Semi-Truck Accident Laws And Information

What You Should Know About Semi-Truck Accidents

Semi-Trucks Cause More Injuries And Deaths Than Any Other Vehicle

You may not realize this, but truck accidents cause more injuries and a larger number of deaths than any other traffic accidents on the road. While the statistics aren’t pretty, they do paint an accurate picture of the seriousness of truck accidents on the road today.

Every 16 minutes, a person is injured or killed in accidents involving 18-wheelers, tractor-trailers or semi-trucks.
Every year, 500,000 large trucks are involved in accidents.
More than 5,000 people are killed each year in large truck-related crashes, and more than 110,000 are injured.
12% of traffic fatalities in the United States are due to truck accidents.
Approximately 1% of fatal truck accidents in the U.S. are caused by a drunken truck driver.
The majority of truck accidents occur in rural areas.

There are laws in place to help prevent and reduce truck accidents, but some truck drivers continually break these laws.

There are laws that are supposed to regulate how many consecutive hours a truck driver can drive. Unfortunately, many truck drivers do not obey these laws. This results in unnecessary accidents which do cause injury and even death to their victims.
There are laws that are meant to prevent improper truck maintenance. Unfortunately, many trucking companies and drivers fail to follow these laws. This also causes unnecessary accidents and deaths from malfunctioning equipment.
There are laws to prevent drivers from operating overloaded trucks. Unfortunately, many unnecessary accidents are caused by overloaded trucks or shifting loads.

These laws were put into effect to protect you, but they’re not always adhered to. If the driver of the truck involved in your accident was breaking any one of these laws, we can help you prove your case and get a settlement and compensation.

Let us help you find the right lawyer.
Call us today for your free consultation.

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Code of Federal Regulations §395.3 Sets the Maximum driving time for Big Rig Drivers

(a) Except as provided in §§395.1(b)(1), 395.1(f), and 395.1(h), no motor carrier shall permit or require any driver used by it to drive nor shall any such driver drive:

(1) More than 10 hours following 8 consecutive hours off duty; or

(2) For any period after having been on duty 15 hours following 8 consecutive hours off duty.

(b) No motor carrier shall permit or require a driver of a commercial motor vehicle to drive, nor shall any driver drive, regardless of the number of motor carriers using the driver's services, for any period after—

(1) Having been on duty 60 hours in any 7 consecutive days if the employing motor carrier does not operate commercial motor vehicles every day of the week; or

(2) Having been on duty 70 hours in any period of 8 consecutive days if the employing motor carrier operates commercial motor vehicles every day of the week.

[57 FR 33649, July 30, 1992, as amended at 60 FR 38748, July 28, 1995]

Code of Federal Regulations §395.8 Requires Every Covered Driver To Keep a Record of Duty Status.

(a) Except for a private motor carrier of passengers (nonbusiness), every motor carrier shall require every driver used by the motor carrier to record his/her duty status for each 24 hour period using the methods prescribed in either paragraph (a)(1) or (2) of this section.

(1) Every driver who operates a commercial motor vehicle shall record his/her duty status, in duplicate, for each 24-hour period. The duty status time shall be recorded on a specified grid, as shown in paragraph (g) of this section. The grid and the requirements of paragraph (d) of this section may be combined with any company forms. The previously approved format of the Daily Log, Form MCS–59 or the Multi-day Log, MCS–139 and 139A, which meets the requirements of this section, may continue to be used.

(2) Every driver who operates a commercial motor vehicle shall record his/her duty status by using an automatic on-board recording device that meets the requirements of §395.15 of this part. The requirements of §395.8 shall not apply, except paragraphs (e) and (k) (1) and (2) of this section.

(b) The duty status shall be recorded as follows:

(1) “Off duty” or “OFF.”

(2) “Sleeper berth” or “SB” (only if a sleeper berth used).

(3) “Driving” or “D.”

(4) “On-duty not driving” or “ON.”

(c) For each change of duty status (e.g., the place of reporting for work, starting to drive, on-duty not driving and where released from work), the name of the city, town, or village, with State abbreviation, shall be recorded.

(d) The following information must be included on the form in addition to the grid:

(1) Date;

(2) Total miles driving today;

(3) Truck or tractor and trailer number;

(4) Name of carrier;

(5) Driver's signature/certification;

(6) 24-hour period starting time (e.g. midnight, 9:00 a.m., noon, 3:00 p.m.);

(7) Main office address;

(8) Remarks;

(9) Name of co-driver;

(10) Total hours (far right edge of grid);

(11) Shipping document number(s), or name of shipper and commodity;

(g) Graph grid. The following graph grid must be incorporated into a motor carrier recordkeeping system which must also contain the information required in paragraph (d) of this section.

The following executed specimen grid illustrates how a driver's duty status should be recorded for a trip from Richmond, Virginia, to Newark, New Jersey. The grid reflects the midnight to midnight 24 hour period.

