Why Logs And Recordings Are Featured In Many Truck Accident Case
Posted on: 9 December 2020
Truck accident claims and suits often end up focusing on logs and records. For a truck accident attorney, this can lead to some time-consuming tasks, especially if a defendant or insurance company isn't interested in quickly settling. Clients may wonder why these cases sometimes hinge on logs and records so read on to learn more about that issue.
Determining Liability
Oftentimes, a truck accident attorney is searching for evidence that places liability at the feet of a company. The simplest version of this work is when there are questions about the safety systems on a vehicle. State inspection rules require annual or semi-annual checks, and companies also keep logs of when brakes, tires, and hook-ups have been checked, repaired, or replaced. If a lawyer sees evidence from the logs that a company allowed the brakes to go unattended for several thousand miles after the manufacturer's expressed limit, that may indicate liability.
Even when a case involves an independent operator, there are scenarios where a bigger company may be at fault. Businesses keep records when loading and unloading trailers, for example, and this is largely to protect themselves in case of liability. These records will sometimes show that liability rests with a contracting party that loaded the vehicle.
Finding Witnesses
Similarly, records and logs are accompanied by dates, times, names, and signatures. If a truck accident attorney wants to ask the mechanic who performed work on a rig's brake system some questions, the logs will name the mechanics. Should the logs fail to identify the mechanic, that may call the defense's conduct into question even more.
Logs are also useful tools for going over questions with witnesses. An attorney might ask a mechanic if they remember taking certain actions and who asked them to. In extreme cases, this might even uncover falsifications.
Hiring Practices and Drug Tests
Records also appear on the employment side of cases. When a company hires a driver, they have a responsibility to verify that the person can operate a truck safely. If the company failed to perform a thorough enough background check to discover a criminal conviction from an accident several years ago, that's something the victim's counsel wants to know. The same logic applies to whether the driver had the right training to operate the vehicle in question.
Likewise, companies regularly perform drug and alcohol tests. They have to keep records of these, and failing to do so may bolster a victim's case.
For more information, reach out to a local truck accident attorney.
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