Covered loads: what NC law says about gravel trucks and flying stone

What G.S. 20-116(g) requires

The rule has two parts. The first applies to every vehicle: no vehicle may be driven on a highway unless it is loaded so that none of its load can fall, blow, drop, sift, leak or otherwise escape. That covers a pickup with a load of mulch as much as a dump truck.

The second part is aimed at stone. A truck over 7,500 pounds gross vehicle weight carrying rock, gravel or stone must keep the load at least six inches below the top of its sides, and must have it securely covered by a tarpaulin or some other suitable covering.

Source: G.S. 20-116.

Who	What the law requires
Any vehicle on a highway	Loaded so nothing falls, blows, drops, sifts, leaks or escapes
Trucks over 7,500 lbs carrying rock, gravel or stone	Load six inches below the sides, and securely covered by a tarp or other suitable covering

Why it matters to your windshield

The law treats loose stone as a road hazard, and anyone who has driven behind an open load at highway speed understands why. A stone does not have to fall from the load itself: grit packed in the tires or left on the tailgate comes off at speed too. On fast, busy roads like I-85, eight lanes through Concord, and I-485 along the Cabarrus-Mecklenburg line, there is little time for it to slow down before it reaches the car behind.

There is no reliable count of how many windshields are broken this way, and this article does not guess at one. What is certain is that the covered-load rule exists because the risk is real.

When a stone hits your glass

1. Keep driving safely. Do not brake hard or swerve. Pull off when it is safe if the glass is badly cracked.
2. Note what you can. The time, the road and direction, and anything you could read on the truck.
3. Photograph the damage with a coin beside a chip for scale.
4. Cover a chip with clear tape to keep water and dirt out.
5. Keep the defroster off it and skip the car wash until it is repaired.
6. Book the repair soon. A chip can spread into a crack with heat, cold and bumps.

Chip or crack?

A small chip away from the edge can often be repaired with resin; the ROLAGS repair standard lists stone breaks up to two inches across and single line cracks up to 14 inches as repairable. A crack that reaches the edge, or one in front of the driver, usually means a new windshield. The full guide to windshield repair in Concord, NC explains how to tell, and windshield replacement in Concord, NC covers a new windshield.

How the claim usually works

Your own comprehensive coverage is the usual route for a stone chip. The NC Department of Insurance lists missiles or falling objects and breakage of glass among comprehensive losses, which are paid less any deductible. A glass claim is not an at-fault accident, so it adds no Safe Driver Incentive Plan points, though insurers may look at how often you claim. You choose who repairs the glass under G.S. 58-3-180.

If you could identify the truck, tell your insurer when you claim, and give it the time, the place and what you noted. The full walk-through is on NC windshield replacement insurance.

Pickups, trailers and open beds

The first part of the rule is often forgotten: it applies to every vehicle, not just gravel trucks. A pickup bed with loose mulch, a landscaping trailer with stone left on its deck, or a load of debris on the way to the dump all have to be loaded so nothing falls, blows or sifts out. If you haul your own loads around Concord, a tarp and a swept tailgate protect the car behind you and keep you within the law.

Keeping your distance

The simplest protection is space. A longer gap behind a loaded truck, a lane change away from one shedding grit, and not tailgating a pickup with an open bed all cut the chance of a stone reaching your glass. If a load in front of you is uncovered, dropping back costs a few seconds; a windshield costs a good deal more.