(a) Any truck, or other motor vehicle, with an open bed, that is operated on any highway, road, or street open for public use in this state, shall be loaded so that any loose material transported in truck or other motor vehicle remains at least four inches (4″) below the walls of the open bed, measured at the front, back and sidewalls; but the load may be piled higher in the center of the open bed. “Loose material” includes any substance that could spill, drop off, or blow away from the open bed when the vehicle is operated. “Loose material” does not include materials such as sand or salt that are purposely discharged from truck beds to clear roadways or improve traction, and does not include water sprayed on streets for purposes of sanitation.

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class C misdemeanorup to 30 daysup to $50
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 55-7-109

  • Driver: means :
    (A) For purposes of a conventionally operated vehicle, every person who drives or is in actual physical control of a vehicle. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Highway: means the entire width between the boundary lines of every way when any part thereto is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Owner: means a person who holds the legal title of a vehicle, or in the event a vehicle is the subject of an agreement for the conditional sale or lease thereof, with the right of purchase upon performance of the conditions stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditional vendee or lessee, or in the event a mortgagor of a vehicle is entitled to possession, then the conditional vendee or lessee or mortgagor shall be deemed the owner for the purpose of this chapter and chapter 10, parts 1-5 of this title. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Road: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Street: means the entire width between boundary lines of every way when any part thereof is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Truck: means every motor vehicle designed, used or maintained primarily for the transportation of property. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Vehicle: means every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
(b)

(1) A violation of this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
(2) A charge for violation of this section shall be brought against the hauler whose vehicle is found in violation; however, the hauler may recoup one-half (1/2) of the fine from the producer or loader of the material hauled in violation of this section.
(c) As used in this section, “hauler” includes both the owner and the driver of a vehicle, and both parties shall be jointly liable. Only one (1) fine shall be imposed on a hauler, regardless of a difference between ownership and operation, and the party or parties paying the fine shall have a right of recoupment against the producer or loader either in whole or in accordance with the producer’s or loader’s share of payment.
(d)

(1) This section shall not include farm produce going to market.
(2) This section shall not apply to motor vehicles which transport crushed stone, fill dirt and rock, soil, bulk sand, coal, phosphate muck, asphalt, concrete, other building materials, forest products, unfinished lumber, agricultural lime and agricultural products and that are loaded in compliance with the four-inch requirement of this section. The exemption shall not apply to any load if any law enforcement officer sees any part of this material blowing off the vehicle.
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