Hey all,

I have been looking around Alberta's web site and can't find much information about commercial requirements. It looks as though they want a commercial registration for a vehicle or combination of vehicle and trailer that weighs over 4500kilos. I am assuming that this is an unloaded weight.

I guess I need to discuss what I am doing. I have a 2009 f-350 crew (SRW) which is owned personally, but insured for commercial and used for work. I tow a bumper of (max) 7k lbs, or a 5th wheel between 12k-16k lbs.

My query is, at what point is a commercial registration required and all that fun stuff that goes with it? Ie., Inspections, log books, etc. Or do I even need to look at it for a 1 ton pick-up? I'm going to get weighed tomorrow, after I get the new truck, so that I know exactly what I can put on it safely. Is the best bet to just tag it with the Tare and GVW and keep it in good working order? It sure seems as though the guys in the US have alot more rules from state to state.

Thanks for reading.

 

the gross vehicle weight is the weight of the truck trailer and weight,tare weight is the weight of the truck buy it's self.from what i was told any vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of 4500kg or greater have to follow the same rules as a heavy truck,meaning filling out log books,pulling into scales for weighing and inspections.plus get annual safety inspections. for a better description i would contact the commercial vehicle enforcement.or if you live close to a commercial truck scale pull in and talk to the officers.i have been running truck long haul in the early ninety's,and the oil field from 97 to present,and have taken many of these compliant courses.so from what i have been told you will have to follow the same rules as the big rig's.

also be careful,a lot of communities have bylaws with 1ton's on city street's and you have to follow commercial truck routes.in the city of brooks f350's are not allowed on residential streets.good luck.

 

Thanks, I will look into it. Sounds like a total pain. I'm surprised about the GVW needing commercial at only 4500. That means that even some 1/2 tons should have it. Crazy times. Thanks again for the info.

 

Acctually Alberta is a bit mixed up when it comes to commercial vehicles. I will try to break it down for you.

Trip Inspections:
As of July 1st 2009 all commercial vehicles registered at 4500 and higher need to have daily trip inspections done; however on units registered 4500 - 11,793 it only needs to be a visual. That being said an inspector may ask to see the inspection criteria from the National Safety Code 13 Shedule 1. A driver must be able to produce this if asked. If you are registered over 11,793 you must do a written trip inspection and be able to produce it if asked.

Annual Inspections:
Commercial vehicles ove 11,793 must have an annual COmmercial Vehicle Inspection done on them by a licensed facility.

Weigh Scales:
All commercial vehicles registered over 4500 must report to a weigh scale even if you are not loaded.

Log Books:
Not required unless you are registered ove 11,793. Even then you may be exempt if you meet certain criteria.

If you look on Albeta's website under the ministry of transport you can access all the applicable regulations.

Also keep in mind that if you leave Alberta the rules all change. Alberta is probibly the most lienient when it comes to commercial vehicles.

Hope this helps you out.

 

we were told log books were required for gvw 4500kg by the ministry of transportation,so i would check with the ministry of transportation,cause i would like to know for sure as well.

 

You do need log books if you are an interprovincial carrier (travel outside Alberta) if you stay inside the province they are not required until you cross the 11,794 threshold.

 

I registered today for the commercial at a max load of 11,700kgs. It cost $377 plus the pro-rated amount from the new plate I just bought, so probably $450 or so per year (as Jermaine Jackson said - "thats some bull S"). I am going to phone the provincial officers again to confirm what I need to do next. It seems as Fleet guy said no log books required for Alberta only transport and all my own goods (no Hot-shot services). I will need to put weight ratings on both sides of the truck, I believe tare and GVW, but I am curious about which numbers they want. I spread the registration to cover truck and trailer and will be under the 11,700 I registered for. I will post more info once I have visited the scales again.

I sure see that the HIGH majority of businesses do not have weight ratings on their pick-up trucks. I shoulda saved the cash and just paid for the tickets, it would be cheaper. Although I do have piece of mind if I ever got into an accident hauling something that I am technically unlicensed to.

Does anyone know if all this applies to holiday trailers?

