Truck Injury Lawyer Blog

Broker Liability Created by Lack of Motor Carrier Insurance

Morgan Adams — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:25:18 -0500

I was pleased to see that Transportation Topics, a leading trucking industry publication, published my letter to the Editor in its April 23, 2012 edition on page 9. My letter on why plaintiff lawyer's are having to pursue brokers for full restitution for their clients is as follows:

Broker Liability

This is in reference to the story “TIA Pushes Broad Offensive to Lower Brokers’ Liability” (4-2, p. 4).

The Motor Carrier Act of 1980 set minimum insurance limits for carriers at $750,000. Those limits have not been raised in 32 years. If you go to any present-value calculator on the Internet and use a 4% inflation rate, you will find that the present value of $750,000 after 32 years, is about $213,000 in today’s dollars. To put it another way, you would need $2.6 million in today’s dollars to equal $750,000 in 1980.

Many carriers are still only carrying $750,000 in coverage, and when a truly catastrophic wreck occurs, $750,000 is clearly inadequate.

Lawyers facing an inadequate recovery for their clients then look at other parties to make up the difference. Brokers easily could decrease their exposure to liability simply by making sure the carriers they use have adequate insurance.

SLEEP APNEA HUGE - AND IGNORED - PROBLEM IN TRUCKING INDUSTRY

Morgan Adams — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 10:44:11 -0500

I have been fortunate to work with many great lawyers around the country on Truck Accident, Spinal Cord and Brain Injury cases. One such lawyer is Pete Everett of Fairfax, Virginia. Pete Everett, a great trucking lawyer who has a breathtaking knowledge of traumatic brain injuries, sent me the following information on a new sleep apnea study in the Australian trucking industry.

Sleep apnea is a huge issue in the US trucking industry, and is willfully, knowingly, and glaringly ignored by most trucking companies. As a result it is a problem I have posted on frequently (Dangers of Truck Drivers with Sleep Apnea, Sleep Apnea increase Risk of Accident Two to Seven Hundred Percent; 25% of Truck Drivers Should Not be Driving Due to Fatigue; and Fatigued Drivers 2.5 Times More Likely to be in a Collision amongst others). The new study shows what we have known in the US for decades. TRUCK DRIVERS WITH UNTREATED SLEEP APNEA KILL INNOCENT VICTIMS ON OUR ROADS. The actual report states:

TruckingInfo.com; Wednesday, April 4, 2012

41% of Australian Truck Drivers Have Sleep Apnea, Study Says

A new sleep study found that 41% of Australian truck drivers have obstructive sleep apnea.

The study, published in the journal "Sleep," found that although only 4.4% of drivers reported a previous diagnosis of sleep apnea, an at-home diagnostic test found that 41% of the 517 drivers who participated likely had sleep apnea.

The study also found that 36% of drivers were overweight, 50% obese an 49% were cigarette smokers.

"Sleep apnea remains a significant and unrecognized problem in CMV drivers, who we found to have multiple health risks," the study says. "Objective testing for this sleep disorder needs to be considered, as symptom reports and self-identification appear insufficient to accurately identify those at risk."

Although the study focused only on Australian drivers, NPR reported that as much as 30% of American drivers are believed to have sleep apnea, a condition that causes a person to stop breathing for short periods of time during sleep, which results in daytime drowsiness.

A. DUIE PYLE DRIVER's MANUAL NOT SECRET

Morgan Adams — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 17:26:16 -0500

A trucking company's driver manual tells its drivers all about the company's safety policies and procedures. Generally, these manuals just recite Chapter 2 (the safety chapter) of the state's CDL manual, and occasionally they includes material from a defensive driving course for truck Drivers such as the Smith System. Not a lot of difference in these manuals other than they do show the standards a driver is expected to follow, and that the company knew its driver's should follow these rules. Frankly, driving safely is something we all learn and, for the most part, it involves basic physics we all know. Big things in motion (trucks) take longer to stop than little things in motion (cars). Thus trucks need more stopping distance than cars and better have good brakes! Not a lot of different ways you can discuss safe following distances and how to brake a tractor trailer.

Recently, however, I have found I have had to fight for a copies of trucking companies' driver's manuals as the companies have suddenly started to say they are "secret." I have even had to file motions with judges to get this information [see my blog here]. More and more trucking company defense lawyers apparently believe there is some litigation advantage in keeping this information confidential, out of the public eye, and have put out and email telling all the other trucking defense lawyers not to turn over the driver's manual. This is a bad trend, doesn't make sense, and should be stopped.

Of course "this gives us an unfair advantage in litigation" is not what the trucking company lawyers are saying in court. In court they claim that their ability to keep the public safe is a "competitive advantage" that they don't want leaked to other trucking companies. How to drive an 80,000 pound tractor trailer on our highways and streets without killing people should never be a competitive advantage for a trucking company.

I find it outrageous that a trucking company can claim that the the public's (that is you and me my friends) safety is a competitive advantage (we kill less people than they do) worthy of a court's protection. The fact they KILL less people on the road is, in fact, a good thing, but that they wont share that information to keep everyone on the road safe is appalling. It stinks to the high heavens. Luckily, some lawyers fight back on this issue, and some judges have common sense.

Recently attorney Ed Ciarimboli, at Fellerman & Ciarimboli in Kingston, PA, took this issue (and several others) in front of judge in Pennsylvania and received an Order telling the trucking company, A. Duie Pyle (a very large trucking company with over 800 drivers and over 36 Million miles on the roadways in 2010) that they had to turn over the manual without a secrecy Order. This type of hard work makes us all much safer when we drive. My hats off to Mr. Ciarimboli and the judge in that case (I would list his name but I cant read his signature!). A copy of the judge's Order can be found HERE.

