Trucking accident injury law | Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd

25 Congress Members Endorse Tearing Apart ELD Road Safety Rule

June 1, 2018/in Blog, Car accident injury law, Personal injury law, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

The ELD mandate that went effective Dec. 18, 2017 requires truckers and commercial carriers to input their worked hours on ELDs, or electronic logging devices. An exception to this new ELD rule allows truck drivers to track their hours on AOBRDs, or automatic on-board recording devices, until Dec. 16, 2019 if they are purchased before Dec. 18, 2017. A few other exceptions also apply to select truckers.

What can be praised about this rule is that it helps prevent tampering with work logs and helps ensure trucking companies are not forcing their employees to work longer than the legal limit. This law helps keep both truck drivers safe and protects other car drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians who must share the road with truckers.

But now the law is facing pushback. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), a lobbying arm of the trucking industry has filed a request with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to encourage the agency to exempt small transportation trucking businesses from the ELD mandate for five years.

The key fact here is that most trucking companies would qualify as small transportation trucking business. If OOIDA’s request is granted, it would gut the long-settled electronic logging device rule by allowing nearly all trucking companies to delay compliance for another five years.

What’s even more worrisome is that 25 Congress members have endorsed OOIDA’s request, calling it “responsibly constructed” in a letter to FMCSA’s Deputy Administrator.

Common sense safety regulations should never take a backseat to the trucking industry’s financial interests. When people’s lives are concerned, safety should always be the first priority. When there are no repercussions against the trucking industry for creating an environment of overworked, fatigued drivers, it is our community members that pay the ultimate price. As truck accident injury attorneys, we get to see firsthand the devastating results when a tired, overworked driver is behind the wheel of a truck.

If you were hurt in an accident involving a fatigued truck driver, know that it’s not your fault. The Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. offers help for the injured and holds the companies responsible for negligent behavior. Call us at 1-312-384-1920 or 1-800-693-1LAW or reach us by email to schedule a free initial consultation with an experienced Chicago truck accident lawyer.

Who is Responsible for a Truck Accident?

May 11, 2018/in Blog, Car accident injury law, Personal injury law, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

If you were hit by a truck on the road, you might simply think that it was the truck driver who lost control and hit you and your vehicle. But the cause of your accident may be more complex and there may be much to uncover. Watch the video to learn more.

When a truck crash happens, a knowledgeable truck accident attorney will examine the many factors involved that resulted in the injury to you. The right attorney will ask you and the other parties certain questions to make sure that no stone is left unturned.

The proper attorney may involve the truck driver: Remember, the truck driver may have made an individual driving decision that was dangerous. Your injury could have been caused by distracted driving or speeding by the truck driver.

The attorney may involve the trucking company. The company who owns the truck and employs or contracts a driver must have proper hiring and training protocols in place. An attorney may uncover gaps in the truck company’s hiring and/or training practices, or may find that a trucking company is pressuring its drivers to work beyond their regulated hours. The attorney is also able to uncover whether a company is properly inspecting and maintaining its trucks.

Suppose the truck driver and trucking company did everything they could to ensure safety of those on the roadways. The crash could still have been caused by faulty parts. Defects in manufacturing or maintenance of brakes or chassis pins can sometimes be detected during a driver’s pre-truck inspection, but that’s not always the case. In that case, your attorney may involve the entities responsible for manufacturing the truck or its parts, or those responsible for maintaining the truck in your suit.

Furthermore, cargo companies are often responsible for securing a truck load. If an accident happens due to shifting cargo, your attorney can investigate if the cargo was secured based on industry practices.

To get to the root cause of your accident injury, your attorney must fully understand all the tools that are at his or her disposal during a case investigation. A knowledgeable and experienced attorney will be able to identify all the causes leading to your injuries. Your full recovery is easier to accomplish when you are using attorneys who fully understand all the steps of litigation and arbitration.

At the Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. our trucking accident trial attorneys have over 50 years of combined experience that we put to test every day. Call us at 1 (312) 384-1920 or 1 (800) 693-1LAW with your questions and concerns, or reach us by email. Our verdicts and settlements have helped many clients facing an uncertain time in their lives arrive at a place of relief and stability.

Will the Side-View Mirrors on Trucks be Replaced with a Gadget that Has Proven to Improve Trucker Safety?

April 30, 2018/in Blog, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

The trucking industry has been experiencing some drastic changes lately including truckers required to have ELDs (electronic logging devices) installed in their vehicles. Addtionally, there has been a push for autonomous trucks. Now we are learning of yet another change that may be here sooner than we think. While some truckers weren’t thrilled about the ELD mandate, many will like this one. According to trucks.com, the company Stoneridge has put in a bid to the U.S Department of Transportation requesting that side mirrors on big rigs and other commercial trucks be replaced with a “smarter” gadget that will improve trucker safety.

