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Truck Driver Negligence

People commonly refer to collisions involving semi-trucks or tractor-trailers as truck “accidents.” But the lawyers of Michigan Auto Law believe there is no such thing as an accident when it comes to most large truck crashes that cause personal injury or wrongful death. That’s because most truck crashes are preventable. Instead of accidents, they are largely caused by negligence.

Dangerous Trucks

A compilation of inspection data shows that nearly one in four trucks, or 24 percent, have serious service violations, making them unfit to drive on Michigan roads. Even worse, many trucking companies and truck drivers fail to address these violations, leading to truck crashes. Common truck service violations include defective brakes, bald tires and loads that dangerously exceed weight limitations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration makes vehicle regulations for trucks. An experienced truck accident lawyer can usually find the safety violations that cause deadly truck crashes.

Bad Truck Drivers

Given the serious safety violations that many Michigan trucks possess, it’s important to remember that the truck driver is responsible for monitoring them and shouldn’t take a dangerous truck on the road if it is unsafe and out-of-service. Unfit drivers who carelessly ignore important safety and licensing requirements are a major cause of truck crash injuries and deaths.

For example, in a seminal study, the National Transportation Safety Board performed blood screenings on 168 truck drivers who were killed in truck crashes, and detected illegal narcotic drugs or alcohol in 33 percent of their blood concentrations. And in July 2008, Michigan was listed among the top 12 most sanctioned states in the nation that allow truck drivers with serious medical problems — including heart disease and seizure disorders — to drive tractor-trailers. Michigan was also one of the top states that fail to require truck drivers to carry valid medical certificates, according to a review by the Associated Press of 7.3 million commercial driver violations compiled by the U.S. Department of Transportation in 2006.

Trucking companies that do not follow state and federal truck regulations and who choose to hire unsafe drivers are causing tremendous carnage and destruction. This is an injustice to all Michigan drivers, who are forced to share the roads with unsafe trucks. If you have been involved in a crash with a commercial truck or big-rig, and you suspect the driver’s negligence caused the crash, please call the lawyers at Michigan Auto Law for a free consultation at (800) 777-0028. Or request a free, no obligation case evaluation with one of our truck accident attorneys by filling out our contact form. We will respond to your inquiry within one business day.

Our Michigan truck accident lawyers have helped enforce important truck safety regulations regarding driver negligence to make our roads safer. No other law firm in Michigan has received more jury verdicts or consistently higher settlements for truck accident cases. In fact, the vast majority of our wrongful death and personal injury cases from truck accidents are referred to us by local attorneys, based upon our record of experience and success.

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