Northern California Truck Driver Regulations Attorneys
Northern California Truck Driver Regulations
The operation and maintenance of a commercial truck requires exceptional care and special training, which is why federal and state governments enacted rules and regulations concerning the operation of a large truck. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) lists specific regulations that a truck driver must comply with and even sets standards for physical and age requirements. Truck drivers and their employers should be very familiar with, and abide by FMCSA regulations to prevent a tragic commercial truck accident from happening. Truck driver regulations include:
Age requirements
To legally operate a commercial truck within the state, a person must be at least 18 years old. To operate a truck across state lines, a truck driver must be at least 21 years old.
Physical ability
With new advances in truck technology and more unloading/loading done by shipping companies, the physical requirements of a truck driver are not as demanding as they used to be. However, a truck driver needs to be able to secure the cargo and perform regular maintenance checks. Also, a truck driver cannot have any physical impairments that would interfere with the operation of a truck. For example, a truck driver cannot have a missing limb or be dependent on insulin.
Licensing
To operate a large truck weighing more than 26,000 pounds, truck drivers are required to have a commercial driver’s license (CDL). There are several classes of a CDL, including Class A, B, and C, which dictate how much cargo and what type of cargo a truck driver can operate.
Substance abuse
Within the trucking industry there is zero tolerance for drug or alcohol abuse. If a truck driver is involved in an accident, they will be asked to submit to a substance abuse test. Following a substance abuse test, if a truck driver tests positive for an illegal substance or is over the blood alcohol concentration limit of .04 percent, truck drivers will have their commercial driver’s license (CDL) taken away. Truck drivers also risk losing their CDL if it is discovered they are transporting or selling illegal drugs.
Driver working hours
Driving working hours, or Hours of Service as it is also called, is limited to 11 continuous hours. After 11 continuous hours of work, a truck driver must take at least 10 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers who do not need to sleep in a berth and work on a "daily basis" cannot exceed 70 hours within 8 consecutive days.
Logbooks
24 hours a day truck drivers must maintain a logbook documenting all work and rest periods. After 13 days of record keeping, a truck driver will turn the logbook in to their employer or government officials.
Northern California Truck Driver Regulation Investigation
If you were involved in an accident that was caused by a truck driver’s violation of federal or state regulations, contact the northern California truck crash attorneys at Estey Bomberger. Our team of experienced northern California personal injury attorneys can conduct a thorough investigation of the truck driver and quickly determine if government regulations were violated. Our personal injury attorneys work with trucking industry experts to help prove liability in complex truck accident cases.
Don’t Wait to Contact a Northern California Truck Driver Regulations Lawyer
Call the Estey Bomberger law firm as soon as possible following a northern California truck accident at (800) 890-6722. Our qualified personal injury lawyers can protect your legal right to full and fair compensation when trucking company’s insurance carriers try to deny you compensation for your serious injuries. Our northern California truck driver regulation lawyers will not hesitate to take your case to trial if a fair agreement cannot be reached with a trucking company’s insurance carrier. Our success in recovering millions of dollars for our clients’ medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering in northern California truck accident cases has enabled our clients to move forward in life with security.