BULKMATIC TRANSPORT COMPANY's EXPERT FOUND TO HAVE DESTROYED EVIDENCE

Morgan Adams — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 09:58:50 -0500

Trucking companies, as corporations, can only act though people. In trucking cases companies will often hire experts that give the company the answer they want (That the company isn't responsible and it is the truck accident victims fault) rather than the truth. In many cases evidence is also allowed to be destroyed, even when the company knows that the evidence is critical to proving how a wreck happened.

In a 2003 decision, in a typical case, Bulkmatic's expert, Stephen Chewing, was found to have failed to "preserve the black box data [which] exhibited willfulness and bad faith that prejudiced [the victim of the truck wreck.]" The black box data would have shown the truck's speed, when the driver braked, and other significant items that would have assisted the victim's accident reconstructionist in the case against Bulkmatic. The full opinion of the court can be read HERE

Destruction of evidence is a common problem in trucking cases. Don't wait to hire a lawyer while evidence in your case is being destroyed. While the insurance company is stringing you along with promises that everything will be "fine", the trucking company is getting rid of the proof you need to make a full recovery in your case. Whether you hire my firm or another, a competent truck accident law firm will immediately have a letter out to the trucking company and its driver telling them to save all the critical evidence.

A sample letter requesting evidence to be saved, and not destroyed (or "spoliated" as we say in the legal world), can be found in my prior blogs under "SPOLIATION."

Destruction of Evidence (Spoliation) in Trucking Cases

Morgan Adams — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:43:26 -0500

I am pleased to announce my recent article on spoliation was published by the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association in the ATLA Docket, Winter 2012. The issue was entitled "Hiding Justice." A copy of the article can be downloaded HERE.

Truck Driver Fired for Having Beer in His Truck

Morgan Adams — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 15:54:11 -0500

Recently I was asked whether a truck driver could have unopened beer and alcohol in his truck. I took a look at the safety regulations and determined the driver could not. The regulation states:

§ 392.5 Alcohol prohibition. (a) No driver shall— (3) Be on duty or operate a commercial motor vehicle while the driver possesses wine ..., beer ..., or distilled spirits b) No motor carrier shall require or permit a driver to—(1) Violate any provision of paragraph (a) of this section

The rule is very clear, the driver can't possess alcohol in the cab, whether opened or unopened. I performed the research on behalf of Nancy Jin, a writer for the Canadian Chinese News. The full text of Ms. Jin's excellent article may be found HERE. The article is also pasted below in chinese and english:

被罚的他是违章驾车，还是遭歧视？

大中公益网096.ca 2012年03月01日 19:10 来源：大中报记者南茜（Nancy Jin） [ 加大字体 | 缩小字体 ]

Getting a ticket: a careless truck driver or a victim of discrimination?

美国近年来强化货运安全法规，严厉打击违章行为，以提高道路安全和减少交通事故的发生。按照美国联邦汽车运输安全规程规定，大货司机不得在其拖车内携带任何啤酒，除非啤酒为其运货的一部分。图片：CBC/Radio-Canada特允大中报使用。

2011年10月1日，安省持牌的商业运输大货司机赖国（化名）驾驶一辆Caravan Logistics公司的8万磅重牵引拖车抵达魁北克省和福特蒙州的边境，其目的地为美国福特蒙州。

On Oct. 1, 2011, a commercial vehicle of Caravan Logistics Inc. heading to Vermont U.S. arrived at the Quebec and Vermont border. Mr. Guo Lai (not his real name), a licensed commercial truck driver of Ontario, was sitting behind the wheel of the truck that was hauling an 80,000-pound tractor-trailer.

作为一个经验丰富并且已多次经过美加边境的大货司机，赖没有想过这一次过境会有什么不同，即使当福特蒙州车辆管理局的边境检查员打开密封的拖车，翻出货柜箱内每一样东西进行仔细检查时，他仍然没有想过会有什么麻烦。

As an experienced truck driver who had crossed the U.S. Canadian border many times, Lai didn’t expect that this time would be any different, not even when a border inspector from the Vermont Motor Vehicles Department opened the sealed trailer, and checked everything from inside out.

没有什么好让他紧张的。毕竟他的大货车上没有携带任何毒品，他的血液没有酒精含量。即便赖曾将剩下的5瓶啤酒放在货车上的午餐冰箱里，他相信一名毒酒不沾的司机没有违反任何法律。

Nothing could give him the jitters. After all, his truck carried no drugs and he wasn’t under the influence of alcohol. A clean and sober driver wasn’t breaking any law, thought Lai, even though he was aware that there were five bottles of beer left in his lunch freezer in the tractor.

据赖称，这些啤酒是在边境免税商店里买的，价格非常便宜，他买啤酒的目的是为带给朋友和亲戚，或准备晚上喝。

The beers were bought at the border duty free shop at a much discounted price for his friends and relatives and his own consumption at night, according to Lai.

但检查员怀疑赖在开车时已经喝掉6瓶装中的一瓶，要求对他进行酒精测试。但通过了酒精测试的赖仍受到检查员出具的告票和驾驶员检查报告，并命令他停运24小时。赖对此举深感震惊和不解。

The officer suspected that Lai consumed one bottle from a six-pack while driving and ordered a body alcohol test. Although Lai was cleared by the test, the officer still handed him a ticket and a Driver Examination Report and ordered him out of service for 24 hours. Lai was stunned.

