Proving Driver Fatigue In Arizona Trucking Accidents

If you’ve ever driven on the I-10 or I-17, you’ve probably experienced a little bit of healthy fear about what might happen if you were in a collision with a large commercial truck. This is a reasonable fear, because those trucks’ large size increases the likelihood that an accident with a standard-sized passenger vehicle will be fatal. And you’re probably aware that truckers get paid by the hour versus receiving a set salary. This means they have every incentive to drive longer (and faster) to receive a bigger paycheck, even if it puts others on the road at risk. So, what can be done if you are unfortunate enough to be in a traffic accident under these kinds of circumstances? Your first step is to seek medical attention as soon as possible, if you haven’t done so already. Before you begin dealing with insurance companies, you should discuss the accident and your injuries with an attorney in your area. Personal Injury Lawyers offers free phone consultations to get started and a competitive contingency rate so that more of your award goes into your pocket. Schedule your free consultation today by calling 480-833-8000.

Evidence-Gathering Devices in Commercial Trucks

Collecting strong evidence showing another party’s neglect or recklessness is a concrete way for an accident victim to increase their damages in an ensuing injury claim. There are two types of devices in modern trucks that record data that can be consequential in an accident claim: the Event Data Recorder, or EDR, and the Electronic Logging Device, or ELD.

The Event Data Recorder is a device that activates only when there is a collision or another trigger event. Think of it like the black box on an airplane. It records data even in worst-case scenarios and should be virtually indestructible. It can not only detect an accident, but also when the driver brakes hard to avoid an accident. During trigger events, it will record data points like seatbelt status, speed, and steering angle. These can help experts reconstruct what happened in an accident to prove liability.

The Electronic Logging Device records a driver’s Hours of Service, or HOS. It does so using data points like when the engine was running, when the vehicle was in motion, and the number of miles driven. These might not help show exactly what happened during an accident, but they can show what happened leading up to it. ELD data points can be used to show that a driver was tired, especially if their hours were in violation of state and federal laws. These restrictions on how long a trucker can drive and be on duty are discussed below.

HOS Violations and Fatigue Patterns

Federal law recognizes how dangerous it can be for commercial truckers to operate such large pieces of machinery for long hours at a time. There are three facets of federal law meant to address this: drive-time limits, a 14-hour window rule, and mandatory rest breaks.

States can have their own laws surrounding commercial trucking drive time limits, but Arizona’s align with the federal standards used across the country. This limits a driver to an 11-hour shift after 10 consecutive hours off-duty. A truck’s ELD should capture the moment a driver exceeds their 11-hour maximum. Proving that state and federal drive time limits have been violated can create a statutory pathway to recovery in a personal injury suit.

The 14-hour window rule addresses how long a driver can be on duty, which includes breaks, as opposed to solely hours spent driving. Truckers are limited to 14 hours on duty. A truck’s ELD should also capture if a driver violated the 14-hour on-duty rule. Finally, truckers are mandated to take a 30-minute break after 8 hours of driving. This is to ensure that a driver can maintain focus while behind the wheel of such a large vehicle.

Analyzing the Data

Sometimes the data will show HOS violations clearly, but sometimes it may require more in-depth review by a knowledgeable attorney. There could be glitches in the systems that cause errors in the data, or the trucking company may have intentionally falsified data to reduce their liability in an accident claim. For example, a driver could be logged as off-duty in Tucson while their GPS shows them in Phoenix, indicating records have been tampered with. The same goes for one data point logged in one location and a weigh station receipt in another location. Or, if the crash data shows that the driver didn’t brake before the crash, it could suggest that they may have fallen asleep at the wheel. These kinds of intricacies can be difficult to spot, especially when you are dealing with recovering from serious injuries. If you’d rather have an experienced attorney handle this responsibility, it will be your job to consult with and retain an injury firm. For skilled representation in Arizona accident claims with competitive rates to match, call 480-833-8000 to schedule your free consultation with our personal injury lawyers.

The Spoliation Letter

Arizona law only requires trucking companies to retain ELD records for 6 months, but sometimes their systems will overwrite data sooner than that. Losing this evidence will make it much more difficult to proceed with a fatigue-based accident claim against a trucking company. To prevent this from happening, an accident attorney should send the trucking company a spoliation letter as soon as possible after an accident. The spoliation letter is a legal notice for the trucking company, letting them know not to erase any data related to the accident. This includes ELD data, GPS logs, and other sensor data. The trucking company should supply all of this information so it can be reviewed by digital forensic experts. They will often look back at the driver’s data for several days before the accident. This allows them to create a “cumulative fatigue” profile that contextualizes how sleep-deprived the trucker was at the time of the collision. Speak to an attorney as soon as you can for more information on how to draft this letter, or to have them draft it for you.

Get the Most Out of a High-Value Trucking Accident Claim with Our Arizona Injury Lawyers

Because of how heavy and dangerous commercial trucks are, collisions with them often result in high-value injury claims. These can be elevated even higher if it can be proven that the trucker was in violation of state or federal commercial driving laws. There is no time to waste in seeking medical treatment and initiating the injury claim process after an accident with a commercial trucker in Arizona. Retaining an accident lawyer means they can send a clear and firm spoliation letter right away, and fend off insurance adjusters who will want to speak with you to reduce your claim’s value. Arizona is a comparative negligence state, so even in trucking accidents, a plaintiff’s award can be reduced to the extent that they are found to be at fault for the accident. Our Arizona personal injury team can be there from the start to preserve your claim’s value and find other ways to maximize your award. Let us review your claim today with no risk or obligation. Schedule your free consultation with My AZ Lawyers at 480-833-8000.