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Trucking Accidents

Tractor-trailers have such great size, weight, and power that unsafe operation can cause serious injuries and death. Trucking companies must comply with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Standards in every aspect of their operations. Truck drivers are professionals who must have a commercial driver’s license, or CDL, to drive a tractor trailer.   The exacting federal regulations and the special training of the drivers of these powerful vehicles means that truckers and trucking companies must meet very high standards of safety in operating tractor trailers on the public highways.

Trucking accidents can occur for many reasons, including:

• Unsafe tractor or trailer - the equipment, including all of the components of the power unit and the trailer, must be inspected to insure that it is in safe condition to operate on the road.  This is required to help assure the safety of other drivers.
• Unsafe driving practices - truckers must follow not only the rules of the road like every motorist, but also must follow federal regulations. Additionally, their operation of their vehicle must take into account the special operating characteristics of their vehicle such as braking capacity and blind spots.
• Overweight truck – Truckers must comply with maximum weight rules and regulations.  Failing to do so limits the ability of the trucker to drive safely.
• Driver was over hours – Many studies show that the effects of being over-tired while driving a truck has almost the same effect as being intoxicated on the ability of the trucker to operate their truck safely.  Regulations limit the number of hours a trucker may be on the road, but these limits are often ignored in the effort to comply with the demands of their employers.
• Truck underrides - Underride guards are intended to keep cars from going underneath the trailer. Trucking companies may be held liable where there is no underride guard or it is deficient.

Our law firm has represented many victims of trucking accidents.  In serious trucking accidents, trucking companies often send investigators and accident reconstructionists to help document facts which are favorable to the trucking company.  Additional evidence favorable to the victim may be lost without prompt action by victims and their family to hire experienced, aggressive Illinois personal injury attorneys to help preserve their rights.

The Law Offices of
Barry G. Doyle, P.C.
100 W Monroe St.,
Ste 2100
Chicago, IL 60603

Phone: 312.263.1080
Fax: 312.263.0153

Proudly Serving Many Illinois Cities and Counties, Including:
Chicago, Aurora, Rockford, Naperville, Joliet, Waukegan, Geneva, Sycamore, Woodstock, Kankakee, Morris, Ottawa; Cook, DuPage, Will, Lake, Winnebago, DeKalb, McHenry, Kankakee, Grundy, LaSalle, Peoria, McLean, Champaign, Tazewell Counties

Blog for Trucking Accidents

• High winds likely a factor in wrongful death truckiung accident
• Tractor trailer causes pile up in blizzard
• Truck knocks car off the road
• Truck driver hit with six-month sentence in death of three
• Driver claims mechanical problem led to fatal crash
• Porn-watching truck driver kills mother of two
• Man injured by ice coming off semi trailer
• Chicago Truck Driver in Wrongful Death Accident
• Laptop use implicated in fatal New York truck accident
• Truck accident results in one dead, three injured
• Tractor trailer in pile-up in wind storm
• Truck driver charged with DUI in wrongful death accident
• Man killed when truck runs stop sign
• Distracted driving truck accident yields $18 million verdict
• Left-turning truck hits motorcyclist
• Route 53 truck accident
• Texas road construction project site of two wrongful death truck accidents
• Fatal truck accident yields four year sentence for sleeping truck driver
• Trucking companies dodge shut down by re-forming, not reforming
• Tractor trailer rollover accident kills municipal employee
• Trucking companies try cynical version of "Sorry Works!" program
• Logging truck roll-over criticially injures one
• Truck causes chain collision in Wisconsin
• Truck carrying hazardous materials explodes, killing three
• Truck jack knifes, resulting in fatality
• Trucker kills two in rear-end accident in snow storm
• Trucking company involved in rollover accident has history of safety violations
• Sleep apnea an accident risk for truck drivers
• Joliet truck accident results in $23.75 million wrongful death verdict

Frequent Questions for Trucking Accidents:

• Do trucking companies have to carry a minimum amount of liability insurance?
• What is the statute of limitations for an Illinois trucking accident case?

Case Results for Trucking Accidents:

• Sideswipe accident results in Cook County settlement

Awarded: $100,000

Web Resources for Trucking Accidents:

• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Trucking Company Profiles

  Description: On-line database maintained by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, including trucking crash data and insurance information for all of the nation's interstate trucking companies.

• FMCSA Rules and Regulations

  Description: Trucking regulations intended to prevent trucking accidents and assure safe roads can be found at this web site.

• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

  Description: Official site of government agency responsible for overseeing the trucking industry and setting standards for safe truck operation.

• Truck Safety Coalition

  Description: A partnership between the Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways (CRASH) and Parents Against Tired Truckers, this group seeks to limit the number of injuries and deaths caused by unsafe truck drivers, including drivers who drive when they are too tired to do so safely.

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