该报告称，赖因“在驾驶商用车时带有5瓶啤酒”而违反了美国联邦毒品和酒精法规。赖简直不敢相信眼前的一切。他知道酒后驾驶属于刑事犯罪，将会收到告票和罚款。但是携带未开封的瓶装啤酒何罪之有？

The report cited the U.S. federal drug and alcohol violations for “possessing 5 bottles of beer while operating a commercial vehicle”. Lai couldn’t believe it. He understood that driving under the influence is a criminal offense and would be issued a ticket and fine. But carrying unopened bottles of beer?

震惊之余，赖匆匆地估算了一下，除了告票罚款$100元，停运令还会给他造成另外$300损失。他这一趟本来应该能赚上$1000元一个星期的长途，而这么一来他只能拿回家$600元。

The mind-boggled Lai did a quick estimate. In addition to the $100 ticket, he would lose another $300 for the “out of service” order, which means he could only bring back home $600 for a week long haul that should have brought $1000 into his pocket.

但是时间和利润损失与后来发生的事件相比根本算不了什么。当赖告知其雇主所收到的告票后，公司立即将其解雇，并表示公司“对与酒精类违规持零容忍政策”。

But it turned out that the loss of time and profit wasn’t the worst part of the ordeal. When Lai notified his employer about the ticket, he was fired right on the spot. The company told him that “there was zero tolerance for the alcohol related offense.”

但无法理解为何区区小事会引来如此横祸的赖称：“我没有酗酒……我根本没有喝酒。”

“I wasn’t abusing alcohol… I wasn’t drinking,” said Lai, who couldn’t understand why such a small incident would turn into so big problem.

赖向《大中报》表示：“这张告票是公司解雇我的借口，因为我此前曾拒绝过他们的不合理运货工作单，我认为边检警员和公司雇主待我不公，使我遭到种族歧视。”

“This ticket was used as an excuse for the company to fire me, just because I had refused their unreasonable work orders before,” Lai told Chinese News. “I believe that I was unfairly treated, and racially discriminated against, by both the police officer and my employer at Caravan.”

严格的大货安全法规

Stringent truck safety regulations

赖驾驶的牵引拖车在内的商业运输大货重量超过8万磅，这类大货在致命交通事故中占很高比例。由于小型车辆和大货在重量上悬殊甚大，因此一旦小型车辆和大大货发生相撞，小车乘客的处境则非常危险。

Commercial trucks – including the tractor-trailer that Mr. Lai was operating – can weigh over 80,000 pounds and account for a very high percentage of traffic deaths. Due to the huge weight gap between passenger vehicles and large trucks, people in a passenger vehicle are extremely vulnerable when their car and a large truck collide.

据统计数据显示，大货发生致命车祸的比率比道路上所有车辆的比率高出50%以上。2004年，美国有12%的致命车祸涉及大货，其中有77%的死者是小车乘客。与大货相关的年车祸死亡人数与26起大型飞机坠毁死亡人数相当，而涉及大货车祸的年损失额超过$190亿元。

According to stats, the fatal crash rate for large trucks is over 50% greater than the rate for all vehicles on the road. In 2004, 12% of traffic fatalities in the U.S. involved big trucks, among which, 77% were in passenger vehicles. The annual death toll from truck-related crashes is the equivalent of 26 major airplane crashes, and each year the price tag of large truck crashes is over $19 billion.

很显然，酗酒是致命交通事故的主要元凶之一。研究发现，酒后驾驶会令大货车祸的风险增加2至6倍。

Apparently, alcohol abuse is one of the major culprits for fatal traffic accidents. Studies have found that driving under the influence can increase the risk of truck crashes from two to 6 times.

如果赖在酒后驾驶80,000磅重的大货，也就和他酒后驾驶一架飞机没有差别。

So if Mr. Lai was drunk while operating his 80,000-pound vehicle, it would be basically no different than he was driving an airplane drunk.

由于酒后驾驶的大货司机可能导致的严重后果，美加两国都采用更严格的法规控制大货司机吸食毒品和饮酒。在一般情况下，货车司机的血液酒精含量上限为0.04%，与之相比，客车司机的血液酒精含量上限为0.08%。

Resulting from the severe safety risks imposed by impaired truck drivers, more rigorous regulations to control truck drivers’ drug and alcohol consumption are in place on both sides of the border. In general, the blood alcohol limit for a tractor-trailer driver is 0.04%, compared with 0.08% for passenger car drivers.

美国近年来强化货运安全法规，严厉打击违章行为，以提高道路安全和减少交通事故的发生。按照美国联邦汽车运输安全规程规定，大货司机不得在其拖车内携带任何啤酒，除非啤酒为其运货的一部分。

The U.S. has taken measures in recent years to tighten trucking regulations and crack down on violations to increase road safety and reduce accidents. In the U.S., the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards -- stipulate that a truck driver shall not possess any beer in its tractor-trailer, unless the beer is part of the shipment.

但是，许多大货司机仍然对毒品和酒精法规熟视无睹。

However, many truck drivers turn a blind eye to drug and alcohol regulations.

因为赖违章而将其解雇的Caravan Logistics公司的主管Greg Coughlin表示：“许多司机听信在大货车服务站传播的信息并受其误导……虽然法律清楚规定不允许在大货内任何部位携带啤酒，但是他们仍然认为可以将啤酒放置于驾驶室……那也就是为什么我们会遭遇几起司机违章的原因。”

“Many drivers are confused and misled by what they heard from other truck drivers at the truck stop… While the law clearly says no beers are allowed anywhere inside the vehicle, they thought that they can keep them in the cab… That is why we ended up with a number of violations among our drivers,” said Greg Coughlin, Director of Caravan Logistics, the company that fired Lai for his offense.

