When you’re involved in an accident with a commercial truck, the trucking company’s safety policies and training procedures become crucial factors. As you build your legal case, you’ll need to closely examine these programs to help determine causes and liability.
Here is how digging into click safety protocols helps shape truck accident claims, and why meticulous companies fare better in court.
Company Safety Culture
A trucking company sets the tone for safety through its policies, priorities, and actions. Reviewing these elements reveals how seriously the company, and its leadership, take safety.
For example, a company with clear safety protocols that are strictly enforced shows the priority it places on safe operations. Things like speed limiters, security cameras, accident review boards, and incentive programs demonstrate an active safety culture.
On the other hand, lax oversight and lack of accountability point toward a disregard for driver safety.
Generally, the more seriously a company takes safety, the less likely they are to be found liable for a trucking accident. And in cases where they are to share liability, they are at least less likely to be slapped with punitive damages simply because they showed an effort towards not being reckless. On the other hand, lax oversight is almost always a sign of culpability. It is something that is likely to attract punitive damages from courts or juries.
Safety Department and Programs
Look into whether the trucking outfit maintains a dedicated safety department and comprehensive programs. These units oversee activities like:
- New/ongoing driver training
- Accident investigation
- Performance analysis to identify high-risk drivers
Robust safety programming with scheduled evaluations indicates vigilance. Document if the company falls short here. And if they do, this can form your foundation of proving that the company failed in its duty of care.
Company Safety Record
Check the trucking company’s history with federal and state agencies. Has the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration intervened for violations? How does their accident frequency compare within the industry?
A poor safety record builds your claim that an inadequate safety culture contributed to the crash.
Driver Screening and Hiring
Thorough, good-faith screening demonstrates safety commitment. But allegations often arise that companies hired drivers despite glaring red flags.
Background Checks
Vetting procedures like criminal background checks, employment verification, and license/driving review help avoid dangerous hires. If the company skips steps here, it shows neglect.
Interview Process
The interview introduces the company’s safety vision. It also clues interviewers into each applicant’s mindset toward safe practices. Failure to effectively screen for safety attitudes is telling.
Personnel File
Drivers’ personnel files reveal what the company knew when extending an offer. Damning information like license suspensions or reckless driving tickets kept private indicates bigger issues.
Ongoing Driver Training
Classroom and behind-the-wheel training is essential for commercial drivers. This includes:
Entry-Level Training
All new Class A CDL drivers require certification from an accredited program that teaches critical safety skills like:
- Vehicle inspections
- Basic operations
- Safe work habits
- Extreme driving maneuvers
Document if the company hired the driver without certification.
Refresher Training
Responsible carriers institute additional training to sharpen and update driving skills through:
- Classroom sessions
- Ride-alongs
- Simulator time
Inadequate refresher courses suggest complacency toward safety.
Topic-Specific Training
Special topic education like hazardous materials transport, winter driving, and drug/fatigue awareness reinforces competence levels and safety knowledge.
Performance Measurement
Companies should regularly analyze driver performance metrics to pinpoint who needs extra training. Failure here indicates a disconnect between safety leadership and field execution.
Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance
It is a widely accepted fact that accidents happen if trucks are not maintained. As a result, proper vehicle and maintenance inspection is usually a sign of a trucking company that takes their duty of care seriously. And given that breaching a duty of care is one of the most important elements of negligence, proving your case against such a company is likely to be an uphill task.
Well-maintained equipment is the baseline for safe trucking operations. This encompasses:
Pre-Trip Inspections
Federal law mandates drivers conduct meticulous exterior and interior checks before each trip seeking problems like:
- Faulty lights
- Underinflated tires
- Fluid leaks
- Loose parts
Inspections reveal plenty about equipment conditions and a company’s diligence in upholding the law.
