What is a Non-CDL CMV?

"A Good Truck Driver Can't even Spell CDL.  Just kidding" Anonymous 

What is a Non-CDL CMV?  

Holy cow that was a ton of acronyms to have in the first sentence of a blog.  Lol

Let's start with what those mean. 

CMV = Commercial Motor Vehicle.  In layman's terms, a CMV is any vehicle that crosses state lines and is used in commerce that has a GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) over 10,000 lbs.  Pretty much any vehicle that pulls trailers or is bigger than a ¾ ton pickup.  

*note that if you do not cross state lines then there are several states that do not consider a vehicle to be a CMV until it reaches 26,001 lbs.

CDL = Commercial Driver License.  A CDL is required to operate any Hazmat vehicle that carries a placardable amount of material, any vehicle with a GVWR over 26,000, or any vehicle that was built to transport 16 or passengers including the driver. 

Hopefully, that helps to clear up some confusion that might be around those.  

A Non-CDL CMV is any vehicle that crosses state lines and is used in commerce that has a GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) over 10,000lbs.  

Pretty much any vehicle that pulls trailers or is bigger than a ¾ ton pickup.  That is used for business.  

A great example would be a mechanics service truck where you work in Louisiana but live in Texas. Let's say that it's an F550 and has a GVWR of 19,500 lbs.  

Since it’s GVWR is under 26,000 then no CDL is required to operate that unit.  But the driver is still considered a CMV driver since it is rated over 10,000 and you are crossing state lines.  Therefore you would need to meet all of the requirements for FMCSA for a CMV driver.  

What does a CMV need to have to be legal? 

• Company logo or name on both sides of the truck

• USDOT Number legible from 50’ in a contrasting color on each side of the truck

• 3 Reflective DOT triangles

• 1, 10 lb Fire extinguisher

• Spare Fuses

• Annual DOT Inspection

Since a CMV driver is not required to have a CDL to drive a Non-CDL CMV what do they need to be legal?

• Valid Driver license

• Valid DOT Medical Card

• Valid Driver Qualification File (see our blog on DQ files)

• Up to date HOS (Hours of Service)  Yes all CMV drivers CDL or Non-CDL are required to abide by FMCSA’s HOS regulations. (for more watch our Blog Webinar on HOS)

We sure hope this was helpful.

If you need any help getting your DOT program straightened out or have questions about DOT please don’t hesitate to reach out to our experts.  info@eclipse-dot.com