Vehicle collisions involving large trucks consistently rank among the deadliest possible outcomes. There’s no way a regular vehicle or SUV can compete with the size and weight of a tractor-trailer. They’re bigger than your car and usually have a lot of stuff on board. That kind of force is too much for your body to handle. Truck accident lawyers in Palm Springs know this to be true. Every month, they visit with people whose lives were changed forever after a truck tragedy in California.
We take a slightly different approach to dealing with these kinds of incidents than other kinds of car accidents because of how horrific they are. For starters, there may be more than one individual to blame for the accident. You can assume that a firm employs the driver who hit you. Perhaps you should file a claim for compensation with the business’s owner. It’s also conceivable that the driver is transporting goods for an unnamed third party. Perhaps you should sue the corporation that owns the cargo if they are at fault for the mishap.
With so many potential perpetrators, it’s easy to see how confusion could arise. Because of this, it is recommended that you retain the services of an Orange County truck accident lawyer.
When Operating a Commercial Vehicle, What Specific Laws Must Be Followed?
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has established the following regulations that truck drivers must abide by:
- No driver may work more than a 14-hour shift.
- Only eleven of the fourteen hours are available for driving.
- Minimum three-hour lunch and break periods are required.
- They have 13 hours of driving time if there is bad weather.
- The employee can put in as much as 70 hours per week if the business is operating on all seven days. The maximum number of hours per week is 60 if the business is only open for six days.
- They are required to keep time and break diaries.
All truck drivers are required to keep records of their vehicle’s maintenance and repairs.
Based on the information included in these logs, you may have a claim against more than one party. This may involve any of the following:
- That professional truck driver
- The business that employs them; is the one whose goods the trucker is transporting.
- The automobile service mechanic
All of the aforementioned insurance providers