As any company with a large fleet of vehicles knows, compliance with the laws, both state and federal, concerning those vehicles is vital for the success of the business. Without strict compliance to fleet laws, a company can incur legal action against them from state and federal law enforcement agencies, which will cripple business and make for a long road to financial recovery.
That is why compliance with the Periodic Smoke Inspection Program, or PSIP, is essential for those companies with fleets of heavy-duty diesel trucks and\or buses. Though originally a simple program to help reduce the excessive smoke emissions into California air by large fleet vehicles, the PSIP was adopted into law in 1990 and is now an essential regulation of compliance for all companies that maintain fleets of heavy-duty vehicles.
To be fully compliant with the PSIP law, a company’s fleet vehicles must pass the PSIP emissions test once a year. Those vehicle in the fleet that do not pass this yearly emissions test will need to be repaired and retested before being eligible for service in the fleet.
The test performed on the vehicles is designed to gauge how much smoke is included in the exhaust of the larger vehicles. When the truck or buses emits too much excessive smoke, that vehicle fails the test and must be repaired before being retested.
Failure to maintain records and vehicles that demonstrate compliance with the PSIP law can result in the company being fined up to five hundred dollars per vehicle per year of noncompliance. To avoid these fines and to ensure that your company is doing its part to help keep Californian air clean, be sure to get your PSIP tests performed yearly.