What Goes Into Investigating a Trucking Accident?
When you’re driving down the road, you are not expecting to be in an accident with another vehicle, let alone in an accident with a large semi-truck that can do some serious damage. Truck drivers have strict guidelines to follow when they have driving shifts, but those guidelines are not always followed, and a collision is often a product of such oversight. As semi-trucks are dominant on the road with their size and power, the drivers have a lot of responsibility to keep control of their vehicles. When they don’t, life-altering injuries can occur.
Our office has had numerous cases and lots of experience in cases where truck drivers have participated in negligent behavior, causing life-altering injuries to our clients. Various scenarios can cause a life-altering accident. For instance, a driver may be driving for too many hours and experience exhaustion, which then causes an accident. Or, a driver may become distracted by something in their cab or on the road, and they lose control of their vehicle. Even worse, the driver could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. To help us better understand what caused the accident when the truck driver is at fault, we have to gather more than enough evidence to prove such negligence.
If you ever find yourself in the position after a truck accident, your duty is to heal and get better. While you are focusing on recovery, our lawyers can be at work finding the best solution for such negligence. Our Trucking Injury lawyers at Charles Boyk Law Offices are experienced professionals at investigating and providing proper compensation based on your case. As each case is different, different methods may be used to ensure that the best resolution to your case is met.
Step 1: Visit The Site Of the Collision
Going back to the scene of the accident can provide simple but valuable information. Looking for skid marks can indicate fast stopping or when stopping may have occurred in relation to the location of the crash. The lighting in the area can affect the visibility of the parties involved. The time of day can affect what conditions each party was driving in and how they may have affected the subject accident.
The traffic pattern of the area should be recorded as well. If the area lacks traffic or is very busy can impact how the accident happens. It is also important to note if any construction is taking place at the site of the collision. Cones, lighting, and lane changes can impact a driver’s confidence in driving on the road and how aware they are of other vehicles. It may seem simple to go back to the place where it all happened, but you can gather very important information.
Step 2: Request Documents from the Responding Police Department
The responding police department offers firsthand evidence that can provide insight into what happened after the accident.
Crash Reports
The crash report outlines how the accident happened, who was involved, and who was cited at fault. The crash report offers information like the owner of the vehicles and the drivers. So, from a crash report, we can learn who owned the truck involved in the accident and the person operating the truck.
We can also learn the time of day in which the collision occurred and the weather. An accident in dry sunny weather is very different from one where it was windy and snowing. Such weather differences can impact a driver’s visibility, confidence in operating their vehicle, and control of the vehicle, so such information is considered.
The crash report can indicate if the driver was distracted. Most of the time, the driver will not indicate that they were distracted, but sometimes it can be noted within the report.
If the responding police suspect either driver is under the influence of drugs or alcohol, they will conduct a sobriety test, and those results will be listed within the report. This information is essential. As the police are there firsthand, they are the judges of the at-fault driver’s competency on the surface level.
Accident Reconstruction Analysis
An accident reconstruction analysis is a type of forensic science that retraces the steps of the accident. The accident reconstructionist will investigate the scene and use evidence to identify why the accident happened, what happened during the accident, and assert a conclusion of who caused it.
Accident reconstructionists are certified and specialized in trained mathematics, physics, engineering, and law enforcement. A product of their work can be a written report, or they may even include diagrams, physical models, or even 3D animations replaying the accident.
As this information can repaint the whole picture, it is very important to investigate who is negligent in a trucking accident case. So, if such a report is available, we must obtain it.
Scene Photographs and Video
As the site of the accident will not stay the same forever, it is important to take photos of the scene. This can allow for valuable information when it’s no longer available. Photographs can tell a different story from what the parties are saying about the subject accident.
For instance, our office had a case where the defendant was claiming that he was pulling out of a driveway legally, but we had photos that showed he was on the other side of the street at the time of the collision. Without that photo, we would not have been able to prove that he was not telling the truth and hit our client because of his negligent driving.
Taking photos of the scene can show property damage, weather, vehicle position, traffic, lighting, and many other factors. So, obtaining the photos that the responding police department has can show what happened right after the accident, before everything was cleaned up. This information is very important and should be requested right away with the crash report.
Body cam of the responding police officers put the viewer in the police’s shoes, of what happened after the accident. We hear statements made by all parties about what happened, as stated to the police. We can watch how each party acted after the accident. Both photos and videos can give valuable evidence of what unfolded after the subject accident.
Witness Statements
Even better than photos is someone who watched the whole accident unfold. Witness statements are often included within the crash report, but not always. Having a written statement from a witness can allow us to gather very important and non-biased information. The at-fault party is not going to tell the whole story out of embarrassment or fear of repercussion. So, having a statement from someone who has no role in the accident can aid in investigative purposes.
Step 3: Send Preservation Letters
When a trucking accident happens, all of the information we can gather is important. The Department of Transportation makes it a requirement to keep evidence for six months. After six months, the company is permitted to destroy them.
To ensure that documents that pertain to the subject accident are preserved, our office will send a preservation letter that requires the party to preserve evidence and to maintain it. We may ask the company to preserve documents like driving logs, black box data, cell phone data, and trucking company records.
Driver records
Some accidents are products of exhaustion or overworking. Driving for numerous hours at a time can cause one to doze off or zone out and lose control of their vehicle.
Truck drivers are required by Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to keep a driving log to ensure they are taking breaks and sleeping when required.