美国田纳西州著名的大货司机诉讼律师Morgan G. Adams表示：“据我们了解，一些司机不重视道路安全法规……他们虽能何驾驶商业运输拖车，但是他们并不愿意去学习机动车安全规则，因此他们常常会违章。”Adams还通过http://www.truckinjurylawyerblog.com网上博客对大货司机进行安全法规的教育。

“What we’ve seen is that drivers don’t pay attention to road safety regulations… They know how to drive a commercial tractor-trailer, but they don’t bother to learn motor vehicle safety rules. As a result, they commit violations frequently,” said Morgan G. Adams, a prestigious truck drivers’ litigation lawyer in Tennessee, who also blogs on TruckInjuryLawyerBlog.com to educate truck drivers on safety regulations.

违章的影响

Impact of the offense

Adams告诉《大中报》，赖的违规行为会影响到公司的安全评分。

Adams told Chinese News that Dai’s offense could result in the company’s safety rating being downgraded.

在联邦汽车运输安全管理局的安全措施系统中，Caravan Logistics公司一直保持着出色的2.7%非安全驾驶记录，但是该公司在管制品和酒精一项的评分记录却高达34.4%。在过去两年中，因两名司机分别的同类违章行为，即在货车上携带啤酒而使公司评分记录飚升。

Caravan Logistics Inc. has maintained an excellent 2.7% unsafe driving rating record with the Safety Measure System of the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCFA), but it received a 34.4% high rating on controlled substances and alcohol, resulting from the two same violations – possessing beers in the tractor-trailer, within the past two years.

Coughlin向《大中报》表示：“他（赖）的这次违章是影响我们公司的毒品和酒精记录的两次违章行为之一。”

“His (Mr. Lai’s) offense was one of the two violations that have affected our company’s drug and alcohol record,” Coughlin told Chinese News.

据Coughlin介绍，毒品和酒精评级记录是物流公司潜在客户最关注的记录之一，较高的毒品酒精评分更会使潜在客户担心因司机的酒后驾驶而被迫承担法律责任，因此相比之下，该记录的斑点会比任何其他记录，例如汽车维护记录等更能让潜在客户望而却步。

In fact, the drug and alcohol rating is a top concern among potential customers of logistics companies. A high drug and alcohol rating, more than any other ratings – such as vehicle maintenance rating -- can turn a potential customer away, as a prospective customer would see the high rating as an increased risk of liability from impaired driving, according to Coughlin.

“在去年的圣诞节期间，我花了整整45分钟向我们的潜在新客户福特汽车公司解释这两次违章行为……我告诉他们，为了保持我们的安全记录，这两名司机都已经被解雇。”

“In Christmas last year, I had to spend 45 minutes explaining to a Ford Motor company – our potential new customer -- as to how we ended up with the two offenses… I told them that to maintain our safety record, both drivers would no longer work with us.”

Coughlin表示，解雇赖的决定是根据公司的安全合规政策而做出，该决定与种族歧视无关。

Coughlin stated that the company’s decision to terminate Lai was made in accordance with the company’s safety compliance policy and that racial discrimination has no bearing on the decision.

Coughlin表示：“公司必须遵守安全政策，否则公司无法生存。我们对酗酒违章制定零容忍政策。如果酒后驾驶造成人员死亡或重伤，相关的法律诉讼可能导致我们公司破产。而这突如其来的后果会让我们的280名员工失业，无处上班。”

“The company must abide by the safety policies or we are out of business. We have zero tolerance on alcohol violations,” said Coughlin, “If someone gets killed or injured severely resulting from the impaired driving, a lawsuit could put our company out of business. And all of a sudden, our 280 employees would be out of a job and don’t have a place to work.

Coughlin称：“这一违章行为给公司造成的影响比司机所想像的严重的多。”

“The offense seems to have brought a much more severe impact on us than the driver assumes, “ said Coughlin.

告票挽救生命

Tickets save lives

被Caravan公司解雇后，目前已在另一家公司找到了工作的赖仍显示出其对安全法规的无知并坚称自己清白。他表示：“我没有喝酒，没喝就是没喝。只要开车时没有喝酒，司机在大货里携带啤酒有什么错？如果我的车上带着一把刀，我难道会用它去杀人么？”

Meanwhile Lai, who has landed a job with another company after Caravan fired him, shows his ignorance towards road regulations and maintains his innocence. “I didn’t drink it, period. What is wrong with drivers carrying beers in the truck, so long as they don’t drink them while on the road? If I carry a knife in my cab, would I use it to kill anyone?”

赖透露说，他在安省交通厅的安全记录并不太好。“法律规定是一回事，如何执行是另一回事。法律规定你必须在每一个停牌前停车，但是有多少人想都没想闯过去？”

Revealing that he had a tainted driving record with the Ministry of Transportation, Lai continued, “What the law says in one thing, how to enforce it is another. The law says you have to stop at every stop sign, but how many of us drive through it without thinking about it?”

但轻度违章会酿成大错，一旦大祸临头就为时晚矣。而一次独闯停牌就导致了10名秘鲁移民工人丧命，不尊重法律的大货司机也可能会将其货车变成80,000磅重的杀人机器。

Not until catastrophe strikes and turns a minor offense into fatal one. As driving through a stop sign has killed 10 Peru migrant workers, truck drivers who show disrespect for the law might as well turn a tractor-trailer into an 80,000-pound killing machine.

