Grabbing Wrong Trailer?

Last week, I had an assignment to take a load to Buffalo, NY. Problem, was I could not find that trailer in the drop yard nor at the factory. Yard dog told me "it should be here". Well, no kidding. I sat for 2 hours while IP sorted out looking for this "mystery trailer." I ended up getting detention. Finally was given another load and then was notified that over the weekend, a driver had taken the Buffalo load to another customer in Ohio. Oops. Needless to say, I guess the company wasn't happy, because that driver is no longer with us. Per company policy, we are to open our trailer doors and confirm the correct load is in the trailer. This driver obviously did not check the trailer. If so, they would have seen another load was in the trailer. Worse than that, our trailers have four digit numbers on the front and back of each trailer, so they could not have looked to make sure they had the correct trailer. I really don't see how mistakes like this are made, but they obviously do occur. Take your time and Check your trailer contents (if not sealed) and your trailer number. Doing so will save you grief layer on.

Don, on my account we almost always pick up pre-loaded trailers. I've seen this happen several times. The drivers get in too big a hurry, and grab the wrong trailer. Sometimes I've seen it happen where the shipper accidentally puts the wrong trailer number on the paperwork - that's a mess. We're pulling flatbeds though. I always confirm the tags on the material as being the load I'm supposed to get. Once I picked up my load and the shipper had put the wrong bay number, and the wrong trailer number on my paperwork! I still found the right one, but I had to do a little investigating.

I agree with Old School. Always check the trailer numbers and if possible check the freight. If you are pulling a sealed trailer like a reefer or dry van it isn't always possible to do this so verify the seal numbers. If you do everything correct on your part that is the best that can be expected.

I always double check trailer and seal numbers, and if you ever ever ever forget it, always get out and check again. There have been times where I've gotten in and out three or four times to be extra sure it's all correct, even if I have the numbers written down.

Back in June I was delivering a produce load to the Walmart DC in Brundidge AL. They only had a few doors for unloading produce and basically left it up to the driver's to form a line and back into an available door when a trailer was pulled. This location also had you drop your trailer in the door and then go park in separate bobtail parking area.

I had helped out a driver who was lost in the chaos of the place and spent a short time joking around with him.

Eventually I had gotten my trailer into a door and relocated to the bobtail area. A little while later that driver came and knocked on my door, "hey wasnt that your trailer in the 3rd door?? Another Prime just pulled it out!.

Ummmmmm what??

So I jump out and go check..... My trailer is gone.

I run inside to the office and ask the ladies inside. They ask on their radios and someone reports that no one should have pulled that trailer, it hasn't been unloaded yet.

Now everyone in the office starts freaking out. They ask me to please go looking for it while they contact the police and report it.

I return to my tractor and start driving around the yard. I spot a Prime truck/trailer with it's doors open along the curb heading out towards the exit. I get closer and I immediately recognize the load from when I put up my load locks, that's my load!

I pull up next to the driver's window. "Hey man how ya doing, where ya headed with that trailer???"

He responds "oh im just heading to a truck stop, I dont have a load yet."

Then I reply, "You know that trailer is loaded right???". (blank stare from him) "that's my loaded trailer you just pulled out of that door!" (His face turns to a pale white). "Did ya happen to look inside?"

He jumps out and runs to the back to look inside... "Oh sh**!!"

So anyway I got my trailer back. I lost my spot at the dock but Walmart pulled another trailer specifically for me so they could resume the unload.

I ran into two other Prime driver's who had gotten pulled over and questioned by the police during this time. Walmart had indeed reported the load as hijacked and the police were checking all Prime vehicles.

A fiasco that could have been easily avoided if one driver had just been paying attention. He didn't check the trailer number, nor did he verify that the trailer was unloaded. He just saw a Prime trailer in the approximate location he left his trailer and assumed it was his.

Security never would have let him out of the yard. But that is funny... did you happen to ask him how long he'd been driving? And yes these things happen when you get in a hurry. Only issues I've run into is when drivers for my company enter the wrong trailer number on the Qualcomm can't tell you how many times I enter my information but the computer kicks it out saying wrong trailer. A couple times I've had the dispatcher called me saying you have the wrong trailer number and he didnt believe me so I sent him a picture. I told him this trailer number and seal number and destination all match up

Security never would have let him out of the yard.

Not necessarily true. Walmart is used to us having multiple produce stops. Many don't even bother to look at the paperwork. I have often wondered what the heck they are looking at. How would they know if all the produce for that stop was removed? They only see product. They have little hand held scanners but they often take the trailer control sheets and scan them as they are walking into the shack. i could be long gone by that time.

Yes, you are right typical and dangerous rookie mistake. A forklift driver could have been seriously injured or killed in this instance.

That WM is terrible. I spent 6 hours there over the summer just waiting for a door in a sea of truck chaos.

I once had the same happen to me in Monroe GA.

I also repowered a load from a new guy and he didnt realize the shipper changed the load. He never read the BOL. i was told to take the load to two stops in TX. Imagine my delight to find one going to TX and the other to Phoenix!!!! yay for miles on that one. The shipper never told Prime of the change.

I once had to argue with someone from another company that my Prime trailer did not belong to him. and no, it wasnt one of our normal fleets. It was a major carrier with a training team and the trainer didnt realize the 15 foot logo on my trailer wasnt his.

Security never would have let him out of the yard. But that is funny... did you happen to ask him how long he'd been driving? And yes these things happen when you get in a hurry. Only issues I've run into is when drivers for my company enter the wrong trailer number on the Qualcomm can't tell you how many times I enter my information but the computer kicks it out saying wrong trailer. A couple times I've had the dispatcher called me saying you have the wrong trailer number and he didnt believe me so I sent him a picture. I told him this trailer number and seal number and destination all match up

Security probably would have caught it but the guy never got to the gate, from what I understand. Can you imagine how embarrassing it would be to have to explain something like this to the company? OMG Good reminder. Forewarned I’d forearmed as the saying goes

Much easier on an open deck, but I was given the wrong trailer number on a swap out of Frederick, MD.

Compared the load to the BOL...those matched, so I took the trailer and sent a macro in w/ the new trailer number.

Once in Indy 2 of us were at the same small shipper and they had us in doors next to each other. It was very early in the morning and the loader looked pretty tore up still from the night before. I was preloading a trailer going to Ca by rail and the other driver had something else goong to NY. We got done and were both in the office getting our paperwork and I noticied the info was not correct. Bottom line was the loader loaded the trailers backwards. I thought no problem we’ll just swap trailers. We did and I called my DM and she was good with it and swaped the info in the system. I had told the other driver what I was doing, but he decided to call his DM and he said no problem and switched them. That was a nightmare. Too many fingers on the keyboard.