Truck Driver Fatigue and San Antonio Trucking Accident Lawyers

At Carabin Shaw, we believe that there are two things that should always be paired when the unfortunate happens: truck driver fatigue and San Antonio trucking accident lawyers. Even if both drivers were wide awake at the time of the accident, there are types of fatigue beyond those that easily meet the eye. Our attorneys have found that fatigue plays a much larger role in creating dangerous circumstances on the road than is typically believed. If you or a loved one has been involved in a San Antonio area semi truck accident, call us today—we may have some information pertinent to your case.

A truck driver who suffers from fatigue is more likely to be involved in an accident than one who is well-rested. Serious injuries can result from such accidents, which is why so many San Antonio trucking companies retain expensive insurance policies to cover accidents resulting from driver fatigue. In order to receive the full measure of compensation the law allows, you need a law firm that can provide both in-depth knowledge of truck driver fatigue and San Antonio trucking accident lawyers. The attorneys at Carabin Shaw can provide just that, as well as a winning strategy for you, your family, and/or your business.

For instance, our lawyers may begin by focusing on the probable cause of the fatigue. One such factor that influences driver fatigue is sleep deprivation caused by an unwritten industry “time on task” standard. Failure to get proper sleep decreases a trucker’s attentiveness and increases their sleepiness, causing their “time on task” performance to decline over time.

This means that if a San Antonio driver is on task for a longer-than-recommended period of time, they not only disrupt their natural sleep patterns, but they also lose the attentiveness necessary to safely drive their truck. In order to combat the circumstances that lead to this particular type of driver fatigue, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has created Hours of Service (HOS) regulations. These are designed to limit daily and weekly driving and working hours, as well as regulate the minimum amount of time drivers must rest between shifts.

Due to traffic, dangerous road conditions, and the varying weight of cargo, long-haul drivers are normally paid by the mile, rather than by the hour. As such, truck drivers are not legally required to receive overtime pay for anything more than the 40-hour work week. Some truck drivers choose to violate the HOS regulations to earn more money, and many trucking companies allow such violations in order to stay competitive with other companies.

Our attorneys have seen logbooks, both physical and digital, that were altered to meet the regulations. When such practices are in play, catastrophic consequences can result from injuries sustained in an accident. It is important to have a San Antonio 18-wheeler accident lawyer at the ready.

Call us today for a free consultation. You can sit down with a San Antonio truck driver fatigue crash attorney from the law firm of Carabin Shaw and explain your situation in full detail. Someday, perhaps truck driver fatigue and San Antonio trucking accident lawyers will no longer be a presence on San Antonio roadways and courts. Until then, our attorneys will continue to advocate for the rights of victims, making south Texas highways and byways safer, one case at a time.

At Carabin Shaw, it is our job to make sure you receive every bit of compensation the law allows. No one should have to shoulder the physical burden of the stress of an accident and the legal burden of representation at the same time. Call us today at 210-222-2288 or toll-free at 800-862-1260.