赖还指控边检员在履行其工作职责时玩忽职守，没收了他的啤酒以自我享用。

Lai also alleges that the officer was negligent in carrying out his job duty and confiscated the beers for his personal enjoyment.

而这位很可能救了赖或他人生命的边检员实为冤枉。事实上，告票具有安全保护效应。研究显示，在致命车祸发生前一个月的告票数量往往少于车祸发生一年前的告票数字。

Pity the poor officer, who might have saved Lai’s life, or the life of someone else. In fact, getting a ticket brings safety and protective effect, as studies indicate that there were fewer tickets in the month before a fatal accident than a year before.

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The Future of Trucking - Legislation and Regulations in 2012

Morgan Adams — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:23:09 -0500

I have been working on a number of cases recently that have been very time consuming and have not been able to update this blog as much as I would like. My clients come first so no apologies, but I hope you find this update to be useful. This is my best guess as to what will impact safety in the trucking industry in 2012 and beyond:

Medical Certificates will be integrated with the CDL license. The regulation requiring this went into effect Jan 30, 2012 - unfortunately 35 states are not ready to integrate this information with the CDL. This should gradually expand as states come into compliance.
Hours of Service (HOS) - Probably more litigation on HOS rules. The American Transportation Association (ATA) Recently filed suit in the DC circuit. Don't expect any final rule changes in this critical area for a long time.
National Registry of Certified DOT Medical Examiners - Final Rule is before the OMB. ME's will be required to undergo training and be placed on a registry. Drivers will be required to use a certified doc for the DOT exam. This will likely be in place in 2013, with a rule out by summer.
Entry Level Driver Training - Expected rule this summer requiring more training for new CDL drivers.
EOBR's - The 7th Circuit recently vacated the rule requiring EOBR's for bad companies. The new rule being proposed will require EOBRs on all trucks. I expect something this year.
Electronic Stability Control (SC) on Trucks - The Industry is behind requiring these devices, long in cars. They have figured out the savings from ESC are far greater than the cost of putting them in the truck. These have been available since 2004 for heavy trucks, a mandate is likely to issued by the summer.
Speed Governor's - Expect a rule this spring or summer. Probably limiting trucks to 68MPH.
Event Data Recorder (EDR) - This is coming. Cars have EDR's in 2012. This will standardize the data recorded after a wreck and how long (seconds saved before after the wreck).
CSA - Tweaks will change the CSA safety program, likely making the program even more accurate in predicting the companies and drivers likely to be involved in future wrecks.
Sleep Apnea - Formal guidance by the FMCSA expected by the summer. This is a continuing issue in the trucking industry. Please see my prior blogs on this issue.

Heavy Truck Bill Defeated - For Now...

Morgan Adams — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:52:46 -0500

I have previously blogged on the danger of large trucks on the roads, (Bigger Trucks are Bigger Problems, Heavy Trucks Take Toll on Bridges and Highways, and Overloaded Trucks Kill) so I am extremely happy to tell you that the Truck Safety Coalition reported today that:

Yesterday the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee marked up its major surface transportation bill, HR 7, the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act. The bill contains numerous anti-safety provisions. One of them would have allowed a "state option" to permit 97,000 lb. trucks and triple-trailer trucks to operate on most roads in many states across the nation. However, Congressman Lou Barletta (R-PA) and Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL) introduced and championed an amendment that removed these provisions and replaced them with a responsible study on the impacts of truck sizes and weights.

The TSC commends Congressmen Barletta and Costello for their leadership and also lauds the "aye" votes of Representatives Rahall (D-WV), Altmire (D-PA), Bishop (D-NY), Boswell (D-IA), Brown (D-FL), Bucshon (R-IN), Capuano (D-MA), Carnahan (D-MO), Cohen (D-TN), Cummings (D-MD), Denham (R-CA), Duncan (R-TN), Edwards (D-MD), Farenthold (R-TX), Graves (R-MO), Harris (R-MD), Hirono (D-HI), Holden (D-PA), Hultgren (R-IL), Johnson (R-IL), Johnson (D-TX), Larsen (D-WA), Lipinski (D-IL), Meehan (R-PA), Miller (R-CA), Miller (R-MI), Nadler (D-NY), Napolitano (D-CA), Norton (D-DC), Richardson (D-CA), and Shuler (D-NC).

THANK YOU for all of your calls and emails to express the voice of safety. They made a tremendous difference on yesterday's proceedings.

In other great safety news yesterday, Department of Transportation Secretary LaHood demonstrated tremendous pro-safety leadership in condemning H.R. 7 as "the most anti-safety bill" he has ever seen. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0212/72369.html

The TSC could not agree more with the Secretary and we look forward to working together with you and all these leaders in the Administration and Congress to rid H.R. 7 of other anti-safety provisions and move forward with S. 1950, the "Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act". For more information on the safety provisions in S.1950 and other safety initiatives, please visit www.trucksafety.org .

If you would like to thank the Representatives above for voting for the amendment or express your disappointment to the Representatives below for voting against it, you can get their numbers at www.house.gov.

The following Representatives voted against the amendment:

Chairman Mica (R-FL); Representatives Capito (R-WV), Coble (R-NC), Cravaack (R-MN), Crawford (R-AR), Fleischmann (R-TN), Gibbs (R- OH), Guinta (R-NH), Hanna (R-NY), Herrera Beutler (R-WA), Hunter (R-CA), Lankford (R-OK), LoBiondo (R-NJ), Long (R-MO), Michaud (D-ME), Petri (R-WI), Ribble (R-WI), Schmidt (R-OH), Shuster (R-PA), Southerland (R-FL), Walz (D-MN), and Young (R-AK).

