The trucking industry is very heavily regulated in order to protect other drivers on the road. Tractor trailer drivers must follow special precautions and rules when on the roadways in order to ensure the safety of everyone on the road.
Even due to these heavily regulated standards, large trucks are involved in thousands of crashes that kill or cause serious injury to people every year. If these regulations were not followed, and as a result, another driver is injured, the truck driver or the trucking company is responsible for any injuries that are caused.
5 RULES & REGULATION STANDARDS FOR COMMERCIAL VEHICLES
- Truck drivers are only allowed to drive a certain number of hours per day.
Tired truck drivers are a major cause of harmful and sometimes deadly truck crashes. Trucking companies must comply with the standard hours set to regulate driver safety. If a driver is permitted or forced to drive more than the regulated hours due to delivery deadlines and a crash occurs, the driver and trucking company can be held responsible.
- Truck drivers are required to use “extreme caution” or stop driving during bad weather.
Bad or extreme weather can occur at any point of a truck driver’s route. The standards are set that the driver must slow down or stop driving in order to avoid losing control and crashing the vehicle. If a truck driver continues to operate in extreme weather such as heavy fog, snow storms, rain storms, etc. without adjusting their driving speed and having caused injury, the truck driver and the trucking company can be held responsible.
- Trucking companies are required to maintain and repair their trucks.
Defective brakes and tires and inadequate lighting are leading causes of major accidents involving trucks. Truck drivers and trucking companies are required to repair mechanical defects and maintain safe vehicles under regulatory standards. If these vehicle standards are ignored and trucks are not maintained they add to the chances of a serious accident occurring.
- Cargo in or on a truck must be properly secured.
Cargo in or on a truck must be secured following the regulation standards set in order to ensure that trucks are safe from tipping or from spilling their cargo. Trucking companies that allow their trucks to go out on the road without correctly securing or balancing the load create a dangerous condition for drivers and can be held responsible for any injury their truck or cargo causes.
- Truck drivers must park their trucks and trailers in safe designated areas.
Truck drivers who park their trucks and trailers in the path of moving traffic can cause deadly crashes. The standards require that a trucker must place warning triangles or a flagger to alert drivers who might come upon an unexpected obstacle in their path.
Standards and regulations for truck drivers are set up to establish safe driving conditions for everyone on the road. Many trucker drivers are professionals who follow these standards but some are irresponsible and inexperienced. Truckers must adhere to these standards and trucking companies must be selective in hiring drivers with a great driving record and committed to the professional standards and responsibility of driving these large vehicles.
Truck incidents can happen at any time whether they are on the highway or in residential areas. When you believe that you are the victim of a truck crash that was in no way your fault, it is best to seek legal representation.
Ya if like to see the regulation that states trucks have to get off the road when the weather get bad and no quotes I’d like the actual fmcsa page numbers a sub paragraphs
You ambulance chasing law firms have completely lost your minds. Instead of blaming the trucking companies and professional drivers, why don’t you encourage stricter traffic enforcement for the morons in cars that drive with their heads in their asses. Penn law firm, you all are effing clueless and have NO effing common sense.
34 year trucking veteran. Your law degrees don’t mean anything without common sense.
Karma will get you.
I totally agree when you said that rules and regulations are done to ensure that no one will get accidents and have injuries on the road. That is the reason why authorities catch those who violate them for the safety of others. My uncle actually got caught because of swerving since we quite slept due to long-distance driving. We should get a lawyer to help him out since he still needs to provide for his family.
I found it interesting that truckers have to park their trucks in safe designated areas. My younger brother just started getting his special license to drive semis and I wanted to look into the safety aspects that they have to follow. I hope there a lot of rest areas and diesel depots that he can go to for breaks.
Hi. Just read about the jury award regarding Werner / Odessa crash. I’m a truck driver for 20 years (self employed). I’m outraged at that settlement. The plaintiff / her lawyer state that Werner truck should not have been on the road; yet that truck did NOT cause the crash. There is no honest legality for a double standard. The pickup truck driver is the one who should not have been on the road. I’ve driven, and will continue to drive, in many winter driving conditions; if we drive slower for such conditions; and we’re heavy (loaded); accidents don’t occur even on snow and ice; at least not caused by us. This is bad karma for that lawyer that sucked 90M out of Werner when it was not, even 1%, Werners fault. Total dishonesty. We (trucking industry) have to aggressively fight a fraudulent double standard that says “it’s our fault” even when someone else hits us. We (many of us) are actually trained how to drive in slippery conditions; while the general public is not trained. It is THEM that should have stayed off the road when “winter storm alerts” generated. The dumbing down of America continues. We get hit; it’s our fault. Sending very negative energy toward the lawyer and jury; hoping karma takes care of em. It always does. If she gets cancer, etc; don’t wonder why. These kind of nuclear verdicts have made insurance cost over $20K PER YEAR for truckers; whereas it used to be $10M. This has caused many to go out of business. Thank you very little.
My son wants to be a new truck driver for a few years so that he can make enough money to pay for his schooling. I think it’s a good idea, but I want him to be safe on the road. I’ll let him know that driving while tired is a recipe for a disaster and one of the leading causes of wrecks.
My son is going to be a truck driver soon so that he can make some extra money when he isn’t living at home. I think it’s a great idea, but he needs to be really safe. Getting some information on driving conditions is a great idea to know when it’s best to stay off the road.
I agree that it would be a good idea to make sure that the drivers stop in bad weather since it would be much more likely for the wind to affect a truck, compared to a car. My buddy is thinking about using a trucking service for his business, and he wants to be sure that he could get his shipments to their location safely. It would probably be a good idea for him to get a company that would make use of all these safety regulations if he decides to use a trucking company.
My brother is getting into a new business that will require him to drive trucks around with his products. I think it’s a great idea for him to learn about how to pack his trailer correctly to avoid spilling. That way, he is compliant with the rules and regulations that are established in this country.