Autonomous Trucks Are Coming, but Will They Contribute to Making Our Roadways Safer?

April 18, 2018/in Blog, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

With more and more accidents occurring involving semi-trucks and other commercial vehicles, the demand for autonomous trucks has grown. In 2015, 415,000 crashes were reported to police involving large trucks and 3,598 of those were fatal, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. While many fear that these vehicles could result in many truckers being put out of a job, the overall goal is to help reduce truck collisions from transpiring which in turn will decrease the number of deaths and injuries we read about.

Healthy Habits for Truckers to Implement When Out on the Road

April 2, 2018/in Blog, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

A trucker’s job isn’t an easy one. Having to drive for days on end without being able to see their family and succumbing to an inconsistent and sometimes unhealthy diet makes a trucker’s life a little tougher. Those endless days on what seems like a never-ending road is hard on the eyes and body which means they need to be taking care of their health. Diet and rest are two key things every trucker need to take care of.

Truck Accidents Caused by Careless Inspections

February 12, 2018/in Blog, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

The law requires trailer and truck drivers to conduct a pre-trip inspection before the start of their route and once every 24 hours while on the road. It is the truck driver’s responsibility to ensure the vehicle they are expected to drive is safe for operation and free from defects. During a pre-trip inspection, the truck driver checks the vehicle’s mechanics, such as brakes, lights, tires, etc. to determine if they are functioning properly. The trucker must also ensure that the load being driven is securely loaded into place. The load must also be at or under the maximum weight capacity that is appropriate for that particular truck.

The driver of a truck should get behind the wheel only after ensuring that the pre-trip inspection trip didn’t reveal any problems with the truck’s operational capabilities and that the truck load is secure. A thorough pre-trip inspection should last between 30 to 50 minutes. While there is no established regulation that addresses the time frame to be allotted for truck and trailer inspection, 30 to 50 minutes is the expected time it takes to complete a thorough inspection. Every truck driver is taught to perform a pre-trip inspection as part of their CDL training, and they must know how to do one properly in order to get a CDL license.

Often times, truck accidents happen because a truck driver missed something during a pre-trip inspection. Truck accidents caused by falling debris from a cargo load are pretty common. Such accidents can be prevented if truck drivers are simply given enough time and support from the trucking industry to perform these life-saving inspections.

But many truck companies ignore safety rules and take shortcuts to protect their bottom lines. Examples include truck drivers not getting paid for the time they spend on inspections, even though it’s part of their required day. As a result, it’s not uncommon to hear of inspections that last only 10-15 minutes. These incomplete and unsafe inspections endanger us all and are a serious threat to public safety.

At the Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd., our Chicago truck accident lawyers investigate thoroughly if a careless or an incomplete truck inspection has caused you or your loved one injury in a truck accident. With over 50 years of combined experience and a reputation for tough litigation, our Chicago truck accident attorneys have the resources and the expertise to help you get the results you deserve. Call us at 1 (312) 384-1920 or 1 (800) 693-1LAW or contact us by email.

Truck Accidents and the Unfortunate Injuries Victims Often Suffer From

January 8, 2018/in Blog, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

Among all types of vehicular accidents, those involving trucks tend to be the most severe. Trucks are not only traveling with hundreds of pounds of product on their vehicle, but the vehicle itself usually weighs over 30,000 pounds. The impact of a truck accident is enough to leave an individual suffering with some of the harshest injuries. In this article, we discuss spinal cord injuries as this is a common injury a truck accident victim suffers from.

What is the Number One Cause of Truck Accidents?

December 22, 2017/in Blog, Car accident injury law, Personal injury claim, Personal injury law, Trucking accident injury law, Video/by Yao Dinizulu

Driver fatigue is an extremely common problem in the trucking industry. A study done by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found fatigued drivers are the #1 cause of truck collisions.

When these tired and overworked truck drivers cause accidents, as you may know, these are not minor accidents. Car drivers and passengers who are in a collision with a truck are very likely to suffer serious life-long injuries or even death.

There are rules in place to prevent these deadly accidents. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulates the hours truck drivers can spend on the road per day and per week. Watch the video to learn more.

The law is that truck drivers can work:

A maximum of 70 hrs. in 8 days if their employer operates every single day of the week. If the employer is closed any day of the week, then truck drivers can work up to 60 hrs. in 7 days.
Within these 60 or 70 hrs in about a week, truck drivers must only work a maximum of 14 hrs. per day. Only 11 of these 14 hrs. can be behind the wheel. After a truck driver has driven the maximum of 11 hrs., they must rest for 10 hrs. straight before starting work again.
After working for 8 days or 7 days as per the limit of days that applies to them, truck drivers can only restart work after resting for 34 hrs.

