Truck Accident Lawyer

Common Causes of Truck Accidents

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, there are more than 4,000 deaths each year related to truck accidents. In 2017, at least 170,000 people were hurt, some with very serious injuries. Not all truck accidents can be prevented, but knowing the common reasons why they occur may help you and your loved ones avoid being injured in one.

Driver Fatigue

A study in 2007 by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that driver fatigue is estimated to be a major factor in 13% of all truck crashes and 30% of all motor vehicle accidents. Federal Hours of Service (HOS) regulations are supposed to mitigate this issue. The HOS regulations determine the number of hours a truck driver can drive at a time, how much break time between shifts must be taken, and the number of hours that can be logged within a week.

These regulations are broken every day and truck drivers frequently falsify their logs. Many trucking companies go as far as implying or negatively insisting that their drivers should disregard the HOS regulations to save costs and raise profits. Negligent trucking companies often push their truckers to work more than they should.

Truck Maintenance

Neglecting to keep up with regular oil changes and tire rotations on the average passenger car can be dangerous, but when a large semi-truck foregoes regular maintenance, the result could be devastating accidents. It is common for truck tires to be worn out or mechanical parts such as brakes and axles to be old and in disrepair. In order to lower costs and out of concern for the bottom line, truck companies often sacrifice the safety of their drivers and other drivers on the road by overlooking necessary truck maintenance.

Substance Abuse

Many truck drivers are overworked and underpaid. They are unfortunately on the road and alone for long periods of time, moving from city to city, with little time to see their families. It can be a difficult job, and sadly, many truck drivers turn to drugs and alcohol to deal with their stress. Studies have found that there are a high number of truck drivers who use substances like alcohol, marijuana, amphetamines and cocaine. These substances can have a major impact on a driver’s reaction times and perceptions, making it extremely dangerous for them to be operating a large vehicle.

Proving the Truck Driver Was Negligent

To succeed in a truck accident lawsuit, you must show that the truck driver was negligent in his or her actions. Unfortunately, there is no straightforward test to determine a driver’s negligence. There is no law or statute that precisely specifies what constitutes negligence. Instead, negligence is determined by considering the facts and circumstances relating to a truck accident and applying a four-part test that has been established over hundreds of years of case law.

Proving Negligence

The first factor that must be demonstrated is proving that the driver owed a duty of care to you, the injured driver. A duty of care is a requirement that people have to not perform any actions that could harm another person. In this case, a truck driver has a duty to operate a vehicle in a safe manner that would not put others on the road at risk of injury.

Breach of Duty

The next factor is that the truck driver breached the duty of care mentioned above. A truck accident lawyer will be needed to prove this element since it takes a great effort to prove true. To establish a breach of duty, the attorney must prove that the trucker did not act as a reasonable trucker would under the situation’s circumstances. This involves showing how a responsible truck driver would act and comparing it to the defendant’s actions. For example, a truck driver who was driving while intoxicated could be considered to have breached their duty of care.

Injury

The third factor that must be established in a truck accident lawsuit is that you were injured. This will generally be apparent and is the easiest to prove, however the extent of the injuries is debatable for settlement purposes.

Cause of Injury

The last factor is establishing that the truck driver’s negligent actions were the proximate cause of your injury. In order to win the truck accident lawsuit, it must be proven that the he injuries you sustained in the accident were the result of the trucker’s negligent actions.