Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis, & Appleton

A report by the American Association for Justice revealed that more than 28,000 motor carrier companies and more than 211,000 trucks violated federal safety regulations and were still operating on our roads.

A majority of these trucks received a “conditional” grade which means they are operating with one or more safety violations. Many truck companies are based in Texas, but there are plenty in Virginia (VA) and the companies based in the Commonwealth also violate federal safety standards.

The most common violation was defective brakes. Obviously, having functional brakes is essential for safety, but trucking companies simply ignore this requirement and send their employees out on the road with malfunctioning brake systems.

Other violations include:

• Balding tires, retreaded tires
• Truck loads exceeding weight limits
• Inexperienced and untrained drivers
• Drivers working excessive hours
• Drivers with drug or alcohol dependencies
• Falsified trucking logs and other records

In 2007, more than 86,000 people in the United States were seriously hurt after being involved in a trucking accident and over 4800 people died as a result. These statistics are unacceptable and something needs to be done. All of the violations listed above can be corrected with simple responsibility and ethical business practices. It’s shocking that truck companies remain in business even after it’s been discovered they falsify trucking logs and send their employees out untrained or poorly trained to handle such dangerous equipment.

As an injury lawyer who works for a firm that regularly represents people whose lives were changed forever after bring involved in a truck accident, I’ve seen firsthand the devastation these vehicles can inflict. There needs to be a full-scale investigation into the trucking industry and harsh punishments need to be levied in order to send a clear message that safety comes first, not last.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is a law firm which focuses on injury and accident law and our attorneys have experience handling truck accident cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office in based in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) although our lawyers hold licenses in NC, SC, WV, KY and DC. We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service.

PA

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Nodding off  is usually a result  of sleep deprivation that can cause the trucker to drift into other lanes. Ineffective down-breaking, rollovers and jackknifing are also typical results caused by inattentive and fatigued truckers. Multi-vehicle accidents are not uncommon when a truck is involved. Truck operators themselves are exposed to these common dangers with about 600 commercial truck drivers per year dying in highway accidents.

All truckers are required to keep log books and are usually helpful in litigating a case to prove liability based upon driver fatigue. In addition, there are black boxes and electronic onboard recorders (EOBR) that can be useful tools in reviewing past behaviour and events that may have lead up to collision with a truck.

It’s often the case that truck accidents involve overlapping laws and regulations. It is quite common that a trucking accident lawsuit will be brought against a trucking company as well as the commercial truck driver. However, government agencies, truck mechanics and maintenance companies, truck manufacturers and their insurance companies are possible defendants. Their involvement in an accident should be investigated before a suit is filed. In tractor trailer collisions, the history of inspections and weigh station stops are always crucial in discovering information. Also, if you include any recent road changes, like re-grading or new signage may potentially lead to liability of governmental agencies and subcontractors.

With all these appearant dangers, passenger vehicle drivers should steer clear of 18 wheelers as much as they can on highways. For example, it is also important to keep in mind that big rigs have a shorter braking distance than cars, so when you are switching lanes after passing a truck always bear in mind that the big rig will be coming up quickly from behind. At the very least make sure the trucker’s two headlights are far enough away in your rear view mirror before re-entering the lane. Even with the added caution, most tractor trailer truck accidents occur, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, on rural highways in the middle of the day and on weekdays. So, oddly enough highway driving is statisitcally not the most likely location for a car-truck collision.

Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), with an office also in Elizabeth City, in Northeast North Carolina (NC), practicing primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handles only injury law, including car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our Carolina injury law website is: http://carolina.hsinjurylaw.com, the firm edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and also hosts a YouTube injury law video library covering many FAQ’s on personal injury subjects. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

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