Graph Grid (Midnight to Midnight Operation)

The driver in this instance reported for duty at the motor carrier's terminal. The driver reported for work at 6 a.m., helped load, checked with dispatch, made a pretrip inspection, and performed other duties until 7:30 a.m. when the driver began driving. At 9 a.m. the driver had a minor accident in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and spent one half hour handling details with the local police. The driver arrived at the company's Baltimore, Maryland, terminal at noon and went to lunch while minor repairs were made to the tractor. At 1 p.m. the driver resumed the trip and made a delivery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, between 3 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. at which time the driver started driving again. Upon arrival at Cherry Hill, New Jersey, at 4 p.m., the driver entered the sleeper berth for a rest break until 5:45 p.m. at which time the driver resumed driving again. At 7 p.m. the driver arrived at the company's terminal in Newark, New Jersey. Between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. the driver prepared the required paperwork including completing the driver's record of duty status, driver vehicle inspection report, insurance report for the Fredericksburg, Virginia accident, checked for the next day's dispatch, etc. At 8 p.m., the driver went off duty.

Unfortunately, big rig drivers frequently try to work longer hours than the law allows, and accidents result. It is frighteningly common for a driver to falsify records.

However, there are often other records that can be checked against the driver’s log. Credit card slips, including gas station receipts, often have a time stamp included on the receipt. If stops were made along the way, sometimes there is a record of the time, such as a pickup or delivery of a partial load.

Toll roads and bridges also use a date stamp. If the driver’s route included a toll booth, where is the receipt?

BIG RIGS require special commercial licenses. The requirements are strict. Estimates vary, but most authorities conclude that there are thousands of drivers on the road without a proper or current license.

Driving a vehicle that weighs fifty thousand or more pounds, and that carries toxic materials, or even explosives, by drivers who spend many hours behind the wheel is a dangerous activity. Not surprisingly, the licensing requirements are strict.

For most states, the driver of a car is presumed to be under the influence with a blood alcohol of .08 or more. For the driver of a big rig, the level is set at .04. Speeding more than 15 miles per hour above the limit is considered to be a “serious traffic violation”.

Testing and Licensing requires far more than what is required for a passenger vehicle license

A commercial vehicle driver must pass a knowledge test for the type of vehicle they will be operating, and a skills test for that time of vehicle. They must give up their non- commercial driver’s license when they get a commercial one. A national register is kept so that it is difficult to hide a violation.

The type of vehicle to be driven is classified into groups by weight, and there are additional requirements if the driver intends to haul hazardous materials. Endorsements are required for double trailers, tank vehicles, or hazardous materials.

Part of the knowledge test deals with air brakes. This part of the test must be passed if the driver intends to use a truck with air brakes.

Important to accident investigation, both the knowledge part of the testing, and the skills testing, includes inspection of the vehicle. Did the driver pass that part of the exam, but then have an accident that would have been prevented by the same type of vehicle inspection? How does the driver explain knowing what inspection needed to be done at test time, but failing to do the same inspection when it really mattered?

Testing includes knowledge and skill regarding vehicle loading

Some vehicles, like tankers and trucks where meat carcasses are hanging in the trailer, suffer from surge, or weight shift. If a driver is to drive such a vehicle, they must demonstrate knowledge of how this affects the handling of the truck, and they have to demonstrate the skill to handle this type of load. Despite knowing better, we still see accidents that drivers cause by going around turns too fast, and causing a weight shift that results in a major accident. If the commercial vehicle will carry passengers, an equivalent test is required dealing with the special problems that this involves.

Equipment

Obviously, truck equipment is quite different from what is required on a passenger vehicle. Lighting includes clearance lamps and identification lamps, and there are height and visibility requirements for all of the lights and signals. Trailers must have retroreflective sheeting.

Despite these rules, how many times have you seen a truck in disrepair with missing or broken signals or lights?

Wheels and Tires

Of course, there is a big difference between the loads on a passenger car tire, and that of a truck and trailer weighing twenty times as much. Truck wheels are typically made up of multiple sections, bolted together. They are under a lot of pressure when the tire is inflated, and the truck is loaded.

As the wheels get old, possibly after hitting a curb or two, they can crack and fail, or a bolt or other piece can break.

Truck tires are expensive, and they take a lot of abuse because they are asked to handle a lot of weight and pressure. It is not uncommon to see parts of failed truck tires by the side of the road, and any observant person will see trucks with mis-matched tires, and tires too worn to still be in use.

Loose Loads

Not all trucks have fully enclosed trailers. Loads such as logs, construction materials, and others, are often carried on a flatbed or the like. These heavy items are often stacked, and are held in place by chains or straps.

Sometimes a small piece falls off, sometimes the entire load shifts, and a substantial amount falls on the roadway. Occasionally, a piece from the load falls on the roadway, and is thrown up by a car tire. This is not insignificant, and sometimes the piece can come right through the steel floor of a car traveling the freeway.

Underride

Design changes have lessened the instance of cars that go under trucks from one direction or another, but it still occurs, and can cause incredible damage to the car.

A related problem is that cars are designed to take a blow at the level of the bumper. If a truck hits a car above this level, the car will crumple too easily. For example, if a truck hits a car in the trunk, but at a level over the bumper, there is little crush resistance built in this area, and the truck will quickly intrude into the passenger space.

Brakes

Obviously, the braking ability of a fully loaded big rig is quite different from that of a car. A car making an emergency stop in front of a big rig is vulnerable to being hit hard, even if the truck driver is paying attention.

Truck brakes are different from automotive brakes, because they have to deal with fully loaded trucks, as well as empty trailers. Often the brakes are not balanced properly for an empty or light load. Trailers are often equipped with an emergency lockup device. If triggered, the truck can easily jackknife across the roadway.