Good housekeeping is important

Is a messy, cluttered dash the first thing people see when they see your truck? Take a good look around your truck’s interior. Is it trashy and unorganized? It’s not only against policy, it’s unsafe and can say so much more about you and the job you do. It’s a bad first impression to your coworkers and to your customers.

An officer could see your dash is cluttered and the cab of your truck is a mess and form an opinion that you are working so many hours you are too tired to clean and organize. That will invite a full review of your logs or time sheets. If your truck’s cleanliness and organization appear to be neglected, that’s certainly going to lead to a full inspection of your truck for neglected repairs. It’s also unsafe.

“Trash on the Dash” can block your vision, cause a glare or even worse. If you are in an accident, the items cluttering your dash now become a weapon against you in your own vehicle. Things can soar through the air if you have to slam on your brakes. They can injure you or cause you to lose control of your vehicle. There have been reports of trash causing mice to take up residence in a really messy vehicle that had food trash left around. Mice can get into your vehicle’s wiring and cause all sorts of other problems.

A few more consequences:

• It makes a bad impression
• It draws the attention of DOT officers – it makes you a target for inspection
• Trash on the dash can block the defroster
• Items on the dash can block the driver’s view (one third of minor accidents are said to be caused by a blocked view)
• Items on the dash can cause a glare from the sun and make it difficult or impossible to focus on the road
• In the event of a situation which causes hard braking, all that trash can hit you in the face or head, causing further problems, injuries or even an accident

Strive to keep your vehicle clean and keep trash OFF your dash. Not only will the appearance of your truck be that of a clean, professional driver. You won’t have problems with visibility or running your defroster. Keep a plastic bag handy for trash until you are at an appropriate place to throw it away. Don’t make yourself a target for an inspection. Clean as you go, spend five minutes at the end of each day to clean up, wipe down and dispose of trash.