# a class A is often required.
Most states have somewhat relaxed enforcement because a motor home usually means revenue dollars to the state so the cops typically look the other way unless the coach is being driven in a reckless or dangerous manner, such as speed or lane changes or tailgating. Other states are very strict.
Commercial use often is having a company name on the side of the coach, or towing a race car trailer with the name of a race team on it, or using the coach at venues like trade shows as a hospitality suite.
The description above about what is required to get a CDL, commercial or otherwise is accurate and it is unlikely any cop will pull a coach over for any reason to check if the proper credentials are in your wallet. But as stated above, if the coach does require a commercial license and you do not have one, a lawyer for an injured party can make a big deal about not having one, and some insurance companies know which states require them, and will void coverage if none is possessed.
We have plowed this ground a lot over the years and have had numerous first hand reports of folks being hassled by local and state cops regarding the licenses carried.
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Please clarify, reside in a state that does not require a CDL. Do you need a CDL if passing or visiting a state that in some degree does require a CDL?
Chuck
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Your home state licensing requirements are honored by all other states.
Where you might get in trouble is having a Montana LLC (a business) own your coach while your driver license is from another state. You may have to figure out the story you are going to tell a cop to explain why you are driving a business owned coach, and for what purpose.
Everybody has an opinion on how to explain their way out of being perceived as either a commercial operator, or how they are leasing or renting the coach from the LLC. But some cops know exactly why there are MT plates, they know that is a means of tax evasion, and if they want to jerk your chain they will.
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Jon, what’s a driver license ?? I keep missing things.
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Where you might get in trouble is having a Montana LLC (a business) own your coach while your driver license is from another state. You may have to figure out the story you are going to tell a cop to explain why you are driving a business owned coach, and for what
Show me traffic code from any state that says it’s a violation for me to have a Georgia license and driving my bus with a Montana LLC tag that is properly licensed and insured and operating in a non commercial basis?
I’m well aware of all the tax evasion warnings and horror stories, but what state has actual violation codes that apply. FWIW, I have a CDL and my coach is licensed in Florida at the moment.
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I spoke to EVERY permanent TN commercial weight and inspection station, plus the TNHP office in Nashville after Peter Campbell was hassled in TN after being pulled over by TN highway patrol cops who thought he was operating a commercial enterprise using his bus. He was and we all knew it, except his bus and horse trailer were registered to him privately.
He explained he was going riding with friends around the country and apparently the cop didn’t know the difference between his Wyoming plates and those of Montana. He was pissed, but glad he didn’t get dinged for being a commercial operation.
There was a general agreement among all the commercial inspection station Lieutenants or Sergeants I spoke to that they are looking for buses being operated for commercial purposes, but that are privately registered to avoid the laws relating to commercial operations, specifically licensing, inspections and related stuff like log books and duty hours. Their focus was on entertainers. There are some who lease coaches privately registered to entertainers and provide drivers who have a non-commercial driver license. We had one on here or on P-Stuff who we all agreed had a dangerous bus but as one licensed as a private coach he kept ducking under the radar.
Every single officer was clear that almost all Montana plates were solely for tax evasion. Their dislike of owners of very expensive coaches who weren’t willing to pay their share came through loud and clear and while they had better things to do than hassle someone for avoiding taxes they made it clear those coaches had a target on their back. All it seemed to take was for a coach with Montana plates to tailgate, speed, make a lot of lane changes, etc. and at that point they were all over it.
If the owner had a lease with him showing he was leasing the coach from his Montana LLC there was nothing they could do, but if he had a Montana plate, the toad had a different plate and his driver license was from the toad’s state depending on how the cop felt that day and the attitude the driver gave him they could make things uncomfortable for the driver. If they had any indication the driver (coach owner) was using the coach to conduct business if they wanted to they could ticket the driver for driving out of class unless he had a valid Class B, they could make him park the bus until if got commercial plates or they could cut him some slack.
None of the cops were shy about saying their real target was the entertainers trying to beat the system, but they all had no problem admitting their personal feelings about what they mostly called tax cheats (their words) and the opportunity they had to pick on them. That was totally consistent with Peter’s description of his encounter with the cop that pulled him over. While it ended OK for Peter both he and I agreed after I spoke to all the inspection stations there is a risk with Montana plates.
Avoid it completely by having a lease between the driver and the LLC and it becomes nothing more complex than having a rental car from Hertz.
FWIW the Cookeville TN Highway Patrol officers make it their business to hassle coaches, probably because of their proximity to Nashville. I was in Rob Russells office one afternoon when and entertainer leasing company called him to get a pair of coaches and the trailers they were towing to the eastern TN state line because the Cookeville Highway Patrol cops was holding them because the drivers were not licensed to drive commercially or tow a trailer.
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Hello,
Do we as private RV Prevost owners required to stop at weigh / Inspection stations?
Thanks
David Thomas
1998 Featherlight XL
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I don’t think so. I’ve passed dozens in 6+ years and haven’t had a problem.
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As a private coach we have no requirement to go through an inspection station. Here in TN my coach plates are the same as those issued for a car and the cost is the same and I follow the same requirements as if I were driving my car.
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