Obtaining driving records can give insight into how long the truck driver was driving and to decide if they were competent to drive on the road. For instance, if a truck driver was driving for 14 hours straight, that can be evidence that the driver was experiencing exhaustion and shouldn’t have been driving.
Black Box Data
Black box data stems from the Event Data Recorder (EDR), which is a part of the truck’s computer system. This system records information about the truck’s:
- Speed
- RPMs
- Braking
- Seatbelt use
- Cruise control
This information from black box data can be used to calculate the events before, during, and after the accident. For example, our office had a case where our client was stopped in traffic on the highway. A truck driver failed to slow down with the flow of traffic and rear-ended our client, and injuring him severely. The black box data could show that the driver stopped abruptly and was moving much faster than the flow of traffic before colliding with our client.
Such information within a case can help piece together accident information when an accident reconstruction is unavailable or helpful in making one. It can verify or dispute the driver’s statements of what occurred in the accident.
Black box data can be overwritten within 30–180 days; preservation letters are important so that such information can be obtained and used as evidence. Black box data is a vital tool in truck accident litigation, offering a precise, factual snapshot of the truck’s operation, but it must be secured quickly by legal counsel.
Cell Phone Data
Obtaining cell phone records can show if the driver was distracted by any means, like a text, email, or phone call. Within the new digital age, there are a million distractions when it comes to phones.
Within phone records, we can see if the truck driver was on the phone at the time of the accident was distracted due to being on their phone. Phone records can also indicate if they received a text message or notification of some kind to take their attention off the road and potentially cause a collision.
Trucking Company Records
Trucking Company Records can prove negligence on the company’s part. It is important to request the employment file of the truck driver, their safety regulations, driving training, annual inspection reports, prior accidents, and claim history.
Such documents can prove oversight of the company in employing the driver in the first place, who caused the accident.
Employment File
In some cases, when obtaining an employment file, we learn that the driver was not adequately trained to drive a truck, and the company knew of that. For example, if a driver had his license revoked for reckless driving and the company still let him drive, that is clear negligence.
The employment file can also indicate drug testing records, disciplinary reports, training records, and their relationship with the company. This information gives us a better idea of the defendant and their competency level being a truck driver.
Annual Inspection Reports
Annual Inspection Reports are mandatory yearly safety checks on the trucks used within their company. This is a comprehensive check on the braking system, steering and suspension, tires, lighting, coupling devices, fuel and exhaust systems, emergency equipment, and documentation.
These vehicles should be checked yearly as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations require by a qualified inspector to do so. If a company is failing to receive such inspections, it is putting its drivers and others at risk.
Prior Accidents and Claim History
Looking at a trucking company’s claim and accident history is important to understand if they are taking the proper precautions to prevent accidents. Even if an accident does happen, the steps they took after that to prevent another one are important.
If a company has dozens of accidents for the same reasons, they are not creating solutions to protect their drivers and others. Evidence of repeated unsafe behavior is clear negligence on the company’s part.
In-Cab Cameras and Dash Cameras
In-cab cameras are crucial for determining who is at fault and getting clear facts. But they also promote safety. As these cameras become more popular, they make it easier to assign responsibility for actions and identify hazards.
These driver-facing cameras are triggered when they sense fast acceleration or sudden movements and changes. This information is uploaded to the cloud and should be reviewed by the trucking company. Some cameras are equipped with sensors designed to specifically detect and alert the trucking company of a driver’s drowsiness and fatigue. For example, our firm had a case where the in-cab camera showed the driver falling asleep while driving and failing to see our client, which caused a collision.
While in-cab cameras are important, so are dash cams. The information they can capture is better than any witness and can clearly show how the events unfolded.
Truck drivers have various requirements that they must follow under Federal Motor Carrier Safety rules. But accidents do still occur. In order to ensure safety and correctly assign responsibility, it is important to obtain as much information as possible, including:
- Videos
- Photographs
- Witness statements
- Medical and police reports
This evidence can all aid in painting the picture of how the accident occurred and what happened after it.
Black box data offers real-time information on the operation of the truck, which can aid in investigating speed, braking, and steering. Such information can indicate driving patterns and offer concrete facts about the accident. Rather than relying on driver statements, undeniable evidence creates a strong case for compensation. Gathering as much firsthand, concrete information as possible is essential to prove a truck driver’s negligence when they cause a crash. In some cases, the driver is not the only one to blame.
When investigating a truck driver, it is also important to investigate the company that employs them. Obtaining an employment file can indicate training and record with the company. If the driver has a record of unsafe driving and the company allows the person to operate one of their vehicles, they are negligent for the crash as well. Various information, like annual inspections and annual company records, is essential to know if the company is abiding by federal regulations. If they fail to do so, they are not keeping their drivers or others on the road safe knowingly. It also allows for insight into the crash record of the company. If a company has a hefty record of crashes where their party is at fault and they fail to act differently, they are participating in repeated negligent behavior.
As there is much discoverable information, it can be hard to keep everything straight or easy to obtain. If you are a victim in a trucking case, you need proper representation to do the heavy lifting for you.
Hire an Experienced Toledo Trucking Injury Attorney Today!
If you have been in a trucking accident, it is not your job to investigate the driver or the company. Your only job is to focus on healing and recovery. At Charles E. Boyk Law Offices, our mission is to have you healthy, happy, and compensated for negligence.
Contact us today for a free case evaluation and find out how we can help you achieve the justice and financial recovery you need. Let us leverage our years of expertise to support you every step of the way.
