CHL carry in a company rental car or 3rd party owned c.m.v.

[poboy975]

Hi, so I've not been able to find a definitive answer to my specific question. I'm a truck transporter, the truck that I drive is my freight. I have a BOL (Bill of Lading) for the truck that I'm driving. The truck is not owned nor leased by the company that I work for, I am merely transporting the truck for a customer. Can MY company prohibit me from carrying in the trucks? If there is a company policy against carrying in the trucks, is it valid? Since the trucks are not "owned or leased" by my company? If the customer whose truck I'm driving has a no carry policy, does it apply to me since I'm not an employee of theirs? Also does this apply to a company rented vehicle? When I deliver my truck, my company usually rents me a car to return home. Is a rental car the same as a lease? I don't believe so, but in this case I do not know. 95% of all my driving is in Texas, and I do get out to some way out of the way places, I'd like to be able to carry. The law specifically states:

SUBCHAPTER G. RESTRICTIONS ON PROHIBITING EMPLOYEE
TRANSPORTATION OR STORAGE OF CERTAIN FIREARMS OR AMMUNITION
Sec. 52.061. RESTRICTION ON PROHIBITING EMPLOYEE ACCESS TO
OR STORAGE OF FIREARM OR AMMUNITION. A public or private employer
may not prohibit an employee who holds a license to carry a
concealed handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code,
who otherwise lawfully possesses a firearm, or who lawfully
possesses ammunition from transporting or storing a firearm or
ammunition the employee is authorized by law to possess in a locked,
privately owned motor vehicle in a parking lot, parking garage, or
other parking area the employer provides for employees.
Sec. 52.062. EXCEPTIONS. (a) Section 52.061 does not:
(1) authorize a person who holds a license to carry a
concealed handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code,
who otherwise lawfully possesses a firearm, or who lawfully
possesses ammunition to possess a firearm or ammunition on any
property where the possession of a firearm or ammunition is
prohibited by state or federal law; or
(2) apply to:
(A) a vehicle owned or leased by a public or
private employer and used by an employee in the course and scope of
the employee's employment, unless the employee is required to
transport or store a firearm in the official discharge of the
employee's duties;
(B) a school district;
(C) an open-enrollment charter school, as
defined by Section 5.001, Education Code;
(D) a private school, as defined by Section
22.081, Education Code; or
(E) property owned or controlled by a person,
other than the employer, that is subject to a valid, unexpired oil,
gas, or other mineral lease that contains a provision prohibiting
the possession of firearms on the property.

[EEllis]

Can they fire you? Sure why not? Gun ownership isn't a protected class so they can pretty much make any rule they want and fire you for it if they find out. Can they do anything else to you? I don't see how. Regardless of the actual legalities as far as ownership and permission not cop is going to bother to wade thru that crap. If you can do it in your car then criminally you are fine.

[RoyGBiv]

I'm a little confused...

You're a truck driver... inside your freight truck is your personal vehicle (I'll avoid using the term truck for your personal vehicle to avoid confusion). Yes?

The freight truck that you are driving is owned or leased by your employer. Yes?

If your employer has a policy that prohibits firearms in their freight truck, it would be a violation of company policy to carry in their freight truck..
If your employer does not prohibit firearms in company vehicles, you should be good to go... Seems plain and simple to me.

I am not a lawyer. This is my personal opinion, not legal advice.

[tbrown]

Can they fire you? Sure why not?

An employee can be fired for violating company policy on the clock, even if they're not on company property. They can even be fired for behavior off the clock, like the coworker at a prior job fired after a DWI conviction.

[poboy975]

I'm a little confused...

You're a truck driver... inside your freight truck is your personal vehicle (I'll avoid using the term truck for your personal vehicle to avoid confusion). Yes?

Yes I'm a truck driver, but NO I don't have a personal vehicle at all.

The freight truck that you are driving is owned or leased by your employer. Yes?

Actually no, the truck that I'm driving is owned by a 3rd party, it is not leased nor owned by MY company.

If your employer has a policy that prohibits firearms in their freight truck, it would be a violation of company policy to carry in their freight truck..

My employer does not own any vehicles.

If your employer does not prohibit firearms in company vehicles, you should be good to go... Seems plain and simple to me.

I am not a lawyer. This is my personal opinion, not legal advice.

