Traffic Cones
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exotion
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Lol cost of bullet and time lost. If someone is stupid enough to trip over my ramp the deserve to fall and crack there skull. I agree with the above when will all the sue fear stop. Lol I am going to park where I need to take the steps I think necessary to prevent people from hitting my trailer with cars and take the safety steps that I feel are beneficial to my business
Ric
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I never use peoples or clients driveways, I always park on the road between houses. Whether you use cones or not can be determined by your location. If your inside a sub-division I'd say they're not necessary, if your cutting on the main drive thru of the sub-division and can't find a place to get off maybe.
I have used cones for years all I do is put one in the front and in the back. They're not much of a hassle and if you use them enough they just become part of your routine for closing up and moving to the next client. I would never park in someone's driveway due to you never know when they are coming home and need access to their garage. I try to make my presence as less of a hassle for the client as possible. By putting out cones it lets cars know from a distance that your vehicle is stationary so that they can make the necessary adjustments to pass your vehicle safely. To me it's better to go the extra mile to be safe and avoid any accidents if at all possible. Plus like midtn said in Tennessee it's the law.
reynoldston
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Yes if you are spending some time at a customers home like working on their lawn or what ever I can see not going into their driveway and using the cones. Its different with me seeing I am just picking up a repairs. I load it and I am gone. My main problem when something has the wheels locked up or not running and its broken down into the back 40. I will then have to bring my ATV and use it as a tow truck. I find also a lot of the time the customer is helping load or unload.
I didn't intend to get anything started, and I agree with everything that was said. How far do we have to go to insure someone doesn't hurt themselves on your equipment? We are a suit happy culture. There was a case in this area not too many years ago where an individual broke into a service yard that was surrounded by a 6' chain link fence and a locked gate. That individual injured themselves while inside the yard and successfully sued the business for that injury. The only way to insure you absolutely can not be sued for anything is to not be there at all, and that's not an option if you're putting food on the table. The fact is that you can be sued for just about anything. Another example from my hometown two years ago. An individual was walking in a parking lot and hit their shin on a receiver hitch that was on a truck. They called the police who then proceeded to leave a citation for the truck owner. I don't remember the official wording, but basically it stated the citation was issued because the hitch protruded beyond the factory boundaries of the bumpers and therefore presented a hazard to anyone walking by. That leads me to question, is the tailgate being down beyond the factory boundaries of the truck because it sticks out past the bumper? Getting back on topic and using this logic, one could argue the entire trailer is beyond the factory boundaries of the truck, or at the least the gate is beyond the factory boundary of the trailer. Like you all said, where does it end?!?!?!
In the end, using your flashers if you're parking along the street to warn other drivers that the vehicle is stationary is about the best thing you can do, other than putting actual flashing amber lights on your trucks. Also, the use of cones in the front and rear will not only help leave you open space to load/unload and to pull out, but will also help warn pedestrians there are hazards in the area. Does any of this stuff insure nothing will happen? No. However, if you ever find yourself in court, and hopefully you'll have a judge with some common sense, two questions will have to be answered. 1. Were you, the operator, placing your equipment in such a manner as to present an undue hazard to others in the immediate area? 2. Did you do everything reasonable to warn others in the immediate area that a hazard existed? In most cases, the "reasonable and prudent person" is the test. As long as you go beyond what a "reasonable and prudent person" would do, regardless of how ridiculous it seems, you should be okay.
Just my $.02 worth and very well could be worth exactly what you've paid for it. :laughing:
In the end, using your flashers if you're parking along the street to warn other drivers that the vehicle is stationary is about the best thing you can do, other than putting actual flashing amber lights on your trucks. Also, the use of cones in the front and rear will not only help leave you open space to load/unload and to pull out, but will also help warn pedestrians there are hazards in the area. Does any of this stuff insure nothing will happen? No. However, if you ever find yourself in court, and hopefully you'll have a judge with some common sense, two questions will have to be answered. 1. Were you, the operator, placing your equipment in such a manner as to present an undue hazard to others in the immediate area? 2. Did you do everything reasonable to warn others in the immediate area that a hazard existed? In most cases, the "reasonable and prudent person" is the test. As long as you go beyond what a "reasonable and prudent person" would do, regardless of how ridiculous it seems, you should be okay.
Just my $.02 worth and very well could be worth exactly what you've paid for it. :laughing:
I talked to my brother-in-law attorney over the Christmas break about this subject to make sure I wasn't off base. He said I was on track, however one thing had to also be considered. He stated the "reasonable and prudent person" standard will change depending on the situation. For instance, are you parked in an upscale subdivision where the houses are far apart and very few people outside in the area, or are you parked near an elementary school as the students are walking home? Obviously the standard of care will be greater near the elementary school.
Mid TN Lawn
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We just have to try and reduce liability as much as we can. One risk you never hear mentioned but be careful about is if working in neighborhood with little ones do not leave your mower unattended they may touch muffler or engine. Kids live mowers!