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O'Connor Law
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Required Drug & Alcohol Testing for Truck Drivers Weak
Because truck drivers often suffer from fatigue or sleeping problems as a result of the unrealistic schedules imposed on them by their companies, there are many truck drivers that use drugs or alcohol to sleep, wake up, or combat depression. Although drivers may initially be cautious, their use turns to addiction and overrides their caution, making them much more likely to get in an accident on the road. To prevent the threat of drug and alcohol abusers from driving large trucks, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules demand that all drivers undergo six types of drug and alcohol use tests:
These rules are designed to prevent drivers who abuse alcohol and/or drugs from getting on the road, and they seem a significant safeguard against abusing drivers sitting behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler, but they are lacking for several reasons.
As a result of these weak rules on drug and alcohol testing, a number of drivers with habitual patterns of drug and alcohol abuse continue to get on the road, endangering you and your family. If you have suffered as a result of a truck accident involving drug or alcohol abuse, contact the law firm of Michael J. O'Connor & Associates, LLC today for a free initial consultation and case review.
- Pre-employment
- Reasonable suspicion
- Post-Accident
- Random
- Return-to-duty
- Follow-up
These rules are designed to prevent drivers who abuse alcohol and/or drugs from getting on the road, and they seem a significant safeguard against abusing drivers sitting behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler, but they are lacking for several reasons.
- First, the employer gets to perform all tests and determines what constitutes "reasonable suspicion" of drug or alcohol abuse.
- Second, all tests are conducted in two phases, a screening test and a confirmation test. Since these are administered by the employer, it is possible for the employer to help employees pass the confirmation test by waiting a significant length of time before performing it.
- Third, in terms of drug abuse, the employee is contacted before the employer and given a chance to explain any positive tests with "legitimate medical use." Many drug users know how to explain away positive results.
- Fourth, only five drugs are tested for:
- Marijuana
- Cocaine
- Amphetamines
- Opiates
- Phencyclidine
As a result of these weak rules on drug and alcohol testing, a number of drivers with habitual patterns of drug and alcohol abuse continue to get on the road, endangering you and your family. If you have suffered as a result of a truck accident involving drug or alcohol abuse, contact the law firm of Michael J. O'Connor & Associates, LLC today for a free initial consultation and case review.
posted by Patti at 9:19 AM
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Transporting Hazardous Materials
Hazardous materials are one of the negative side-effects of our post-industrialized society. From wastewater sludge to byproducts of fuel refining to used paint stripper, every industry produces or uses toxic chemicals on a daily basis. And sooner or later these chemicals have to be moved from where they are produced to where they are used or disposed of, and, as with all freight, most of these wastes are transported by large truck.
Unfortunately, when a truck leaves one industrial facility en route another facility or disposal site, it travels on the same highways you use and drives through your town and your community. Once out on the highway, hazardous material, or hazmat, trucks are subject to the same potential causes for accidents as other large trucks, including:
And when hazmat trucks are in an accident, they are 50% more likely to spill their cargo than non-hazmat trucks, according to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration statistics. In addition, although most hazardous materials are produced and used in urban areas, rural highways were the site of over 70 % of crashes involving hazmat trucks.
If your community has suffered as a result of a hazmat truck accident, contact the experienced truck accident attorneys at Michael J. O'Connor & Associates, LLC.
Unfortunately, when a truck leaves one industrial facility en route another facility or disposal site, it travels on the same highways you use and drives through your town and your community. Once out on the highway, hazardous material, or hazmat, trucks are subject to the same potential causes for accidents as other large trucks, including:
- Overloading
- Driver fatigue
- Improper maintenance
- Aggressive driving encouraged by unrealistic delivery schedules
And when hazmat trucks are in an accident, they are 50% more likely to spill their cargo than non-hazmat trucks, according to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration statistics. In addition, although most hazardous materials are produced and used in urban areas, rural highways were the site of over 70 % of crashes involving hazmat trucks.
If your community has suffered as a result of a hazmat truck accident, contact the experienced truck accident attorneys at Michael J. O'Connor & Associates, LLC.
posted by Patti at 3:08 PM
Monday, January 07, 2008
Inspection Schedules
It seems that with regular inspections, it should be impossible for poorly maintained and dangerous trucks to stay on the road, but somehow it happens. Some reasons why these unsafe trucks can keep operating are:
· Drivers are required to carry out inspections after every day's work, but the drivers are uncompensated for this time, and after a long day of work, the drivers are often fatigued and conduct cursory inspections or none at all.
· Driver-owners or motor carriers who operate only one vehicle are not required to carry out daily inspections.
· There are no requirements that Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) personnel carry out an inspection at a weigh station, simply that they are authorized to.
· Periodic annual inspections can be carried out by the trucking company.
All of these factors combine to take the teeth out of the inspection process, meaning that FMCSA officials may never see a vehicle and may never know what its condition until a truck accident occurs.
In the face of such lax guidelines, the only way to keep dangerous trucks off the road is to make it too costly for trucking companies to afford an accident. If you have been in an accident with a tractor-trailer truck, you can receive compensation and protect others from suffering your pain by contacting an experienced trucking accident lawyer at Michael J. O'Connor & Associates, LLC.
· Drivers are required to carry out inspections after every day's work, but the drivers are uncompensated for this time, and after a long day of work, the drivers are often fatigued and conduct cursory inspections or none at all.
· Driver-owners or motor carriers who operate only one vehicle are not required to carry out daily inspections.
· There are no requirements that Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) personnel carry out an inspection at a weigh station, simply that they are authorized to.
· Periodic annual inspections can be carried out by the trucking company.
All of these factors combine to take the teeth out of the inspection process, meaning that FMCSA officials may never see a vehicle and may never know what its condition until a truck accident occurs.
In the face of such lax guidelines, the only way to keep dangerous trucks off the road is to make it too costly for trucking companies to afford an accident. If you have been in an accident with a tractor-trailer truck, you can receive compensation and protect others from suffering your pain by contacting an experienced trucking accident lawyer at Michael J. O'Connor & Associates, LLC.
posted by Patti at 8:25 AM
