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Woman Killed in Los Angeles Semi Truck Accident

A woman has been killed in a truck accident in Los Angeles, the tragic accident occurred on Monday.  The victim was traveling in a Honda Civic, which was rear ended by the tractor trailer.  The Honda Civic lost control and crashed. The woman inside sustained serious injuries. She was declared dead at the scene.

Investigations into the accident are still going on. The Los Angeles Times report does not contain any information about whether alcohol or drug use was a factor here.   Investigators however would have had blood alcohol tests taken to determine whether the truck driver was driving under the influence.

There are any number of factors that can cause a truck accident.

Truck Driver Fatigue

Every year, thousands of truck accidents can be traced to fatigued and drowsy drivers who doze off at the wheel with serious consequences.  This is why federal guidelines set strict rules about the number of hours that drivers can drive consecutively.

Driver hours of service are at the center of an ongoing controversy that has included California truck accident lawyers, victims’ rights groups and truck safety groups on the one side, and the trucking industry on the other. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration last year announced that it would revise the existing hours of service, which allow truckers to drive for a maximum number of 11 hours consecutively. That decision to revise the rules came as a result of the efforts of truck safety groups who have been asking for the hours of service to be reduced back to 10 hours which was the limit earlier.  A truck driver driving in a fatigued state is a major threat to motorist safety.

Truck Driver Alcohol and Drug Use

Driving under the influence kills thousands of people across the country every year.   Truck drivers however, are held to higher standards of alcohol and drug use than the motorist population. The legally allowed limit for alcohol for a trucker is .04, compared to .08 for the general motorist population. Besides, truckers may also be at a higher risk for the use of methamphetamines, stimulants that are used to induce alertness.

Trucking Company Negligence

Accidents can be caused by trucks that are ill maintained.  Unfortunately, all too often, California truck accident attorneys come across companies that fail to conduct regular inspections and repairs of trucks. Trucking companies that scrimp on repairs can place their drivers at risk of an accident.

Truck accident claims after a crash must begin with determining the cause of the accident. Truck driver log books must be carefully examined to determine if fatigue was the cause of the accident.  Blood alcohol tests will indicate if drugs and alcohol use were a factor in the crash. Besides, the truck itself will have to be investigated to see if mechanical malfunctioning was the cause of this crash.  After all these investigations have been done, truck accident lawyers in California will be able to determine the cause of the accident and will file a claim.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of truck accidents. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.

The Reeves Law Group is not acting as legal counsel for any party in the matters discussed in this posting.

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