Houston Truck Accident Lawyer

Truck accidents take place every day and it is not easy to predict when such an accident will end in a severe injury or wrongful death that may call for the help of an informed and experienced personal injury attorney.

Truck Accident Vs Car Accident

a) Similarities

Either may be caused by:

• Speeding.
• Poor look-out for other vehicles.
• Inattentive driving.

b) Dissimilarities

 

Truck drivers’ mannerism and reactions to circumstances on the road is something which is monitored and taught.

Measures have been established and these are taught to the drivers across the country. These procedures tackle situations on the road such as curves, right and left turns, changing lanes, pedestrian relations .The aim of these measures is:

• Defensive driving.
• Safety management.
• Defensive maintenance.

In truck accident cases it is important to figure out whether necessary measures taught were taken by the driver of the truck involved in the accident.

The Office of Motor Carriers in the United States Department of Transportation issue additional regulations that govern the truck drivers. According to these regulations the detailed driver documentation and conduct mentioned below are required.

• Driver documentation.
• Tire inflation, wear and tear.
• Wheel maintenance and wear and tear.
• Brake performance.
• Vehicle lighting.
• Pay load details.
• Cargo procurement.

In a truck accident, prompt review of the conditions of vehicle, conduct of driver and the circumstances at the time of collision are very important to decide whether the truck driver had adhered to the rules and regulations.

Who is a liable party in truck accident case?

• Truck driver, if his negligence caused injury.
• Truck driver employer.
• Person who leases the vehicle.

 

Any one or all of them can be responsible for the damages caused in the accident. The terms between the party, who leased the vehicle and driver, needs to be verified in order to decide the genuine liable party.

Was the truck loaded properly when accident took place?

A duty is imposed by Federal safety regulations to secure the load properly on the truck. The shipper may be liable in a situation where it inappropriately loaded its truck or if its employers did not instruct the driver properly on securing the load .It is important to identify the party involved in loading the truck. This requires an immediate action.

Is incompetent truck driver involved in truck accident?

Federal regulations require checking the qualifications of the driver at the time of hiring him. According to these regulations a driver must:

• Drive safely.
• Be physically fit to operate a vehicle.
• Have completed a driver’s road test.
• Have furnished the motor carrier that employs him with application for employment.
• Have a vehicle license.
• Find out whether the load is located safely.
• Find out whether cargo he transports is safely secured.
• Be familiar with the procedures for securing cargo.

Failure to act in accordance with Federal regulations may prove that the employer did not do enough investigation at the time of hiring the driver and hold the employer responsible for the situation.

According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, driver fatigue may be accountable for 240,000 motor vehicle accidents in the U.S. every year.

Driver fatigue and lack of sleep is the main reason for truck accidents. In order to determine whether the employer was responsible for driver fatigue following may be considered:

• Was driver fatigue overlooked in arranging load delivery?
• Was the truck driver required to meet the time deadlines for the delivery that required not adhering to Federal restrictions?
• Was the driver monitored by the trucking company?
• Was driver made to continue driving in spite of complaining of fatigue?

Careful examination of the scene of accident may reveal driver fatigue being the prime reason of accident.

Circumstances in which driver fatigue could be proven as a cause for an accident:

1. The duty status of the driver shows how long the driver has been working.
2. Acceptance of fatigue made to the police or any witness by the driver.
3. Traffic crash report.

There are various sources to find out this, take help of an experienced attorney who understands how to handle complex situations like this.

Truck driver and the employer need to maintain all sorts of documentation that helps in determining whether the driver of the truck was negligent.

These federal and state laws and regulations are complex and they need knowledge of expert attorneys to handle them and we ensure to provide the same.