Inadequate Driver Training

Every driver of a truck should be physically capable of handling a heavy commercial vehicle. Drivers must be properly licensed after completing comprehensive testing, and background checks may also be needed. By law, a trucking company is required to conduct a background check of prospective truck drivers during the job application process. They will need to obtain data about prior employers and the driver’s driving record, including in other states.

Trucking companies are required to follow regulations promulgated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration as well as state law. Under the federal regulations, trucking companies must provide adequate training to their drivers. Training should address how to avoid accidents, how to conduct inspections to make sure a truck is working properly, how to load vehicles properly, and how to safely carry hazardous or dangerous materials.

Inadequate training of truck drivers can result in extremely dangerous situations involving catastrophic or even fatal injuries to others on the road. An improperly or inadequately trained truck driver presents a real danger to those in smaller vehicles as well as pedestrians.

A trucking company can be held directly liable for inadequate driver training that results in injuries and damages to others. Truck accident victims may face tremendous medical costs, lost wages, pain and suffering, emotional distress, property damage, and loss of enjoyment of life. Victims will have to establish the trucking company’s negligence in failing to provide adequate training. In some cases, such as those involving interstate truck accidents, a trucking company may be negligent as a matter of law for failing to follow federal regulations. Negligence as a matter of law may apply if a violation of a safety regulation causes injuries, and the plaintiff is a member of the class who was supposed to be protected by the safety regulation.

Trucking companies may try to defend themselves by claiming that the plaintiff is comparatively negligent. Under the rule of comparative negligence in Tennessee, a plaintiff’s damages may be reduced by his or her degree of fault, and the plaintiff may be barred from recovering damages if he or she is 50% or more at fault. An accident reconstruction expert may be retained to counter the trucking company’s claim of comparative fault.