# weather log?



## ServiceOnSite (Nov 23, 2006)

Does anyone keep a log of the conditions outside when you go out and plow? i may a a small lawsuit coming up from a slip and fall and when the woman from my company asked me what the conditions were on the day in question i told her i didn't know. she looked at me like i was nuts. do you guys keep track of the weather in a log for every night that you o out and plow? windy, wet, powder, icy, anything like that???


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## scottL (Dec 7, 2002)

Kind of. It probably could be more detailed but given the vast area I cover the conditions can sometimes widely vary. Dates/Times I hit accounts, depth, general conditions.

Do you have contracts? I find most insurance companies would rather settle with out question - it's cheaper for them, not you.

I'm mean really IT"S WINTER. slip, fall - duh. Too many lawyers are politicians.


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## ServiceOnSite (Nov 23, 2006)

i do have contracts, and this one was a rite aid, but i never wrote down the weather conditions before i plowed. less than one inch i salted, 2-5 plowed and salted . not to hard. just kinda suck my first year doing this contract and i get sued:realmad:


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## Indy (Sep 23, 2007)

ServiceOnSite;556116 said:


> i do have contracts, and this one was a rite aid, but i never wrote down the weather conditions before i plowed. less than one inch i salted, 2-5 plowed and salted . not to hard. just kinda suck my first year doing this contract and i get sued:realmad:


SOS,

I hope this comes out ok for you. The local news channels and national weather service keep records of what you had for weather. They aren't so great at predictions but the do keep pretty good records on events as they pass.

Good luck


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

We have daily inspection sheets for each of our places, lot checks are done 7 days a week generally before 5am, from Nov 15 to April 15th. We started doing this about 7 years ago when we got our first major slip and fall. Now if we have a problem we just fax are daily sheets in and as soon as they see our detailed records, they realize were not at fault. We always drive the salt truck for lot checks, that way we can salt puddles and runoff. Most of our accounts are mallls and 24/7 distribution centres, so we need to stay on top of them 24/7.


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## ServiceOnSite (Nov 23, 2006)

not to be rude but do you have a rough copy or something that i could take a look at to get me in the right direction here??? as far as info goes that you log


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

PM me your fax number and I'll send you one, you can change it a bit to fit your operation but it will give you an idea. I don't have it on my computer or I'd PM it to you.


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## Neige (Jan 29, 2008)

If you join SIMA, Snow and Ice Management Association, you will get all kinds of great info on contracts, logs, legal issues and much more. Its really worthwhile if you are the least bit interested in plowing snow. You can find them on this site.


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

Neige;559765 said:


> If you join SIMA, Snow and Ice Management Association, you will get all kinds of great info on contracts, logs, legal issues and much more. Its really worthwhile if you are the least bit interested in plowing snow. You can find them on this site.


That's good to know Paul.


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## elite1msmith (Sep 10, 2007)

yes keep a log...
every day,u dont and every time u do...... got out to salt/plow
pictures of days u serviced and days u didnt...
keep logs of things and salted and.... things that u "recomended" to the customer
have them sign a form that they are liable for the surface conditions
hire an out side indedpendat contractor to make reports of conditions (continental weather is mine)
make ur own report as to things that went on that night...time and places, of trucks and materials... 

remember if its an "act of god , its not ur fault..if u touched it... it is ur fault...

lesson..if ur gonna do it... do it right.. plowing with out salting ..might get u in trouble as well as lead to zero profit


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## Luther (Oct 31, 2007)

ServiceOnSite;555989 said:


> Does anyone keep a log of the conditions outside when you go out and plow? i may a a small lawsuit coming up from a slip and fall and when the woman from my company asked me what the conditions were on the day in question i told her i didn't know. she looked at me like i was nuts. do you guys keep track of the weather in a log for every night that you o out and plow? windy, wet, powder, icy, anything like that???


Absolutely. I generate a "Winter Storm Report" daily that is faxed to all of our commercial customers. This informs them that activity took place on their property and gives them a general idea of the conditions and/or what activity did take place during the event, or outing. It also serves as a precursor to a bill. The description documented on the Winter Storm report is general because we service 7 different counties. Included is information such as temperature, the type of precipitation, the depth that accumulated, when it started, when it stopped and the type of activity that took place (salt run, multiple visits, partial or full pushes, etc) and what areas did receive snow.

The guys (and girls) document the site conditions on their logs during the time they are there. Such things as whether or not it is snowing, if it stopped, windy, snow depth, etc.

Because of the litigious nature of people it is in your best interest to have as much site documentation as possible to effectively defend yourself...............when that time comes.


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