The immediate response to that question, “You darn right they are worth the time and effort.” Now, let’s take a look at why that is the only answer to the question. A comprehensive pre-trip inspection will take from 15 to 30 minutes to complete. During the course of the day a casual walk around at each pause in your day will take another 5 to 10 minutes. Let’s assume that five times per day is probably a good estimate of the number of times that travel will be paused/interrupted. That means that between 40 minutes and an hour and 20 minutes will be spent on pre-trip and casual walk around inspections daily. if the time spent on these inspections detected a wet hub seal, low or flat tire, disconnected trailer cord, missing mud flap, stop lamp or tail light not working, headlight not working, or air lines touching the “deck” how much time will be lost to a scale site inspection, roadside inspection, or waiting for repair? Eliminating visual vehicle discrepancies, and unlawful driving behaviors, removes cause for traffic stops and scale inspections. Every engagement with law enforcement opens the door of opportunity that would have remained closed if the visible violation had not existed. Time spend on pre-trip inspections and periodic casual walk arounds is a productive use of time and effort. it only takes one scale inspection or traffic stop to erase a weeks time of pre-trip inspections. Miles equals money and miles are not generated by driving faster, driving longer, or driving with vehicle discrepancies but by Driving Smarter!