Truck accidents can have a variety of potential causes, and every truck accident is different. Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be exploring in detail the myriad causes of truck accidents and the theories of liability that can affect each case. Today, we’re discussing driver error.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) states that driver error on the part of truck drivers is ten times more likely to be a factor in truck accidents compared to other factors such as weather, road conditions and vehicle performance. The majority of truck accidents involve some form of driver error.
Some of the most common driver errors include:
- Driving under the influence of drugs
- Driving too fast for road conditions (speeding in the rain, for example)
- Driver fatigue
HOW CAN AN ATTORNEY PROVE DRIVER ERROR CAUSED A TRUCK ACCIDENT?
Thanks to regulations, the trucking industry requires drivers to keep extensive logs of hours worked and requires companies to have detailed records on employees, including medical records and employment records. Through collection of evidence such as these as well as investigation of the scene of the accident, truck accident attorneys can help victims pinpoint specific details that prove a driver’s negligence. For example, an attorney can subpoena employment records showing that a driver has a history of reckless driving. Or the attorney can pull data from a truck’s black box data recorder to prove that a trucker was speeding at the time of an accident.
One thing is very important when dealing with a truck accident – you must act quickly to secure evidence so that the trucking company does not have time to destroy it. An attorney is the best way to do this.
On Wednesday, we’ll discuss trucking company liability.
For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, do not fear; I will help you. (Isaiah 41:13)