Uncovering The Truth About Why Semi-Trucks Crash

South Carolina Truck Accident Lawyer Explains Liability

Video Transcript:

Rick Hall: 

Truck crashes are among the most dangerous accidents that occur on our nation's highways because of the large size of the vehicles.

Molly Hendrickson: 

What is a major cause of large trucking crashes? We're gonna talk to attorney Rick Hall about that on today's Ask the Lawyer. Rick, thanks for joining us.

Rick Hall: 

Happy to be here.

Molly Hendrickson: 

So first of all, what is your experience representing people who have been injured or even died in trucking accidents?

Rick Hall: 

Well, I've practiced law for 40 years and what I can tell you is that truck crashes are among the most dangerous accidents that occur on our nation's highways because of the large size of the vehicles and the kinds of catastrophic injuries that people can often get in these crashes.

Molly Hendrickson: 

So we recognize truck drivers as essential workers in our economy and truck driver shortages are currently a real problem. Do you support truck drivers?

Rick Hall: 

Absolutely, I support truck drivers. I go to the grocery store, I purchase goods, I go to restaurants. They are essential to our way of life here in the United States and really across the world. But we need drivers who are safe.

Molly Hendrickson: 

You have a new article coming out called 'Looking Behind the Curtain.' What is this referring to in regards to trucking accidents?

Rick Hall: 

Well, that's a very good question. And what I would tell you is that it's oftentimes not apparent even to law enforcement officers as to really why a truck crash may or may not have occurred. And in a recent case, we were able to discover that my client who was hit in broad daylight, himself a truck driver, was hit because the other driver was distracted. But nobody really was able to articulate why until we got into the middle of the case and were able to obtain documents showing that the driver was impaired. And he was impaired because he was on multiple pharmaceutical drugs that were prescribed by a doctor. But the federal motor carrier safety regulations do not allow certain of these drugs to be used by truck drivers without the supervision of a doctor.

Molly Hendrickson: 

And impaired driving is actually something that is quite common amongst truck drivers. Why is that? And why are drivers taking medications while driving?

Rick Hall: 

That's also a really good question. Truck drivers are paid by the mile, and they're also encouraged and pressured, really, to make sure that the deliveries are on time. And a lot of these truck drivers, both male and female, but primarily male drivers, are not necessarily in the best health. They don't eat right, they don't sleep right. And in order to push the envelope, so to speak, they take drugs to help them stay up and to keep awake. And on the one hand, and then many of them have to take drugs to go to sleep. And so, the combination of those drugs, the interaction between those drugs, can be very dangerous for a truck driver who's behind the wheel, either causing them to drive erratically because they're on the upper end of the things like speeding, or to fall asleep at the wheel. Both of those things are very, very dangerous.

Molly Hendrickson: 

Absolutely. Can you take us through what happens after a trucker is involved in an accident? Do they always get drug tested? And are those tests accurate and reliable?

Rick Hall: 

Well, the federal motor carrier safety regulations, which are a complex set of rules, really, that govern the operation of commercial motor vehicles and truck drivers on the highway, require that after any significant accident, a drug test to be done. And they're screening for things like opioids. Alcohol, of course, is a very common test that they have to undergo. But sometimes those tests don't necessarily identify, perhaps, other drugs that are, for example, like drugs for anxiety, drugs that are taken for mental health reasons. And so, that's why we say you always have to look behind the curtain. And we often have to get the medical records that belong to the truck driver. And that's really their family doctor is where we find a lot of problems because truck drivers need their license. And they often may not tell the truth on their DOT physical because they've got to keep their license to stay on the road. And sometimes they fudge.

Molly Hendrickson: 

So in these types of accidents, who is usually held accountable? Who can be held accountable? Is it the truck driver? Is it the company? Can it be a combination?

Rick Hall: 

Well, it can be a combination. And we're often looking to see how we can expand the responsibility for what caused the wreck because in those situations, the coverage, insurance coverage on large commercial vehicles is only required to be $750,000. And sometimes we have big fleet trucks where the coverage is expansive and unlimited. And other times we don't have that kind of coverage available. So we often, as we said earlier, look behind the curtain to see what other causes were there for this collision. Could it have been a broker or a dispatcher? Or did the company know that the driver, for example, was on pharmaceutical drugs? In the case that I recently wrote about, we were able to determine that they actually knew that the truck driver did not have a letter from his doctor allowing him to drive while taking these drugs. And yet they let him back out on the highway anyway. So that's a company problem. And once the company's on the hook, and that's called a direct claim for negligence against the company or an independent negligence claim, that the company may be responsible for putting the driver on the road. And if they know about that hazard, they should be held responsible.

Molly Hendrickson: 

Well, Rick, we certainly appreciate you taking the time to talk to us today.

Rick Hall: 

Well, thank you very much for having me. Thank you.

Molly Hendrickson: 

And that's gonna do it for this episode of Ask the Lawyer. My guest has been Rick Hall. If you wanna ask him about your situation, call the number on the screen. Thanks for watching. I'm Molly Hendrickson for Ask the Lawyers.

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