Trucking Accident Attorney Blog

A man who was struck by a cement-mixer truck while working on his disabled vehicle has been awarded $1.95 million from a Maryland jury, the Baltimore Sun reports.

In 2005, Robert L. Howard, a truck driver with Goodwill Industries, was standing outside his disabled vehicle with his assistant, Errol Johnson. A cement mixer owned by Lafarge Mid-Atlantic and driven by Anthony Schulman struck both men. Johnson was killed and Howard was severely injured.

Schulman, who has a lengthy criminal past which includes drug and theft convictions, drove off claiming he was unaware he had hit anyone. Schulman later pleaded guilty to negligent driving.

Howard sued both LaFarge and Schulman for negligence. Last month, an Anne Arundel County jury awarded Howard $1.95 million including $1.83 million for pain and suffering which will be capped at $650,000. (Schulman and LaFarge reached a settlement with Johnson's family in March.)

When a bystander, pedestrian or motorist is injured by a commercial truck, it is important to contact an experienced trucking accident attorney immediately.

An experienced trucking accident attorney knows that commercial truck drivers and trucking companies are subject to special statutes and regulations. Truck drivers must obtains special licenses and training and undergo driving reviews and background employment checks. A number of laws require truckers and their employers to keep certain records that can be critical in prosecuting truck cases. Truck movements are often tracked with the use of global positioning systems. In some cases the actual truck movements recorded by GPS don’t sync up with the logbooks a trucker maintains. Black-box data often contains information on the truck in the time leading up to the crash. Knowing how to gain access to and interpret the information is important because truck accidents are harder to defend and easier to win for plaintiffs.

The victims of trucking accidents and their families need a level playing field, and the best way to get this is to find an attorney who can protect their interests. The Lowe Law Firm has investigators who can on the case within hours of a crash. Our staff will see to it that critical crash evidence is safeguarded and not destroyed. Our lawyers are experienced with trucking companies and insurance carriers and in trying cases against them.

If you have been hurt or a loved one has been hurt or died as a result of a truck driver's carelessness, contact The Lowe Law Firm Missouri/Illinois trucking-accident lawyers online or by calling 877-678-3400.

Last month, a House subcommittee held a hearing that examined the impact of existing truck weight and length regulations on safety, highway infrastructure, and interstate commerce.

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure received testimony on July 9. The witnesses included the executive director of the Federal Highway Administration, commissioners from state highway transportation departments, a teamster’s driver, an independent driver, industry representatives and safety advocates.

Although there are some exceptions, federal regulations typically limit truck weight to a maximum of 20,000 pounds for single axles, 34,000 pounds for tandem axles, and impose a total Gross Vehicle Weight limit of 80,000 pounds.

The summary prepared by the subcommittee before testimony began noted that in 2006, nearly 5,000 people were killed in crashes involving large trucks. It also noted that in the 2000 Comprehensive Truck Size and Weight Study, the Federal Highway Administration calculated whether the higher taxes that trucks pay cover the wear-and-tear they inflict on highways. It found:

“The most common combination of vehicles, those registered at weights between 75,000 and 80,000 pounds, now pay only 80 percent of their share of Federal highway costs and combinations registered between 80,000 and 100,000 pounds pay only half their share of Federal highway costs.”

In addition to the impact on infrastructure, the question of whether to permit bigger and longer trucks on the highways pits safety advocates against representatives of the trucking industry. Safety advocates argue that bigger trucks are too dangerous. The trucking industry claims larger trucks are needed to meet increased cargo demands.

Even if the truck weights and lengths remain unchanged it doesn’t mean the roads are safe. Unfortunately, trucking companies are pressured to cut costs, and drivers—who are typically paid by the mile—are under financial pressure to driver longer hours, faster than the speed limit, and faster than the road conditions allow. As a result, people are killed or hurt in truck accidents.
If you or a loved one has been injured or a family member has been killed in a collision with a large truck, we urge you to contact the Lowe Law Firm by calling 877-678-3400 or filling out our online contact form.

Our trucking-accident attorneys will find out whether the truck driver, trucking company, or trailer owner is responsible for the accident. If so, we will then seek compensation for future and other related medical expenses, future and other affected wages, pain and suffering, disability and/or other related damages.