The sheer size and weight of tractor-trailers make it hard for them to stop as fast as other vehicles, leading to them being some of the most dangerous vehicles on the road. Therefore, trucking companies have an elevated responsibility to ensure their drivers use extra caution.
Obtaining adequate compensation for your injuries is not always as simple as it seems. Insurers for trucking companies notoriously undervalue claims, even for victims who have been seriously injured or even killed.
Trucking Company Responsibilities
When a trucking company hires a driver and puts them on the road, it has a public duty to ensure that their drivers are ready to drive and that their company policies encourage safe driving behaviors.
They are also responsible for conducting adequate background checks of a driver’s record, including any past alcohol or drug-related driving convictions or loss of commercial driver’s license status.
Unfortunately for public safety, many trucking companies fall short of or deliberately ignore this goal. Tractor-trailer drivers are sometimes forced to drive for long periods, sometimes without rest. This can be done to boost the company’s bottom line with quicker deliveries.
These drowsy drivers are much more likely to cause a collision on North Carolina roads. When truck drivers take drugs or supplements – whether legal or illegal – to stay awake, the risk becomes even more significant.
Safe Driving Practices
Dangerous company policies that promote unsafe driving have landed some trucking companies in legal hot water in recent years. Because of this, most companies have developed policies that are safer both for their drivers and for the public.
However, if the trucking companies do not follow these policies, they do not matter. Trucking companies will find loopholes in their policies, allowing them to continue these unsafe procedures.
This company’s negligence can lead to severe, even deadly, North Carolina wrecks involving tractor-trailers. It cannot be left unnoticed.
Representation for Trucking Company Negligence
If you or a loved one have been severely injured due to the negligence of a trucking company, you need to speak with a skilled tractor-trailer accident lawyer.
Maginnis Howard’s experienced tractor-trailer accident lawyers have recovered millions of dollars for victims and their families. Contact us today for a free case consultation and an explanation of your rights. We have three conveniently located offices in Raleigh, Charlotte, and Fayetteville. Our attorneys represent personal injury victims on a contingency basis- that means you don’t pay unless we win.
