Houston, Texas Trucking Accident Lawyer
Truck drivers and trucking companies are required to adhere to certain state and federal laws. From how many hours a truck driver can drive, to the training he or she is expected to receive, to vehicle safety requirements, truck drivers must comply with a number of laws and regulations. When truck accidents happen, compliance issues must be investigated since a violation of a law or regulation can place liability on a truck driver and the company he or she drives for. When attorneys accept a truck accident injury case, they try to learn who is at fault.
At the Friendswood, Texas law office of Alton C. Todd, we do the investigative work needed to determine whether state or federal regulations were violated and what role they played in causing a truck accident. If you have been injured in a trucking accident, contact a lawyer that does the necessary investigative work to get results. Call the Law Firm of Alton C. Todd for a free initial consultation.
Truck drivers and their employers - the actions of a trucking company
The first step in investigating the driver is to look at the driver's employer, the trucking company. Trucking companies are obliged to make sure that drivers have the appropriate training and experience. They are also responsible for truck driver drug testing, criminal background checks, and ongoing driver training. We determine if truck companies fulfilled their responsibility to hire and retain only qualified drivers. If they did not, they may be liable for the accident injuries.
Regulations and laws applicable to truck drivers
The laws and regulations under which trucks operate require drivers to keep logs, take rest stops at specific intervals, inspect the equipment, and abide by the traffic laws of the jurisdiction in which they are driving. We find out whether the driver was resting as required, or driving too many hours between stops. We determine whether they falsified the record in violation of DOT logbook regulations.
Truck drivers are not usually responsible for loading the truck. However, the supplier of the container or load could be liable for accident injuries if the cargo was improperly balanced. Our investigator can learn whether the load added to the severity of the accident. If we find that the balance of the load was a contributing factor in the crash, the owner of the container may become a party to a truck injury lawsuit.
Contact a truck accident attorney
The trucking industry is complex. Truck drivers are governed by many state and federal regulations. Part of our job, as a law firm representing people injured in truck accidents, is to find out if drivers, employers, or load suppliers broke any of the laws covering the operation of over-the-road trucks. If you have been injured in a crash involving a semi, contact a truck accident lawyer who knows what to do after an accident. Call The Law Firm of Alton C. Todd, in Friendswood, Texas. We can help.