These safety rules were created based on many studies that examined the needs of truck drivers so that they can be alert on the road. They are safety rules that every trucking company should live by to protect us all from danger and mayhem. But many companies force their drivers to skirt these safety rules. Truck companies oftentimes push their drivers to work past the set driving limits in an effort to take shortcuts. This undermines the safety of us all. It creates an environment of fatigued and stressed drivers who are high risks on the road. These exhausted drivers end up injuring not just themselves, but our community members who will suffer more severe and oftentimes irreversible injuries or death.

Truck driver fatigue continues to harm individuals and their families. If you are watching this video because you have your own questions or have a loved one injured due to a fatigued truck driver, you shouldn’t feel alone. Contact the Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. at 1-312-384-1920 or 1-800-693-1LAW. We are here to answer all your questions and help you navigate through this difficult time.

Commercial Truck Accidents are Among the Deadliest Types of Automobile Accidents

December 1, 2017/in Blog, Personal injury law, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

A tragic truck accident occurred just a few weeks back leaving three people dead and one critically injured. The accident involved a semi tractor-trailer and a 2012 Chevrolet passenger car. The occupants who didn’t survive the accident were 19-year-old Julius J. Green, Precious M. Horace, 19, and Monteene D. Taylor, 21. The last passenger, who managed to survive the collision, was said to be in critical condition at Advocate Christ Medical Center. According to the Chicago Tribune, the occupants of the Chevrolet were not wearing their seatbelts and one person was partially ejected from the vehicle.

18-Year-Olds Now Allowed to Drive 18-Wheelers

November 10, 2017/in Blog, Car accident injury law, Trucking accident injury law/by Yao Dinizulu

Last year, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which monitors safety regulations for the trucking industry introduced a three-year pilot program to allow 18-21 year-old drivers haul large trucks and tractor trailers across state lines. Why is this considered a good idea?

According to the CDC, teen drivers are already disproportionately prone to fatalities when driving cars, and 18 to 21-year-olds are already allowed to drive trucks, but not across state lines. This law based on state line restrictions is an arbitrary way to control how long a teen truck driver can be on the road. For example, a drive from Chicago to Southern Illinois may well be over 300 miles, while a much shorter drive from Chicago to Gary, Indiana is about 30 miles. The latter of these two drives is not allowed for teen truck drivers because they would be crossing state lines. However, it is just as risky, if not more so, when teenagers are allowed to haul large vehicles for the longest of distances within their states. Therefore, it would be safer for everyone if teen truck drivers would be limited to driving a set number of miles rather than being restricted on crossing state borders.

The new pilot program limits truck drivers under 21 to drive 100 miles into neighboring states, but this policy still has its flaws. This pilot program begs the question for how long would these teen drivers be driving in total? If a teen truck driver is traveling 100 miles in the neighboring state, this is in addition to what distance driven from the home state to get to the neighboring state?

Furthermore, the pilot program is using a very selective sample as a generality for the average teen truck driver. The 18 to 21-year-olds selected for the pilot program are military veterans who drove trucks as part of their service. The problem with using this sample group is that most of these veterans would be 21 or closer to 21, because the military starts to admit recruits at 18 years of age.

Another problem is that it’s very different working for the nation’s security as opposed to a for-profit trucking company that’s looking out for its bottom line. When rushed by their customers and bosses, young truck drivers are more likely to make deadly mistakes. Eric Penucci, a veteran truck driver interviewed by NPR said, “There’s a lot of stress in the trucking business. All customers are in a hurry to get their stuff. Traffic causes delays. Truck drivers need to be experienced, calm under pressure, and able to make good decisions.”

The trucking industry is facing a shortage of drivers, which may only get worse. Older and experienced drivers are retiring or leaving the industry altogether. Future truck drivers may be overworked, underage, and less-knowledgeable on roadway safety. These factors create fatalities on our highways that will only grow unless safer policies are put in place.

I am a truck accident lawyer in Chicago and often times I am dealing with the tragedy these accidents bring to families and communities. If you or your loved one was injured in an accident involving a truck you shouldn’t feel alone. Get the help and legal representation that will help you or your loved one move forward. Committed to your needs, our truck accident attorneys understand what you may be going through. The Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. is available to answer all your questions and help you navigate through this difficult time. Our number is 312-384-1920 and 1-800-693-1LAW, or reach us by email at info@dinizululawgroup.com.