A commercial truck accident can have a significant impact on the lives of all involved. Whether you are the driver, passenger or another victim of such an accident, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries.
Trucking companies may be liable in a truck accident.
Trucking companies are liable for accidents caused by their drivers. If a trucking company knowingly allows a driver to drive in an unsafe manner, it may be considered negligent and subject to lawsuits. The law requires that trucking companies adequately train their drivers and provide them with proper equipment before allowing them on the road with commercial vehicles. Failure to do so could result in liability for damages caused by the negligent actions of your company’s employees.
The trucking company may be in violation of federal law.
The personal injury lawyer in Stratford knows that the trucking company is required to maintain a drug and alcohol testing program. The company must have written policies, procedures and standards for the following:
Testing employees who drive commercial vehicles
Testing drivers before they leave work on their days off (to ensure they are not driving while intoxicated) and after returning from breaks/lunch periods if they’re on leave without pay
The trucking company may have engaged in negligent hiring practices.
Negligent hiring is when a company fails to properly vet an employee before hiring them. This could be because the company failed to conduct a background check, or it may have hired an employee who had a history of drunk driving.
The trucking company may have failed to adequately supervise its employees.
When you drive for a trucking company, you are responsible for ensuring that your vehicle is in good operating condition and follows all applicable laws. This includes making sure that the brakes are working properly, that there are no visible defects on the vehicle, and that there are no signs of damage to anything else on board such as cargo or passengers.
If a driver does not follow these rules or fails to supervise himself/herself adequately while driving a commercial truck (and thus causes an accident), then this might be considered negligent hiring by the company itself—and could result in legal action against them as well.
Determining the truck driver’s liability for the accident.
The first step in deciding whether a truck driver is at fault for an accident is to determine if he was driving erratically or negligently. If a truck driver was speeding, driving recklessly and swerving across lanes on the highway, then it can be argued that it was his negligence that caused the accident.
Truck companies and drivers both may be liable for a commercial truck accident.
There are also a few cases where both trucking companies and drivers may be liable for an accident. In some cases, the driver could be found guilty of negligence even if he was not driving the vehicle at the time of an accident.
Other times, it’s possible that only one party will be held responsible for an incident—and this can depend on who has control over whether or not they’re driving their vehicle at any given time.If you or someone you know has been involved in a commercial truck accident and are interested in learning more about their rights, then they must contact a lawyer for more information on how they can help your case move forward.