Preventative Maintenance
Routine maintenance including tune-ups, part replacement, and load testing prevents breakdowns and extends vehicle lifespans. Breakdowns create dangerous roadside scenarios. Review the truck’s service schedule for deficiencies.
Record Keeping
Companies must keep proper records on vehicle histories covering repairs, violations, and inspector notes. Disorganization hints at larger lapses that impact safety.
Inspections and repairs cost money, so thorough programs carry real financial weight. Deficient upkeep likely includes cutting corners elsewhere.
Hours of Service Rules
Fatigued truckers cause needless tragedies. Federal Hours of Service regulations protect against this, mandating required rest times and driving limits.
Daily Driving Max
A driver cannot exceed 11 hours of driving time within a 14-hour shift. Violating this significantly raises crash risk.
Weekly On-Duty Limits
Over a week, driving is capped at 60 hours (70 in some cases). This ensures adequate off-duty time for rest and recovery.
10-Hour Rest Rule
Drivers must take a consecutive 10-hour break after reaching the 14-hour driving window. This combats dangerous drowsiness.
Review driver logs and other records to spot violations, which demonstrate safety indifference.
Drug and Alcohol Testing
Chemical impairment and driving don’t mix. Mandatory testing programs reinforce this by deterring and catching users.
Pre-Employment Testing
All driver applicants face federal drug screening before hiring. Skipping this violates regulations.
Reasonable Suspicion Testing
Regulators require prompt substance screening when evidence reasonably suggests a driver is impaired on the job. Ignoring this enables abuse.
Random Testing
Periodic, unannounced drug and alcohol testing deters violations and quickly identifies issues. Inadequate random testing suggests a lax culture.
Post-Crash Testing
Any truck crash requires the driver to undergo medical professionals evaluation plus drug and alcohol testing. Overlooking this forfeits a vital accountability tool.
Document deficiencies in testing policies, procedures, and carrier follow-through.
Previous Violations and Crashes
Past transgressions can indicate systemic safety issues at a carrier. Review the driver and company’s records for:
Driver Violations
Careless offenses like speeding, improper lane changes, or ignoring signs betray a cavalier attitude about safety. Patterns require correction by carriers.
Company Violations
It’s crucial to examine the trucking outfit’s inspection history for red flags like:
- Exceeding weight limits
- Unsafe loads
- Poor upkeep causing breakdowns
Crash History
Both driver and carrier crash records suggest potential risks. Failing to address root causes enables repetition.
When building your legal argument, use documentation about past violations and collisions to reason the company enabled continual risk-taking leading to your incident.
Trucking Regulations and Laws
The trucking industry operates under extensive state and federal regulations centered on click safety. Violations indicate problematic procedures.
New Entrant Safety Audits
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) closely monitors new carriers until they establish safe operations. Failure here is insightful.
MCS-150 Form
This mandatory document provides regulators with crucial data on company safety procedures for auditing purposes. Incorrect or missing filings raise concerns.
Compliance Reviews
In-depth FMCSA examinations assess if carriers meet regulations for safety training, inspections, repairs, and more. Failed reviews indicate procedures don’t match rules.
State DOT Audits
State agencies also perform focused and random audits covering drivers’ work hours, credentials, and equipment. Violations point to oversight gaps.
If a trucking outfit skirts regulations, it suggests broad noncompliance that leaks into other safety aspects. This makes it easier to prove one of the most important of the 5 elements of negligence. Essentially, capturing any regulatory failures can form a solid foundation for your case.
Final Thoughts
As demonstrated above, tracing a trucking company’s safety policies, actions, and regulatory track record helps determine accident liability. Comprehensive programs and clean records signal diligent operations, while shortfalls argue otherwise.
Probe into every safety-related factor, seeking documentary evidence about possible negligence. Demonstrate how shoddy protocols or indifference produced continual risk that led to the crash. Use the company’s own procedures and history to construct a compelling court argument.
Stay focused, work methodically, and let the facts expose the truth. Justice relies on it.
