Truck Driver Fatigue

Albuquerque Lawyer: Truck Driver Fatigue

Our job's not done until you're satisfied.

Black ice, defective equipment, highway defects — when our personal injury attorneys investigate a truck accident, they need to identify the cause of our client's loss. Without a doubt, driver error leads all other explanations — errors that often can be traced to driver fatigue, lack of experience, or poor training and supervision by the trucking company.

Did the truck driver fall asleep at the wheel?

It is hard for a truck driver to make a living if he or she complies with all of the state and federal regulations governing commercial trucking. With the advent of NAFTA, many drivers traversing New Mexico are not employed by U.S. companies and may be more likely to disregard trucking regulations.

When our lawyers represent a client involved in a tractor-trailer crash, we immediately begin an intensive investigation into all aspects of the accident, and are particularly alert for signs that driver fatigue caused the crash. One of the first places we look is the driver's logbook, which under federal and New Mexico law is required to detail the time the driver spent driving and the time the driver spent sleeping. We often detect a driver's failure to log time accurately or an attempt to conceal illegally long waking hours. Did the driver make a purchase, visit a casino or restaurant, or make a phone call during "sleep time"?

Is that really a trucking company?

Area residents are often surprised to find out that some New Mexico "trucking companies" are actually driving schools and that 18-wheelers are being driven by students or inexperienced interns logging their first hours behind the wheel.

Forced off the road, jackknife, rollover, rear end collisions

Were you forced off the road by a trucker? Rear-ended? A car crushed in a rollover accident? Some truck accidents are unavoidable. If, however, a member of your family was killed or seriously injured in a wreck, it is important that you find out exactly what happened — driver fatigue, negligence on the part of the trucking company, defective equipment or another cause.

Contact us for a free consultation

It does not cost anything to have your accident claim reviewed by an experienced personal injury lawyer. Call 1-800-251-5566 or e-mail our office to arrange a free consultation with a member of our firm. If you are unable to travel, we will visit you in your home or hospital. If we take your case, we will launch an immediate investigation; and of course, we charge no fees unless we recover compensation on your behalf. We serve clients throughout Bernalillo County, Santa Fe and Greater New Mexico.

Will Ferguson & Associates, Attorneys at Law