I'm not worried about getting fired, I know that can happen at anytime for any reason...I'm more concerned with the legality of it. Since the truck is not owned by the company that I work for, can I violate the criminal trespass part of the company property law?

Also, I'm not an employee of the company I work for, I'm a sub contractor anyway. Don't know if that makes a difference.

[EEllis]

I'm not worried about getting fired, I know that can happen at anytime for any reason...I'm more concerned with the legality of it. Since the truck is not owned by the company that I work for, can I violate the criminal trespass part of the company property law?

Also, I'm not an employee of the company I work for, I'm a sub contractor anyway. Don't know if that makes a difference.

If you can have the gun if it was your truck then you can have it in a company vehicle. The fact of it being a lease/rental/whatever the heck, doesn't have any effect on the criminal aspects of the situation.

[srothstein]

I think you have come up with a very interesting legal question. To help clarify for others not familiar with the type of trucking (and to make sure I understand correctly what you are doing) let me reword your question a little.

You are a self-employed sub-contract driver in a drive-away operation where the company you are contracted to shuttles trucks around for other companies, such as to move a tractor-trailer from an auction to a sales lot. Can your company ban you from carrying a firearm in the truck you are driving which is owned by the customer?

I think that you cannot be arrested for carrying the firearm in the truck. I also think that you cannot be fired for it, in the legal sense. You cannot be fired because you are a contractor and not an employee. You could have your contract terminated for breach of contract, I think. This would have the effect of being fired since you would be out of a job, but is not covered by the law since you are not an employee.

But since this is a very gray area and I am not as up on employment law, I suggest that you ask a good lawyer familiar with the trucking industry and somewhat familiar with firearms law. A good employment lawyer can read the new law on banning guns and come up with an answer if he understands your employment situation, which is unusual to say the least.

[The Annoyed Man]

I'm a little confused...

You're a truck driver... inside your freight truck is your personal vehicle (I'll avoid using the term truck for your personal vehicle to avoid confusion). Yes?

The freight truck that you are driving is owned or leased by your employer. Yes?

If your employer has a policy that prohibits firearms in their freight truck, it would be a violation of company policy to carry in their freight truck..
If your employer does not prohibit firearms in company vehicles, you should be good to go... Seems plain and simple to me.

I am not a lawyer. This is my personal opinion, not legal advice.

I think I know what he's talking about, and I've done exactly that several times. I delivered other people's vehicles for a company by driving them across country. I once delivered a Cadillac limousine from NYC to Austin. I delivered a Saab sedan from Houston to NYC once; and the last time I did it I delivered a Buick Century from NYC to Los Angeles. The vehicle owner contracts with the delivery company to deliver the owner's vehicle from one state to another, and the company matches the vehicle with a driver headed that way. The owner pays the company for the service. The company insures the vehicle during the trip, and pays for any mechanical repairs necessary if the car breaks down en-route. The delivery driver follows an agreed upon pre-planned route, and he/she pays for the gas.

It is a cheap way to travel if you like to drive. It sounds like the OP is doing basically the same thing, but he's getting paid to ferry commercial vehicles from one place to another. He is employed, but the vehicles do not belong to his employer; they belong to the owners that pay his employer to ferry the vehicles.

[poboy975]

I think you have come up with a very interesting legal question. To help clarify for others not familiar with the type of trucking (and to make sure I understand correctly what you are doing) let me reword your question a little.

You are a self-employed sub-contract driver in a drive-away operation where the company you are contracted to shuttles trucks around for other companies, such as to move a tractor-trailer from an auction to a sales lot. Can your company ban you from carrying a firearm in the truck you are driving which is owned by the customer?

I think that you cannot be arrested for carrying the firearm in the truck. I also think that you cannot be fired for it, in the legal sense. You cannot be fired because you are a contractor and not an employee. You could have your contract terminated for breach of contract, I think. This would have the effect of being fired since you would be out of a job, but is not covered by the law since you are not an employee.

But since this is a very gray area and I am not as up on employment law, I suggest that you ask a good lawyer familiar with the trucking industry and somewhat familiar with firearms law. A good employment lawyer can read the new law on banning guns and come up with an answer if he understands your employment situation, which is unusual to say the least.

Yes exactly, that's what I'm doing. I tend to agree with your assessment, about the legality of the situation, and I think I'll be ok law wise. I've asked a lawyer, but he does not have much experience in trucking so he is not 100% sure.