ACTION NEEDED TO STOP TRUCK SIZE AND WEIGHT INCREASES

Morgan Adams — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:23:33 -0500

January 25, 2012

House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee Chairman Mica is expected to release the multi-year surface transportation reauthorization bill (H.R. 7) imminently. Congressman Jimmy Duncan is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit on that Committee and is very influential as such.

Trucking interests are lobbying for increases to federal truck sizes and weights as well as a "state option" of allowing states to control size and weight limits on Interstates. A "state option" is a de facto increase because some states will immediately increase their limits, economically pressuring neighboring states to increase theirs - until the entire country will have 100,000 lb trucks on our roads.

TAKE ACTION NOW:

Please call Chairman Duncan NOW and urge him to oppose ANY truck size or weight increases or "state option" in H.R. 7.

Chairman Jimmy Duncan (R-2nd TN) 202-225-5435. If you are a constituent of his district - the 2nd district, you can also send an email http://duncan.house.gov/services/zip-auth.shtml

TALKING POINTS: (You can cut and paste these into an email but please personalize your email as well.)

I urge you to oppose any increase in truck size and weight-either nationally or as a "state option"- in the surface transportation reauthorization bill.
In 2010 overall traffic fatalities declined but truck crash fatalities increased by nearly nine percent to 3,675. Increasing truck size and weights would be a significant setback to safety.
Large trucks are more dangerous and more destructive. In fatal crashes involving a large truck and a passenger vehicle, 97 percent of the deaths occur to the occupants of the car.

· Overweight trucks create a disproportionate level of damage to our roads and bridges. Increasing the weight of a heavy truck by only 10 percent increases bridge damage by 33 percent.

· A "state option" allowing truck weights to be determined individually by each state is a de facto nationwide increase because states will be forced to allow heavier trucks to stay economically competitive if adjoining states allow them.

· Overly heavy trucks, particularly 100,000 lbs. trucks, dramatically underpay their fair share of taxes and user fees for the repair of U.S. roads and bridges. States and Congress are already struggling to find funds to address the backlog of road and bridge needs across the country.

· More than 26%, or 1 in 4, of our nation's bridges are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete according to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).

· Poor road conditions cost Americans $67 billion in repairs and operating costs. (ASCE)

· One third of America's major roads are in poor or mediocre condition. (ASCE)

Heavier Trucks Mean Bigger Safety Problems

Cell Phone Ban For Truckers in Effect Jan 3, 2012

Morgan Adams — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 19:30:19 -0500

The cell phone I ban I previously blogged about HERE has gone into effect, making American roads a little safer for 2012. This is not a complete ban, hands free devices are still allowed.

The American Trucking Association (ATA) has posted its interpretation of the rule HERE.

Buses without Seatbelts Defective

Morgan Adams — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:57:18 -0500

I have previously blogged on the need for seatbelts on buses HERE. When a bus rolls over passengers are often slung out of the bus, resulting in paralysis and death. A simple lap belt. similar to what we use on an airplane, would prevent this.

Recently the highest court in New York looked at whether federal law preempted claims against a bus manufacturer for failing to include passenger seatbelts. The court, in a huge step towards safety, concluded the claim was not preempted by federal law. The case may be found HERE.

Compare the New York decision to an earlier decision in Tennessee HERE.

Truck Fatalities and Injuries Increase in 2010

Morgan Adams — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 15:58:10 -0500

NHTSA stated that both injuries and deaths from trucks increased almost 10% in 2010, a surprise since the economy has kept people, and trucks off the roads. Combine the economy with the fact that cars are (generally speaking) safer every year - and there were the fewest overall deaths on the road in 60 years in 2010 - the increase becomes both surprising and disturbing. You can see all the reports on the NHTSA website here.

In past years the trucking companies have claimed sole credit for any reduction in deaths on the highways, not crediting safer cars, fewer cars on the road with the current economy, or safer and more alert drivers. I wish they then be consistent and take responsibility for the increase in deaths and injuries in 2010 but that is not the case.

The American Trucking Association President and CEO Bill Graves said, while concerned about the increase, that: "Even with this increase, 2010 was the among the safest years on record for the trucking industry thanks in large part to the good faith efforts of America's truck drivers, vehicle manufacturers, truck fleet safety directors, law enforcement officers and true safety advocates." With this spin on the tragic increase in injuries and fatalities from truck wrecks it appears we can count on a future run for congress from Mr. Graves.

CELL PHONE USE BY TRUCK DRIVERS ILLEGAL

Morgan Adams — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 16:04:31 -0500

A new rule has eliminated one of the great dangers on the roadway, the use of cell phones by truck drivers. Now I am not stating that car drivers should be allowed to use cell phones, nor am I saying that hands free phones are significantly safer. I am saying that this is a step in the right direction. Further, since trucks are so much bigger than cars, the use of cell phones by truckers typically leads to greater tragedy than when a wreck simply involves two cars. A wreck between two cars is simply more survivable for the parties involved.

Distracted driving is something I have blogged about extensively and it is nice to see a step in the right direction. The announcement stated:

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced a final rule specifically prohibiting interstate truck and bus drivers from using hand-held cell phones while operating their vehicles. The joint rule from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is the latest action by the U.S. Department of Transportation to end distracted driving.

You can find out more, HERE

Schneider Tries to Hide the Ball in Litigation

Morgan Adams — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:48:46 -0500

I have not been able to post recently as I am up to my eyeballs in litigation. I am shocked these days about how hard I have to fight to obtain information, even simple information, from trucking companies. This is information that just a few years ago was routinely provided to me without a fight.

