When poorly trained drivers cause accidents, trucking companies are liable
Moving goods around the country is big business. More than 3 million commercial trucks travel the roadways of America and yet there is still a shortage of 50,000 truck drivers. In the rush to keep goods moving trucking companies may sometimes resort to hiring drivers whose lack of training puts the public at risk.
With so many trucks on the road it may be expected that some accidents are going to happen. However, recent studies have shown that of the 5,000 fatalities and 100,000 injuries caused by truck accidents each year, 27 percent were due to a lack of training or fatigue.
Most truck drivers are required to have a commercial driver’s license (CDL) in order to drive big rigs and buses on the road. While this license is intended to help secure the public’s safety, simply obtaining a CDL is not enough training to prepare these drivers for their time on the roads. Many commercial truck driving schools advertise that they can have their students on the road in 2 to 3 weeks. When one considers the amount of book work and in class time that these classes take up, graduates of these schools may only have a couple of days of actual on the road training before they graduate and get their CDLs. While industry may need new truck drivers quickly, other drivers on the road are often put at risk by inadequately trained commercial truck drivers learning on the job after they get their CDL.
Unfortunately, when inexperience and inadequate training hamper a commercial truck driver’s ability to operate his truck, the result is a vehicle weighing up to 40 tons hurtling down the highway, just moments away from drastically changing someone’s life at any moment. A fully loaded semi truck traveling 55 miles per hour can take up to 300 feet (the length of a football field) to come to a complete stop. When you consider that most interstates have speed limits much faster than 55 miles per hour it is easy to imagine how quickly a driver’s inadequate training could cause someone significant harm.
If you or someone you love has been injured by someone driving a commercial truck it is in your best interest to have a professional determine if inexperience and/or inadequate training was at the root of your injury. If it was, you can pursue a claim against the truck driver’s employer and seek compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and more. At the Law Offices of Larry H. Parker we can help you to get the compensation you need to recover from injuries sustained in a commercial truck accident. Call us at 800-333-0000 for a free consultation.
