Truck Accident Lawyer – Why They Should be Contacted Early In Case Of An Accident?

Trucking accident cases are quite a bit different than automobile accident cases. There are a number of reasons, but the primary reason is that trucks are regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. These regulations are voluminous and technical. This is for good reason. According to the US Department of Transportation, there are more than 400,000 truck accidents each year in the United States. And of these, approximately 5,000 resulted in fatalities. Of those, almost 80% of the fatalities were occupants in another vehicle. Since a tractor –trailer can weigh upwards of 75,000 lbs., these results are, unfortunately, not unexpected.

All trucking companies must comply with these federal regulations. Often times, the actual wrongdoer is not just the truck driver, but also the trucking company for not properly training the driver. Other causes of trucking accidents include shoddy maintenance, over-loaded trucks or driver fatigue. It is ultimately the trucking company’s responsibility to educate and properly train each driver before putting them on the road. The heart of such a case centers on the truck accident attorney’s investigation of the trucking company’s policies and practices relating to their drivers.

It is important for a truck accident lawyer to get involved early in the case in order to, among other things, preserve evidence. Drivers are required to keep an accurate log of their driving time. In order to make more money, some companies have their drivers driving more hours than permitted under the federal regulations. Some companies have even devised incentive programs for drivers that reward them with bonuses when they drive more hours. As a result, this puts more fatigued drivers on the road which makes it more likely that serious accidents will happen. The federal regulations only require the trucking companies to keep driver log records for six months. It is critical for the attorney to have a chance to send a letter to the trucking company to save all logs and other evidence before they throw it away. Also, the quicker an attorney can start the investigation, the more likely he will be able to examine evidence that is still “fresh”. Early investigation is critical and the evidence collected is extremely beneficial while settling truck accident claims.