An overweight truck citation in Kern County, CA, could financially cripple a commercial trucker who is an owner-operator.

Although some fleets will cover the legal expense and fine for their drivers in case of an overweight truck citation, an owner-operator is on their own. What’s more, the fine for an overweight truck average is about $1.00 per pound over the limit.

When you’re talking about an 80,000-pound vehicle, it is easy to be five or ten thousand pounds overweight if the driver doesn’t confirm the weight before pulling out onto the freeway. 

The novice driver might not even realize they need to get a permit for an oversized load before entering CA. Or they might pick up a container from the port and think they can get it weighed along the route as there are many privately-owned scales in CA.

However, according to, 

“PrePass trucks that receive a green light in California must still enter an open weigh station if they are pulling an oversize/overweight (even permitted) load except Light Commercial Vehicles (LCVs) operating with an annual permit that receive a green light. They must also enter an open weigh station if they are operating on a temporary permit to haul hazardous waste/materials.”— coopsareopen.com

Even though some of the information is outdated, you can learn a lot from this site. 

For instance, they also clarify the axle length measurement:

“If you have a spread axle or tri-axle trailer with more than 8 feet from the center of the first axle to the center of the rear axle, you can have a trailer axle weight up to 42,000. Except in California. California rounds to the nearest whole number. So, if you have 8 feet 5 inches, they round the distance up to 9 feet and you’re good to haul the weight. But if you have 8 feet 4 inches, they round down and you’re limited to 34,000. They do not always check the distance- but they do sometimes check it. Be aware.”— coopsareopen.com

Those seemingly minor differences of inches could be the distinction between an infraction for an overweight truck and a misdemeanor overweight truck citation. Regardless of the weight differential, you should always consult a traffic ticket defense attorney. Call Bigger & Harman, APC, from Kern County for a free consultation that could save you thousands of dollars and a misdemeanor record for an overweight truck citation.

Owner-Operators & Overweight Truck Citations in Kern County

Many owner-operators believe they are better off just to pay the fine and keep driving, but that rarely works out in their favor financially.

Traffic ticket defense attorneys are experienced and knowledgeable about negotiating reduced charges with traffic court judges who don’t want to saddle a trucker with a massive fine or misdemeanor record.

However, Lamont Traffic Court in Kern County can be a difficult court to work with and many attorneys don’t want to defend truckers against a misdemeanor there.

However, a trucker facing an overweight truck citation, especially an owner-operator, has little choice but to hire an experienced and knowledgeable traffic ticket defender to dispute their overweight charge. Bigger & Harman has a system to defend traffic tickets even in Kern vigorously. Plus, they offer commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders a free consultation.      

Ask Bigger & Harman, APC,

Call Bigger & Harman, APC, at (661) 349-9300 when you get an overweight truck citation, any traffic ticket, or when you need assistance with a DMV NOTS hearing.

We utilize a flat fee to resolve traffic tickets in Kern County. Don’t go it alone; give us a call.

Se habla Español (661) 349-9755.

Email: attorney@biggerharmanlaw.com. 

References:

The DMV Portal CA Commercial Driver Handbook Copyright 2022.