UDR: How to Manage Unidentified Driving Records
Unidentified driving records, also known as non-authenticated driver logs, are most often referred to in their abbreviated form, UDR. So, what are UDRs? A UDR segment is created whenever the vehicle is in motion if no driver has logged into and connected to the ELD. The ELD should associate all Driving Records with a single driver account at the time of creation. If these records are not associated with a driver when they are created, then they become a UDR. UDRs ARE EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND. Let’s dive into the importance of managing UDRs.
Why You Don’t Want UDRs During an Audit
It is important for a truck driver, fleet manager, or fleet admin to understand the importance of correctly managing UDR. For example, if you are pulled over during a roadside inspection or during any audit upload to the FMCSA, all UDR segments of the vehicle in question during the audit timeframe, that have not been “accepted” by the entire Carrier Fleet of Drivers, will be uploaded to the FMCSA officer during any audit. That means each and every single record from every driver in the entire fleet associated with the vehicle being inspected will be sent to the FMCSA auditor. It gives the auditor an overall glimpse of all records being accounted for by the Carrier. If you have unassigned records, especially Driving records, this can cause a problem during your audit. That tells the auditor there are drivers with missing driving time and their logs are not accurately reflecting their drive time. UDRs can put unwanted attention on the Carrier and cause an additional future audit if records to verify records are being assigned and accepted by its drivers.
2 Types of UDRs
There are 2 types of UDRs and it is important to understand the difference between the two and how to correctly assign and notate if necessary. The first one is a Non-Driving Segment. This is when the vehicle’s engine is on and running without a driver being connected to the ELD. Accepting this segment will not change your status but it is required if you were behind the wheel.
The other type of UDR is a Driving Segment. This type of UDR occurs when the vehicle is in motion with velocity 5 mph or greater without a driver being connected to the ELD. This type of record can affect your Hours of Service. Ultimately, a driver should review each UDR segment and accept all UDRs, both non-driving and driving segments that belong to the driver. If the driver hasn’t reviewed, accepted, or reassigned his/her UDRs and starts driving, you increase your chances of inaccurate logs and risk FMCSA violation.
How to Manage UDR Within the My20 ELD App
If you aren’t sure if your ELD has UDR management, you should ask your ELD provider. If they do not provide UDR management, you should switch ELD providers immediately. My20 ELD presents UDRs in 2 different ways, either upon connecting to the ELD or when you finish Driving and change your status out of Driving. Once the UDR notification appears on your screen, you will have to choose to either assign them to the driver or send them to the carrier in order to proceed further in the My20 Tower. If you are the only person that drives your truck you will need to accept the record as yours. If a mechanic or someone else drove your truck, that is when you would send it to the Carrier. Accepting someone else’s UDRs will affect your hours of service.
Another way that you might see the UDR records is if they have been assigned by the Carrier. This simply means that someone (you or another driver) has previously said these records weren’t theirs and they sent them back to the Carrier. The Carrier has now reassigned them to you based on their research.
It is important to remember unidentified driving records are not a bad thing. It is a backup safety precaution that allows you to keep your logs accurate whether you drove today and forgot to connect, or you disconnected from the ELD and you didn’t realize it. With My20 ELD your driving records will never be lost. Remember, no one is allowed to manually change driving records per FMCSA, but proactively managing UDR will allow your driving records to change automatically and correctly update all your daily clocks and cycles keeping you on track of your Hours of Service.
For more information on UDR and how to manage UDR within the My20 ELD, check out this short video.