Motorcoach operators must comply with hundreds of federal regulations related to safety and operations.

At the same time, state and federal enforcement officials must interpret and enforce those myriad rules and requirements.

Sometimes, those doing the enforcing get it wrong.

When operators or their drivers are informed -- during roadside, destination or terminal inspections -- about a regulation they are unfamiliar with or think has been interpreted in error, they should ask to see the rule in writing.

Thats the straightforward advice from experts on hand for a panel discussion on federal rules and regulations at the United Motorcoach Associations recent Motorcoach Expo in Las Vegas.

"Be sure to validate what you hear," recommended Bradford J. Watkins of Consolidated Safety Services of Fairfax, Va., which contracts with government units to provide commercial vehicle safety inspections.

Often times, he said, inspectors and enforcement officials are interrupting the regulations on the fly -- when they are in the field, and sometimes they are mistaken about a particular rule.

"Go back to the regulations and see what it really says and if it is different than what you were told, then ask to see it in the regulations," he stressed.

The advice came in response to comments made by operators who said their drivers sometimes are confused by what they are told during roadside or destination inspections, and their understanding of the multitude of regulations they have to live by when on the road.

Wesley F. Barber, a special agent for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and a veteran inspector, said help is available on the FMCSA website, www.fmcsa.dot.gov.

He said the site not only contains valuable information about the regulations and agency interpretations of the rules, but also a variety of other issues, including carrier profiles, safety ratings, industry statistics, accident data and registration payments.

The Expo discussion, which was moderated by Ken Presley, UMA vice president of industry relations, centered on the most-frequently-asked questions about the rules that UMA gets from its members.

In addition to regulation interpretation issues, other popular queries concern hours-of-service rules, pre-employment checks, and medical cards.

Barber explained that when drivers are fulfilling their off-duty requirements during a long trip, they must be completely free of any responsibility for the bus and the passengers during their off-duty period.

He said drivers may remain inside their empty bus, and may even sit behind the wheel to read or rest, although he does not recommend doing that because of possible demands from passengers.

"Responsibility for the bus and passengers is the key and, if you do anything, then you would be back on duty and would have to start your off-duty time over again," he noted.

Most pre-employment questions that UMA gets focus on operators being unable to obtain the driving records of job applicants from companies that previously employed them.

Barber said operators who are considering the applicants are responsible for making every effort to obtain the records, including sending follow-up requests if their initial contacts do not result in a response.

Although federal rules do not specify the number of contacts that must be made, several well-documented attempts usually is sufficient.

"You cant go down the street to get that guy to respond, thats our job," said Barber, who added that operators also are required to notify the FMCSA of any operators who ignore a legitimate request for employment screening information.

Watkins said the practice of documenting the contact attempts in some manner not only could serve as proof that the attempts were made, but also help provide some protection from liability if the driver turns out to be a bad apple.

Operators also frequently ask about drivers who carry current medical cards but do not appear fit to drive.

Watkins said things can happen to someone after they obtain their card like losing required eye glasses or breaking a leg among them and operators need to be vigilant for such problems.

"A medical card is not a get-out-of-jail-free card," he said.

He suggested, too, that operators always use their own physicians for medical examinations.

"You need to have a physician in your back pocket whos working for you, and wont put your company at risk," he emphasized.