Kansas City Truck Driver Fatigue Lawyers
Experienced representation for Missouri drivers, passengers, and pedestrians
Commercial truck drivers often spend weeks away from home. The more time they’re on the road, the sooner they can get home. Employers and the companies involved in the shipments often push drivers to make as many deliveries as possible in the shortest amount of time possible. All this time on the road leads to drivers who are tired. At Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys, our personal injury lawyers hold truck drivers and their employers accountable when driver fatigue causes injuries and deaths. Our Kansas City truck driver fatigue lawyers have the experience and understanding of the laws and trucking industry standards to show that a driver was on the road much too long. We demand full compensation for all your financial damages and pain and suffering. Call us now to assert your right to compensation.
How can we help?
- Why is truck driver fatigue dangerous?
- What laws regulate driver fatigue in the Kansas City region?
- What steps should truck drivers and truck companies take to prevent driver fatigue?
- Who is liable for driver fatigue accidents in Missouri and Kansas?
- Do you have a Kansas City truck driver fatigue lawyer near me?
Why is truck driver fatigue dangerous?
It’s difficult driving a commercial truck – even while drivers are fully awake and attentive. Rigs, tractor-trailers, flatbeds, delivery trucks, and all types of trucks require a driver’s constant attention. A loss of focus for just an instant can cause a jackknife, a truck rollover, a blind spot accident, an underride collision, a wide-turn accident, a head-on crash, a merging accident, or a rear-end accident.
Tired drivers can drift into other lanes or off the highway. In the worst cases, a tired driver will drift into oncoming traffic. Tired drivers often fail to keep up with the pace of traffic. They are likely to miss turn-offs, detours, and construction signs. Drivers who are fatigued have less time to react to emergencies, which means less time and distance to come to a full stop. Those who fall asleep are likely to cause deadly accidents and accidents that result in traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and other catastrophic injuries.
Truck driver fatigue is often due to long driving hours, lack of quality sleep, irregular work shifts, sleep disorders, the physical stress of driving a truck, and other factors.
What laws regulate driver fatigue in the Kansas City region?
Truck driver fatigue is such a well-known danger that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has a specific hours of service rule that regulates when drivers need to stop driving and get the rest they need.
The hours of service rules for truck drivers that carry cargo are as follows:
- 11-hour driving l Truck drivers can only drive a maximum of 11 hours after being off duty for 11 consecutive hours.
- 10-hour driving l Truck drivers may only drive a maximum of ten hours after eight consecutive hours off duty.
- 14-hour l Truck drivers who are off-duty for ten consecutive hours cannot drive beyond the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty. Off-duty time does not extend the 14-hour period.
- 15-Hour Limit. Truck drivers, after eight consecutive hours off duty, cannot drive after having been on duty for 15 hours.
- 30-Minute Driving Break. Truck drivers must take 30-minute breaks when they drive for a period of eight cumulative hours without a minimum of a 30-minute interruption.
- 60/70-Hour Limit. Truck drivers are not permitted to drive after 60/70 hours on duty in 7/8 consecutive days. The truck driver “may restart a 7/8 consecutive day period after taking 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.”
The FMCSA hours of service rules also regulate the use of sleeper berths, driving during adverse driving conditions, and short-haul exceptions.
To help verify how long a truck driver has been driving, the FMCSA requires that truck drivers use electronic logging devices (ELDs). The FMCSA’s ELD rule specifically requires that ELD use is required by commercial drivers who are required to prepare hours-of-service (HOS) records of duty status (RODS).
ELDs record how long a truck is in operation. Motor carriers are required to register their ELDs, ensuring that their fleet of trucks has ELDs and that their truck drivers use the ELDs.
What steps should truck drivers and truck companies take to prevent driver fatigue?
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends the following steps for avoiding truck driver fatigue:
- Get seven to eight hours of sleep each night.
- Don’t drink alcohol before driving. Alcohol increases drowsiness and driver impairment. As a rule, truck drivers should never drink and drive.
- Review whether any of the prescription or over-the-counter medications you take cause drowsiness.
- Don’t rely on drinking coffee.
- Make sure you pull over to a safe space while you rest.
Trucking companies should educate their drivers about the dangers of driver fatigue. Additional steps trucking companies can take include pay scales that don’t rely on the number of miles traveled, fitness training, and incentives to get enough rest.
Who is liable for driver fatigue accidents in Missouri and Kansas?
At Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys, our truck accident lawyers hold everyone responsible for a Missouri or Kansas truck accident accountable. When the cause of the accident is driver fatigue, our Kansas City truck driver fatigue lawyers file claims against:
- The driver of the truck. Each driver has a duty to comply with the FMCSA hours of service laws. These laws are just one guideline. We also hold truck drivers accountable when they drive even though they know they’re tired – even if they’ve only been on the road for a few hours.
- The truck driver’s employer. Employers are generally liable for the negligence of their employees.
- The owner of the truck. Most truck drivers don’t own their own trucks. We file personal injury and wrongful death claims against fleet owners and other truck owners (large and small) who fail to install ELDs, fail to monitor the hours their drivers drive, and push drivers to make too many deliveries or make deliveries faster than they should.
We may also file claims against:
- Any other companies involved in the shipment such as the truck broker that arranges the shipment
- Other drivers
- Third parties
Do you have a Kansas City truck driver fatigue lawyer near me?
Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys meet the victims of driver fatigue accidents at our offices located throughout Missouri and Kansas. Our main office is in Kansas City – at 510 Walnut, Suite 100, near City Hall. Our lawyers also meet clients in Lee’s Summit, St. Joseph, Blue Springs, and Parkville, MO; and in Overland Park, Olathe, and Victory Hill, KS, by appointment.
If you’re too ill or injured to come to our office, we can make arrangements to meet you at your home or a healthcare facility. We also discuss cases by videoconference.
Our lawyers work to provide personal representation and aggressive advocacy. We can guide you through this stressful time.
Talk with our respected Kansas City distracted driver truck accident lawyers now
Tired drivers are dangerous drivers. At Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys, we hold truck drivers and truck companies accountable when they fail to follow the FMCSA hours of service rules, when they fail to keep electronic driving logs, and when they put their profit before your safety. Our Kansas City truck driver fatigue attorneys are skilled at showing the driver who struck you was tired and should never have been driving. To schedule a free consultation, please call us or complete our contact form. Our lawyers represent clients throughout Missouri and Kansas.