Commercial semi-trucks account for over 100 fatal crashes and 2,000 crashes causing injury in Illinois each year, and the majority of the victims are the occupants of other vehicles. Many of these accidents are caused by an error on the part of the driver, perhaps related to driver fatigue, speeding, or drunk driving. However, a substantial number are also caused by improper loading or maintenance before the truck even takes to the road. If you are injured in one of these accidents, it is important that you understand all possible options for compensation.

Trucking Industry Regulations for Maintenance and Loading

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issues regulations for interstate truck drivers and trucking companies throughout the United States to ensure safe vehicle operation. Regarding maintenance, the FMCSA requires regular inspections of trucks and trucking equipment to identify any necessary repairs, as well as detailed record-keeping of repairs and maintenance. Any truck determined to be unsafe for the road must not be driven until it has been adequately repaired.

Regarding cargo loading, trucking companies must ensure a safe weight distribution throughout the truck, as well as the proper securement of any cargo that may shift in transit. The securement devices used must be sufficient to withstand the regular forces of acceleration and deceleration, and specific devices must be used for certain types of cargo that can roll.

One of the most crucial parts of any personal injury lawsuit is proving negligence. In a medical malpractice suit, for example, a patient may only collect damages if the healthcare professional in question was negligent in his or her treatment of the patient. Similarly, a property owner or business owner who invites guests onto his property displays negligence if the building or grounds have obvious dangers that cause a guest or patron to suffer an injury.
When negligence causes an innocent party to experience damages like lost wages at work, expensive medical bills, or ongoing medical expenses, it is only fair that the person who is liable for the damages pays for them. Through a personal injury lawsuit, you may be able to collect compensation for damages, but the first step is proving negligence.

Negligence Can Include Actions and Failure to Act

For the purposes of personal injury law, negligence can be defined as the failure to exercise reasonable care and attention toward others in a way that causes them damages. “Reasonable” in this context means that it is what most other people would do in similar circumstances. For example, say a shop owner notices an exposed live wire and does not repair it, but instead continues to allow customers to go near the wire. A patron is then injured after accidentally touching the wire. The shop owner would probably be considered negligent because a reasonable person would not allow unsuspecting customers near such a hazard. In some circumstances, a crime, such as reckless driving, can also constitute negligence because a reasonably careful person would not drive recklessly.

For many drivers, it can be dangerous to share the roads with semi-trailer trucks. Because commercial trucks are much larger and heavier than passenger vehicles, truck accidents are likely to lead to injuries for drivers, passengers, motorcyclists, pedestrians, or anyone else involved in a collision. Driver fatigue is one key factor that can lead to semi-truck crashes since truck drivers can become too tired to operate their vehicles safely after being behind the wheel for extended periods. Some recent changes to the regulations that govern the amount of time truck drivers can stay on the road have caused concern that driver fatigue will become more prevalent, leading to more commercial truck accidents.

New FMCSA Hours of Service Regulations

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which governs the rules and regulations that apply to commercial motor vehicles, recently decided to update some of the rules regarding the allowed hours of service (HOS). The following changes are set to go into effect on September 29, 2020:

For patients who are suffering from serious medical issues, the diagnosis of their condition is essential to make sure they can receive the proper treatment. This is especially true in cases involving diseases such as cancer, since surgery, chemotherapy, or other treatments must be performed before the illness progresses beyond a certain stage. A delayed diagnosis can cause a person to suffer serious harm, and in some cases, their condition may progress to the point where it is untreatable, resulting in wrongful death. 

When Is a Delayed Diagnosis Considered Medical Malpractice?

Properly diagnosing a patient’s condition can often be difficult, since people can experience a wide variety of symptoms that can be interpreted in different ways. Doctors are trained to recognize the signs of serious illnesses, and if they are uncertain about a diagnosis, they should take the proper steps to gain as much understanding about a patient’s condition as possible. Some forms of medical negligence that could lead to a delayed diagnosis include:

Online shopping has become a standard way that many people buy products, and it has become even more important during the COVID-19 pandemic since it allows people to receive necessities at their homes and minimize the risk of infections from traveling to stores to shop. However, one issue that has arisen for many online shoppers is the difficulty of determining who is responsible for injuries caused by defective products. A recent court ruling may help clarify these issues and provide consumers with the ability to pursue compensation from online retailers in product liability cases.

California Court Rules That Amazon Is Subject to Strict Product Liability

When consumers purchase products from an online retailer, they may not fully understand who manufactured, sold, or distributed the product, which can make it difficult to determine who is liable for injuries caused by product defects. This is particularly true on sites such as Amazon, where consumers can buy products from third-party sellers, with Amazon handling product warehousing and shipping.