An intermodal container may travel on a chassis that is owned, leased, maintained, tendered, inspected, and operated by different participants. The container, chassis, tractor, driver, motor carrier, intermodal equipment provider, terminal, maintenance vendor, shipper, and cargo should be identified separately. A logo on the container does not establish who controlled the chassis condition.

An interchange or inspection record is a dated handoff record; it does not establish that every component was visible, that no condition changed later, or that a recorded defect caused a collision.

Identify the exact chassis and handoff

  • Chassis VIN, unit or fleet number, license plate, SCAC and trailing number where used, provider USDOT number, make, model, manufacture date, ratings, axle and slider configuration
  • Container number, size, chassis compatibility, cargo, seal, gross and axle weights, securement or locking devices, tractor, driver, and motor carrier
  • Terminal, gate, lane, interchange date and time, in-gate and out-gate images, receipt, electronic event, user account, and audit history
  • Provider, beneficial owner, lessor, pool, terminal operator, motor carrier, maintenance vendor, prior user, and dates each participant possessed or controlled the equipment
  • Reported defect, inspection, work order, part, technician, test, red tag, repair, replacement, release, roadside event, collision, tow, and storage chronology

Read the provider’s current operating duties

49 C.F.R. § 390.40T addresses intermodal equipment providers under the current transitional text. It includes identification and marking, systematic inspection and maintenance, driver vehicle inspection report and maintenance-record systems, periodic inspection, pretrip space and procedures, repair or replacement after a reported pretrip defect, and treatment of an imminent hazard.

Identify the rule version in effect on the event date. Request the provider’s procedures and the source records showing how a particular chassis moved through them; a written program does not show that an inspection, repair, replacement, or release occurred for this unit.

Document the driver’s pretrip scope

49 C.F.R. § 392.7(b) lists intermodal-equipment components for a driver’s pretrip inspection, including readily visible brake components and trailer connections, lighting and conspicuity material, wheels and tires, air connections, the kingpin upper coupling device, rails or support frames, tie-down bolsters, locking devices, and sliders or sliding-frame locks.

  • Inspection space, lighting, weather, equipment position, access, time, instructions, checklist, and whether the component was readily visible
  • Driver photographs, application entries, paper form, kiosk, gate conversation, message, call, refusal, replacement request, and timestamp
  • Provider response, mechanic assignment, repair, test, substitute chassis, release, override, delay, or unresolved report
  • Condition at terminal departure, later stop, loading or adjustment, roadside inspection, reported change, and collision
  • Carrier policy, driver training, dispatch communication, and any pressure or permission affecting the decision to leave

Trace defect reports and corrective action

49 C.F.R. § 396.11 addresses driver vehicle inspection reports and contains intermodal-equipment provisions concerning identified defects, delivery to the equipment provider, corrective action or a determination that repair is unnecessary before operation, certification, electronic records, and retention. Obtain every version and match it to work orders, parts, tests, photographs, and later use.

Preserve the chassis and test the causal sequence

  • Photograph and measure brakes, air lines, tires, wheels, rims, lugs, lamps, reflectors, conspicuity material, kingpin, rails, bolsters, twist locks, pins, clamps, hooks, slider locks, frame, suspension, and damage
  • Preserve gate images, surveillance, telematics, inspection reports, DVIRs, maintenance, parts, technician notes, provider databases, messages, and audit history
  • Document tow, storage, unloading, container removal, chassis separation, repair, disassembly, testing, salvage, and every custodian
  • Determine whether the alleged condition existed at interchange, was visible, was reported, changed later, arose in the collision, or was unrelated
  • Separate equipment-provider, motor-carrier, driver, terminal, maintenance, loading, and other participant conduct before assigning a causal role

The related periodic truck inspection report guide explains how to identify every unit in a combination, verify the inspector and report fields, and trace changes after a dated formal inspection.

Rosensteel Fleishman Car Accident & Injury Lawyers provides information about truck-accident claims involving intermodal chassis records. The handoff, inspection scope, equipment condition, later changes, participant conduct, and collision mechanism require their own evidence.

Sources