 

Sounds like you are on the right track Homepride. First off, in regards to which numbers the scale guys want to see on your truck. They want to see the TARE which is the weight of just the truck with no load but full of fuel and driver. No one really cares too much about this so you can guestimate it. It is more crucial for figuring out payload. GVW - TARE. They also want to see that registered weight. That is the 11,700 which applys to the truck trailer combination. This is actually the CGVW or Combined Gross Vehicle Weight but the scale guys are happy with just GVW.
Second, none of this applys to holiday trailers providing they are not being used for commercial purposes.
Oh, by the way. The scale guys will also want to see a company name on the vehicle.
Cheers.

 

Should I call the scalehouse or just ask Fleet Guy? I guess thats why you are Fleet Guy. The registration is blanket coverage for any trailer I have on correct? No numbers needed for the trailers. I was told that when they pull you over they weigh each tire to see if you exceed the tire rating, but that they do not care as much about the actual GVW of the vehicle (typically the tires are equal to or less than the GVW of the unit). So I am assuming that smaller trailers obviously still have to be loaded properly and that my bigger trailer can be up to, but not exceeding, that 11,700 I registered for.

I do have company logos, and will order up some matching weight vinyls for sure. That truck unit is scarce, but I have seen it a couple times over the last few years. It's funny how many guys don't have the weight decals, assuming that they also don't have proper commercial papers. I would however disagree with having the information easy to obtain. The web site for Alberta transport isn't that great. You can navigate around and find some information, but ti is not layed out very well. I think that this should be obtainable at the source. I mean that if you register a full size truck or van the registry agent should ask if it will be used for work. They should advise people that a commercial registration could be required. I bet more people would comply.

Thanks for the info.

 

You got it figured out; and I agree the information is not real easy to find if you are unsure of what exactly you are looking for. It would be nice if there was a place that gave a brief outlinf of the requirements for a commercial vehicle referencing the actual regulation number so you could research it in a bit more detail.

One quick heads up. There is going to be a commercial vehicle inspection blitz Sept. 13-19. This is a national program that typically happens twice a year.

Cheers

 

Sorry for the massive necro-bump, but I'm hoping to tag onto some expertise from others that posted in this thread.

I'm trying to sort out the whole commercial registration issue for myself...

Obviously, there are penalties of some sort if your not running commercial plates; but what are those penalties? There sure is a lot of BS involved in commercial registration, so the temptation is to avoid the issue.

Assuming one goes to commercial plates, you are supposed to have company name/tare/gross weights on the sides. What's the penalty for not having those displayed?

I prefer NOT to advertise on my vehicles/trailers; also, the last thing I want is some nosy idiot calling parking enforcement on me for parking a commercial vehicle on my own street...

Thoughts from those of you in the know on these sorts of things?

 

Hey bwestcott,

I struggle with the massive registration fees every time I renew. One way I justify the extra cost of the commercial insurance and registration is peace of mind. I would fear using the vehicle in a manner that it is not properly registered for in the case of an accident, especially an injury accident. If you were overloaded or transporting goods or equipment it is very clear that this is intended for working purposes. Maybe I'm just paranoid.

I do not know the exact fines for not having the information displayed on the truck. I do not think that a company phone number is a requirement, just a company name. Maybe this would keep your number off the streets if desired. Lots of workers use work vehicles for personal transport to and from work. I don't believe that one pick-up would land you in trouble as you are entitled to get to and from work. I think the issue would be if you had more than one vehicle and if any vehicle was over a certain size, like a 5 ton truck or something.

Hopefully some of the Alberta experts weigh in for you with some exact details. I do bet that as far as fines go it would be cheaper to ignore the rules, but I prefer to be prepared.

 

I'm not against paying the extra fees for commercial registration; its more an issue of being caught up in the side issues of a commercial vehicle. Mainly that it becomes a "heavy vehicle" and has to stick to truck routes, can't park on city streets, etc.

In the grand scheme of things, the extra $200 or so for annual registration is no big deal; well worth it in terms of peace of mind. I'm really much more concerned about keeping peace in my neighbourhood. I live here too, which is one of the reasons I try to keep my vehicle looking just like everyone else's.