Driving any commercial vehicle while overtired or fatigued is dangerous. Fatigue lowers a driver’s reaction time, impairs concentration, and makes a driver more likely to be involved in a serious accident. If you have been involved in a collision with a truck operator who was overtired, you have the right to demand compensation with the help of an Altoona truck accident attorney. An Altoona truck driver fatigue accident lawyer could represent your interests in court and hold a driver or their employer accountable.
To prevent truck driver fatigue, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) sets the rules and regulations pertaining to how many consecutive hours a commercial driver is allowed to operate in a given day or week. Under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s rules, after 10 consecutive hours off duty, a truck driver has a 14-hour window in which he/she may complete 11 hours of actual driving time. Additionally, a truck driver is permitted to drive only if no more than 8 hours have passed since their most recent off duty time period of release.
According to the 60/70-hour limit rule, a cargo-hauling truck driver cannot operate their truck after 60 hours on duty for 7 days in a row or 70 hours after 8 days in a row. After meeting these hourly limits, a truck driver must be off duty for at least 34 hours.
All of these rules are designed to make sure that drivers are not driving while overly tired or fatigued in an effort to minimize the dangers that that would pose to everybody else on the road. A truck driver fatigue accident lawyer in Altoona could use a violation of these regulations as evidence of negligence in a personal injury case.
Drivers and their employers keep track of schedules by logging hours. While these logs were once kept on paper, they are now often kept on electronic apps that correlate with GPS data. Drivers need to be logging what they are doing, when they are doing it, the hours on and hours off, and rest periods.
After an accident, logged hours may become crucial evidence in a personal injury case. If the GPS data shows that the truck was moving, but a driver has not recorded that they were driving, it may suggest intentional deceit on the part of the driver. A lawyer could point to such evidence in a lawsuit to bolster an injury victim’s claim.
Drivers have a responsibility to rest and avoid driving while fatigued. If you have suffered an injury due to a driver’s negligence, an Altoona truck driver fatigue accident lawyer could work to hold that driver accountable and recover compensation on your behalf. Contact us today to schedule a consultation with an Altoona truck driver fatigue accident lawyer and learn about your legal options.
Marcus & Mack
