The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has specific rules in place that are designed to prevent truck accidents. These rules concern both the truck drivers themselves and the trucking companies employing them.

Some of these regulations govern how many hours a truck driver is allowed to drive per day and per week, along with mandatory break times. Since driver fatigue is one of the leading causes of serious or fatal truck accidents, these rules can help prevent serious injuries and loss of life when they are followed.

However, in an effort to get the job done quickly or under budget, truck drivers will sometimes skirt these rules. In some cases, it is the truck drivers' decision, while in other cases, they are enabled or encouraged by their employer to bend or break the rules. When that happens and a truck accident results, both the truck driver and the trucking company can be held liable for the resulting injuries and damage.

These driving rules, also known as Hours of Service regulations, state that for a truck carrying property (not people):
 

  • a truck driver may only drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours of being off-duty; and
  • a truck driver cannot drive after 60/70 hours on duty in 7/8 consecutive days, and only restart their next 7/8 work schedule after being off duty for 34 or more consecutive hours.  


To learn more about trucking company negligence, please visit our article library.

Contacting an Atlanta Truck Accident Lawyer

If you are the victim of someone else's negligence or carelessness, whether in a truck accident or some other type of accident, you have certain rights guaranteed by law. To help you understand these rights and seek the compensation you may be entitled to in order to get your life back in order, contact the Atlanta Law Offices of Sheryl L. Burke for a no-cost consultation on your injury case - 404-842-7838.

Sheryl L. Burke
Connect with me
Atlanta Injury Attorney
Post A Comment