Truck Accidents Caused by Negligent Hiring of Truck Drivers
It’s a simple fact. Trucking companies like to cut corners. Sadly, this often puts inexperience or unqualified truck drivers on the road — and it puts other drivers at risk of involvement in a truck accident. At Carter Law Offices, we take action against trucking companies with negligent hiring practices. Our Kansas City law firm represents trucking accident victims throughout Missouri and Kansas in personal injury and wrongful death litigation that makes companies that cut corners pay.
There are many ways that trucking companies can be negligent when hiring truck drivers:
- Hiring drivers without valid commercial drivers licenses (CDLs)
- Hiring drivers with poor driving records
- Failing to give proper drug and alcohol testing/hiring drivers who fail drug testing
- Failing to conduct criminal background checks/hiring drivers with criminal histories
- Hiring drivers with untreated health issues, like sleep apnea or vision problems
- Hiring drivers with a history of causing truck accidents
What Is Hiring Negligence?
In a truck accident cases, we ask the jury to decide whether the trucking company was negligent when it hired a certain driver. But what does “negligent” mean? It is an important legal term with a special meaning. Negligence occurs when a trucking company fails to act in a prudent and careful manner — the same manner in which someone else would act if he or she were in a similar situation.
If negligence caused damages to a personal injury victim or to a family that lost a loved one, they may be able to recover compensation for those damages. We use experts to help juries understand exactly how much compensation our clients deserve. The compensation can then be used towards paying off medical bills, making up for lost wages and getting needed medical care. In a wrongful death action, compensation often goes to support the family left behind after a caretaker is killed in a truck wreck.
In this economy, negligent hiring of truck drivers has become a serious problem. More and more people have been laid off from their jobs. Many of these folks have begun second careers as truck drivers. While nobody blames them for doing what it takes to make ends meet, it is important to hold trucking companies accountable for putting them on the road without proper screening or training.
Contact Us About Truck Driver Negligence
If you or a loved one has been harmed by a driver who should never have been hired in the first place, our lawyers can help you claim compensation from the trucking company. Give us a call at 816-283-3500 or send an email to schedule a free initial consultation regarding employer negligence. Our attorneys have what it takes to do the right thing for you.