Recently, in a pending case I have against Schneider National Carriers, I actually had to file a motion to compel discovery in order to obtain a user manual for a computer system. This is a computer system that is commercially sold. Everyone that gets the computer gets a manual. The manual is not a secret, and I shouldn't have to fight to get it. Schneider wont even provide me the INDEX of the commercial programs it uses without an order of protection.

What are they trying to hide? Well, we believe lots, but that's for another day.

Frivolous Defenses v. Frivolous Lawsuits - Time to Re-examine the Problems with the Legal Sysytem

Morgan Adams — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 10:34:18 -0500

Frivolous Defenses and Frivolous Lawsuits

Legislators have been attacking frivolous lawsuits for clogging the courthouse and unfairly costing our society billions of dollars. As a result almost every state, including the federal government, has passed sever penalties for the filing of frivolous lawsuits. The number of lawsuits has decreased, but the amount of litigation has increased! How can this be? Simple, we now have a proliferation of frivolous defenses.

Defense lawyers, in order to make up for the loss of the volume of cases, are now litigating everything in sight. It adds huge amounts of time to a case (waste a jury's time) and increases the costs and expenses of an injured party needlessly.

A simple fix would be to require frivolous defenses to be sanctioned in the same way frivolous cases are currently being sanctioned.

Truck Drivers on Drugs - Meth

Morgan Adams — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 09:23:22 -0500

I post frequently on the danger of impaired drivers, and specifically the dangers from impaired truck drivers. Not much surprises me anymore, this one did:

State police report finding meth labs in truck

The Courier-Journal

August 18, 2011

A Mississippi truck driver was arrested Thursday morning after Kentucky State Police found two active methamphetamine labs in the sleeper portion of his truck during a traffic stop on Interstate 71 in Carroll County.

Bobby K. Mitchell, of Myrtle, Miss., was charged with speeding, driving under the influence, manufacturing methamphetamine, unlawful possession of methamphetamine precursors, possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia, according to a release from Kentucky State Police in Campbellsburg.

Police received erratic driving reports about the northbound truck around 10:30 a.m.

After a trooper pulled the vehicle over at the 43-mile marker, Mitchell was determined to be under the influence and a search of the truck followed. Police said Mitchell was cooking methamphetamine while he was driving.

The truck was hauling furniture, police said.

A state police hazardous materials technician responded to the scene and seized the labs.

Mitchell is being held in the Carroll County Detention Center, police said.

Roadcheck 2011 - Unsafe Truck Drivers and Trucks on the Roads

Morgan Adams — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 15:22:47 -0500

The Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Alliance (CMVSA) held its Roadcheck 2011 event in June this year. This event asks for all states to inspect trucks on the road. Less than 1% of trucks are inspected. By announcing the inspections 4 months in advance, the CMVSA gives drivers and trucking companies four months to prepare, or if the problems are serious enough, to simply stay off the road for a few days.

Despite the huge publicity of the inspections in the trucking industry, the 3 day inspection in 2011 found almost 20% of the inspected vehicles and drivers failed a Level 1 inspection. The fact that truck drivers are on the road in an unsafe condition, knowing that this special inspection will be run, shows how drivers believe the chances of being inspected are so rare that they believe they won't be caught, or that they are so ill trained that they think they are safe.

Nationwide data show that in 2010, log book violations (logs are designed to keep tired drivers off the road) were the most common reasons for drivers being placed out-of-service at 29.5 percent of driver out-of-service violations. The most frequent out-of-service item for trucks was unsafe brakes comprising 25.5 percent of all vehicle out-of-service violations.

Thus the real danger: tired truckers, driving trucks with bad brakes, who don’t realize they are falling asleep until it is too late and who cant stop when they realize what is going on.

Knight Transportation Destroys Evidence - Why You Need to Hire a Lawyer ASAP in Trucking Cases!

Morgan Adams — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 16:07:31 -0500

Knight Transportation has been found guilty of destroying evidence. Destruction of evidence is typical in the trucking industry and a prime reason you need to hire a lawyer ASAP.

In the case at hand the federal judge in Texas stated:

[The Driver's] flight from the accident scene and Knight's hasty replacement of the truck's tires are the epitome of bad faith conduct. [The driver's] flight from the accident scene and Knight's hasty replacement of the truck's tires are the epitome of bad faith conduct. Surely the driver, a professional truck driver, knew that fleeing the accident scene not only violated the law but would necessarily thwart evidence recovery efforts on the truck. Likewise, Knight's replacement of the truck's tires within two days of the fatality accident, after its driver fled the scene and the state, cannot seriously be labeled anything less than intentional conduct.

Lastly, Knight's failure to preserve key Qualcomm messages, in the face of a request to produce and preserve by a law enforcement agency, also strongly evinces bad faith.

The full case can be downloaded HERE

DRUG USE HIDDEN AND RAMPANT IN TRUCKING INDUSTRY

Morgan Adams — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 17:29:21 -0500

While trucking companies acknowledge that hair tests show a much higher number of drivers with drug problems than conventional drug testing, most still don't use this modern and efficient test.

C.R. England, a large national trucking company, found when it switched to hair tests for drugs that the positive rate for drivers shot up to from 2.8% to 11%. Both JB Hunt and Schneider are also using hair tests to determine drug use. Schneider found on a simultaneous urinalysis/hair test that 82 truck drivers tested positive on the urinalysis and 964 on the hair test. The difference is 882 drug users that are on our roads, slipping through the crack with a company that does not hair test for drugs.

