How about this…
Well, after reading about the step-up, I went out to my car and saw that the step-up would be about waist high for me. I just couldn’t do it, except with a running start.
Uhm…Exactly
Well, we are gong to do it and if it messes up the latch then we will fix it and stop doing it. 
It’s not the worst thing to happen.
It’s not as bad as driving down the road with six kayaks on your roof and loose tools all over the truck that go flying and kill somebody.
What is that in there? A thermos? Do you want to be killled by a flying thermos? But wear your PFD in three feet of water 
not to sound judgy
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The height of the step is generally not an issue because most people will step into the door frame first. But, it does, in most cases, leave you hanging rather precariously onto the side of the car.
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It is true, you never know a person’s risk aversion until it is revealed, sometimes inbred.
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It was not 6 kayaks, it was 8.
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To be consistent with the existential approach, we do not where a PFD, but as a concession to the sensibilities of some sincere people, I got one and am determining what situations warrant it
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You will be hurt by that latch step before the truck hurts anyone.
That should just about cover it.
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That may vry well be true @rstevens15 , but that was not the way it was demonstrated in the OP. But putting that aside, if the latch step is used as you say, that would mean you would have to put your right foot on the “ door frame” and execute the “ launch” onto the 4 sq. Inch step with your LEFT foot which is not most people’s dominate foot. Push off with the right foot, pull up with the left foot in a synchronized fashion. Not going to happen. Even if you make it you are dangling by one foot on a 4 sq. Inch step holding on with your right hand for cross support trying to accomplish something with your non dominant left hand. It is not a good idea and is bordering on ( how shall I put this) not too smart….It is called a step stool, preferably one with 3 steps.
You fly off the handle trying to justify your existence then you 
the post. One day…
I’m not advocating for the latch steps. We got a couple as swag after volunteering at an on-water class, but haven’t used them. Found them awkward to use and not the correct height for us when strapping down kayaks or adjusting the rack. We occasionally use one of those inexpensive folding plastic step stools if we are parked on very uneven ground that makes getting the boat up difficult. They fold down and can be slid under a seat, so they are always in the vehicle.
Which foot you use depends on what side of the vehicle you are on. My pickup does not have a door latch where these latch steps can be used.
Did not mean to imply you were advocating for the latch steps, just reiterating the point. Did not occur to me until later the lead foot depends on what side of the truck you are on, I was fixating on the OP, but on the passenger side that would be the case. It is a bad idea and amazing anyone would even consider it. You, folding stool, me, 3 step step stool, more versatile.
Jeeeeez, cabin fever is in full swing…
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mjac was apparently born with it and someone showed him a keyboard.
I’ll let you know if the truck step kills or injures us and then you can say I told you so.
Right now, we just stand in the door jam.
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Stay safe. Use a safety harness.
LOL will do
I am going to try one last time, but this is it, no more efforts. Not only is the latch step inherently dangerous in its normal use being so small and so high up, as @rstevens15 and an Automotive ENGINEER with years of experience “ who designs door latches” that @Riverway works with and who he talked to say, door latches are designed to very close tolerances. You hook a step yo it and put a 200+ pound man on top of it, you could distort the latch bar or the sheetmetal behind it that is not visible to the naked eye that would make that door more susceptible to flying open in a violent crash like a rollover. If a door is opened in a violent crash it raises the risk of passengers being ejected tremendously and as an excellent Critical Care Nurse you are well aware that once a person is ejected from a vehicle their risk of serious injury and death rise exponentially…That is my last shot.
That phrase was clean compared to Military standards.
I take back the FUBAR. A second look at the picture of the kayaks shows the they’re on a truck rack (probably 800 lb capacity). Most I’ve had on a rack is three.
The engineer I talked to did not mention a safety concern from sheet metal damage arising from the step. He talked about it bending the sheet metal. I understood him to mean that the sheet metal deformation would affect the ability of the door to close smoothly, and to cause uneven gaps between the door and the matching door perimeter sheet metal, which would be unsightly.
The point I took from the discussion was that the latch system, with its attachment to the sheet metal and a backer plate, is designed to keep the door closed under tremendous load, and it is not designed to support the torque of a person’s weight on a step without deforming the sheet metal.
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