The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall
have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise.
(1) Advertisement--An oral, written, graphic, or pictorial
statement or representation made in the course of soliciting intrastate
household goods transportation services, including, without limitation,
a statement or representation made in a newspaper, magazine, or other
publication, or contained in a notice, sign, poster, display, circular,
pamphlet, or letter, or on radio, the Internet, or via an on-line
service, or on television. The term does not include direct communication
between a household goods carrier or carrier's representative and
a prospective shipper, and does not include the following:
(A) promotional items of nominal value such as ball
caps, tee shirts, and pens;
(B) business cards;
(C) listings not paid for by the household goods carrier
or its household goods carrier's agent; and
(D) listings of a household goods carrier's business
name or assumed name as it appears on the motor carrier certificate
of registration, and the household goods carrier's address, and contact
information in a directory or similar publication.
(2) Approved association--A group of household goods
carriers, its agents, or both, that has an approved collective ratemaking
agreement on file with the department under §218.64 of this title
(relating to Rates).
(3) Binding proposal--A formal written offer stating
the exact price for the transportation of specified household goods
and any related services.
(4) Board--Board of the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.
(5) Certificate of insurance--A certificate prescribed
by and filed with the department in which an insurance carrier or
surety company warrants that a motor carrier for whom the certificate
is filed has the minimum coverage as required by §218.16 of this
title (relating to Insurance Requirements).
(6) Certificate of registration--A certificate issued
by the department to a motor carrier and containing a unique number.
(7) Certified scale--Any scale designed for weighing
motor vehicles, including trailers or semitrailers not attached to
a tractor, and certified by an authorized scale inspection and licensing
authority. A certified scale may also be a platform-type or warehouse-type
scale properly inspected and certified.
(8) Commercial motor vehicle--
(A) Includes:
(i) any motor vehicle or combination of vehicles with
a gross weight, registered weight, or gross weight rating in excess
of 26,000 pounds, that is designed or used for the transportation
of cargo in furtherance of any commercial enterprise;
(ii) any vehicle, including buses, designed or used
to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver; and
(iii) any vehicle used in the transportation of hazardous
materials in a quantity requiring placarding under the regulations
issued under the federal Hazardous Materials Transportation Act (49
U.S.C. §§5101-5128).
(B) Does not include:
(i) a farm vehicle with a gross weight, registered
weight, and gross weight rating of less than 48,000 pounds;
(ii) cotton vehicles registered under Transportation
Code, §504.505;
(iii) a vehicle registered with the Railroad Commission
under Natural Resources Code, §113.131 and §116.072;
(iv) a vehicle operated by a governmental entity;
(v) a motor vehicle exempt from registration by the
Unified Carrier Registration Act of 2005; and
(vi) a tow truck, as defined by Occupations Code, §2308.002
and permitted under Occupations Code, Chapter 2308, Subchapter C.
(9) Commercial school bus--A motor vehicle owned by
a motor carrier that is:
(A) registered under Transportation Code, Chapter 643,
Subchapter B;
(B) operated exclusively within the boundaries of a
municipality and used to transport preprimary, primary, or secondary
school students on a route between the students' residences and a
public, private, or parochial school or daycare facility;
(C) operated by a person who holds a driver's license
or commercial driver's license of the appropriate class for the operation
of a school bus;
(D) complies with Transportation Code, Chapter 548;
and
(E) complies with Transportation Code, §521.022.
(10) Conspicuous--Written in a size, color, and contrast
so as to be readily noticed and understood.
(11) Conversion--A change in an entity's organization
that is implemented with a Certificate of Conversion issued by the
Texas Secretary of State under Business and Organizations Code, §10.154.
(12) Department--Texas Department of Motor Vehicles
(TxDMV).
(13) Director--The director of the Motor Carrier Division,
Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.
(14) Division--The Motor Carrier Division.
(15) Estimate--An informal oral calculation of the
approximate price of transporting household goods.
(16) Farmer--A person who operates a farm or is directly
involved in cultivating land or in raising crops or livestock that
are owned by or are under the direct control of that person.
(17) Farm vehicle--Any vehicle or combination of vehicles
controlled or operated by a farmer or rancher being used to transport
agriculture products, farm machinery, and farm supplies to or from
a farm or ranch.
(18) FMCSA--Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
(19) Foreign commercial motor vehicle--A commercial
motor vehicle that is owned by a person or entity that is domiciled
in or a citizen of a country other than the United States.
(20) Gross weight rating--The maximum loaded weight
of any combination of truck, tractor, and trailer equipment as specified
by the manufacturer of the equipment. If the manufacturer's rating
is unknown, the gross weight rating is the greater of:
(A) the actual weight of the equipment and its lading;
or
(B) the maximum lawful weight of the equipment and
its lading.
(21) Household goods--Personal property intended ultimately
to be used in a dwelling when the transportation of that property
is arranged and paid for by the householder or the householder's representative.
The term does not include personal property to be used in a dwelling
when the property is transported from a manufacturing, retail, or
similar company to a dwelling if the transportation is arranged by
a manufacturing, retail, or similar company.
(22) Household goods agent--A motor carrier who transports
household goods on behalf of another motor carrier.
(23) Household goods carrier--A motor carrier who transports
household goods for compensation or hire in furtherance of a commercial
enterprise, regardless of the size of the vehicle.
(24) Insurer--A person, including a surety, authorized
in this state to write lines of insurance coverage required by Subchapter
B of this chapter.
(25) Inventory--A list of the items in a household
goods shipment and the condition of the items.
(26) Leasing business--A person that leases vehicles
requiring registration under Subchapter B of this chapter to a motor
carrier that must be registered.
(27) Mediation--A non-adversarial form of alternative
dispute resolution in which an impartial person, the mediator, facilitates
communication between two parties to promote reconciliation, settlement,
or understanding.
(28) Motor Carrier or carrier--A person who controls,
operates, or directs the operation of one or more vehicles that transport
persons or cargo over a public highway in this state.
(29) Motor transportation broker--A person who sells,
offers for sale, or negotiates for the transportation of cargo by
a motor carrier operated by another person or a person who aids and
abets another person in selling, offering for sale, or negotiating
for the transportation of cargo by a motor carrier operated by another
person.
(30) Moving services contract--A contract between a
household goods carrier and shipper, such as a bill of lading, receipt,
order for service, or work order, that sets out the terms of the services
to be provided.
(31) Multiple user--An individual or business who has
a contract with a household goods carrier and who used the carrier's
services more than 50 times within the preceding 12 months.
Cont'd... |