See: Transportation Topics, July 11, 2011, P3

WRONGFUL DEATH PROCEEDS IN TENNESSEE

Morgan Adams — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 13:03:18 -0500

I have been asked by families (and defendants) where the money in a wrongful death case goes in Tennessee. In Tennessee the wrongful death proceeds are distributed under the laws of intestate succession. Kline v. Eyrich, 69 S.W.3d 197, 202 n.3 (Tenn. 2002).

The proceeds of a wrongful death case, unlike an injury case, pass free of creditors' claims. Tenn. Code Ann. sec. 20-5-108(b) and 20-5-106. Foster v. Jeffers, 813 S.W.2d 449 (Tenn. App. 1991).

Tennessee Code Section 31-2-104 sets out the rules for intestate (dies without a will) succession:

(a) The intestate share of the surviving spouse is:

(1) If there is no surviving issue of the decedent, the entire intestate estate; or

(2) If there are surviving issue of the decedent, either one-third ( 1/3 ) or a child's share of the entire intestate estate, whichever is greater.

(b) The part of the intestate estate not passing to the surviving spouse under subsection (a) or the entire intestate estate if there is no surviving spouse, passes as follows:

(1) To the issue of the decedent; if they are all of the same degree of kinship to the decedent they take equally, but if of unequal degree, then those of more remote degree take by representation;

(2) If there is no surviving issue, to the decedent's parent or parents equally;

(3) If there is no surviving issue or parent, to the brothers and sisters and the issue of each deceased brother and sister by representation; if there is no surviving brother or sister, the issue of brothers and sisters take by representation; or

(4) If there is no surviving issue, parent, or issue of a parent, but the decedent is survived by one or more grandparents or issue of grandparents, half of the estate passes to the paternal grandparents if both survive, or to the surviving paternal grandparent or to the issue of the paternal grandparents if both are deceased, the issue taking equally if they are all of the same degree of kinship to the decedent, but if of unequal degree those of more remote degree take by representation; and the other half passes to the maternal relatives in the same manner; but if there is no surviving grandparent or issue of grandparent on either the paternal or maternal side, the entire estate passes to the relatives on the other side in the same manner as the half.

Truck Injury Lawyer Blog

Broker Liability Created by Lack of Motor Carrier Insurance

SLEEP APNEA HUGE - AND IGNORED - PROBLEM IN TRUCKING INDUSTRY

A. DUIE PYLE DRIVER's MANUAL NOT SECRET

BULKMATIC TRANSPORT COMPANY's EXPERT FOUND TO HAVE DESTROYED EVIDENCE

Destruction of Evidence (Spoliation) in Trucking Cases

Truck Driver Fired for Having Beer in His Truck

被罚的他是违章驾车，还是遭歧视？

Getting a ticket: a careless truck driver or a victim of discrimination?

相关新闻专题 »

更多关于的新闻 »

The Future of Trucking - Legislation and Regulations in 2012

Heavy Truck Bill Defeated - For Now...

ACTION NEEDED TO STOP TRUCK SIZE AND WEIGHT INCREASES

Cell Phone Ban For Truckers in Effect Jan 3, 2012

Buses without Seatbelts Defective

Truck Fatalities and Injuries Increase in 2010

CELL PHONE USE BY TRUCK DRIVERS ILLEGAL

Schneider Tries to Hide the Ball in Litigation

Frivolous Defenses v. Frivolous Lawsuits - Time to Re-examine the Problems with the Legal Sysytem

Truck Drivers on Drugs - Meth

State police report finding meth labs in truck

Roadcheck 2011 - Unsafe Truck Drivers and Trucks on the Roads

Knight Transportation Destroys Evidence - Why You Need to Hire a Lawyer ASAP in Trucking Cases!

DRUG USE HIDDEN AND RAMPANT IN TRUCKING INDUSTRY

WRONGFUL DEATH PROCEEDS IN TENNESSEE

Truck Injury Lawyer Blog

Broker Liability Created by Lack of Motor Carrier Insurance

SLEEP APNEA HUGE - AND IGNORED - PROBLEM IN TRUCKING INDUSTRY

A. DUIE PYLE DRIVER's MANUAL NOT SECRET

BULKMATIC TRANSPORT COMPANY's EXPERT FOUND TO HAVE DESTROYED EVIDENCE

Destruction of Evidence (Spoliation) in Trucking Cases

Truck Driver Fired for Having Beer in His Truck

被罚的他是违章驾车，还是遭歧视？

Getting a ticket: a careless truck driver or a victim of discrimination?

相关新闻专题 »

更多关于 的新闻 »

The Future of Trucking - Legislation and Regulations in 2012

Heavy Truck Bill Defeated - For Now...

ACTION NEEDED TO STOP TRUCK SIZE AND WEIGHT INCREASES

Cell Phone Ban For Truckers in Effect Jan 3, 2012

Buses without Seatbelts Defective

Truck Fatalities and Injuries Increase in 2010

CELL PHONE USE BY TRUCK DRIVERS ILLEGAL

Schneider Tries to Hide the Ball in Litigation

Frivolous Defenses v. Frivolous Lawsuits - Time to Re-examine the Problems with the Legal Sysytem

Truck Drivers on Drugs - Meth

State police report finding meth labs in truck

Roadcheck 2011 - Unsafe Truck Drivers and Trucks on the Roads

Knight Transportation Destroys Evidence - Why You Need to Hire a Lawyer ASAP in Trucking Cases!

DRUG USE HIDDEN AND RAMPANT IN TRUCKING INDUSTRY

WRONGFUL DEATH PROCEEDS IN TENNESSEE

更多关于的新闻 »