Nothing can be more frustrating than a vehicle collision with an 18-wheeler (with or without injuries) that results from poor maintenance of the semi-truck or other safety violations. Truck drivers (and the companies they represent) have an obligation to keep their rigs in perfect working order. They also have a responsibility to ensure that they are healthy and alert enough to get behind the wheel of the behemoth vehicle as well.
Yet time and time again safety issues take a back seat to a company's bottom line. Trucks take to the road with worn tires, dangerously inadequate braking systems and other problems.
Drivers move from state to state and company to company leaving past driving transgressions unknown and uncovered. Some are simply too old to be driving (consider the 76 year old man who caused a deadly accident because he failed to see that the traffic was at a standstill in front of him. He literally ran over several cars and their occupants and killed several people).
Now Congress has taken up the matter of increased safety requirements for the trucking industry on more than one occasion.
Unfortunately, the very powerful trucking lobby has been able to prevent the enactment of anything but a few minor laws. If you are concerned about trucking safety I advise you to contact your state representative. In a match-up between safety and dollars - I vote for safety every time.
Greg Baumgartner is a Texas truck accident attorney and the founder of the Baumgartner law firm, which is dedicated to helping injury victims seek civil justice. For a free no obligation consultation with a personal injury lawyer in Houston call the Baumgartner firm.
