On an open highway, a passenger car is no match for a fully loaded, 80,000-pound commercial truck. The forces involved in a collision are immense, and the outcomes are often catastrophic for the occupants of the smaller vehicle. While many factors can contribute to these devastating crashes—such as poor maintenance, unsecured loads, or speeding—one of the most common and preventable dangers is driver fatigue.

Driver fatigue is a serious, systemic problem, frequently caused by violations of federal safety regulations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has established strict Hours of Service (HOS) rules, limiting the time commercial drivers can spend on the road.

Despite these rules, an FMCSA study on major crashes found that 13 percent of commercial drivers involved were fatigued at the time of the collision. The consequences of these large truck crashes are devastating, primarily to others: data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that a staggering 70 percent of people killed in these accidents are occupants of other vehicles.

When a truck driver or the trucking company they work for ignores these rules, they are not just breaking the law; they are actively endangering every other person on the road. Investigating these hours of service violations is a central part of any serious truck accident legal claim.

The Devastating Link Between Truck Driver Fatigue and Accidents

When a driver gets behind the wheel while exhausted, their body and brain cease to function reliably. The National Institutes of Health and other safety bodies have shown that severe fatigue mimics the effects of alcohol impairment.

A driver who has been awake for 18 hours has a functional impairment equivalent to someone with a 0.05% blood alcohol concentration (BAC). After 24 hours without sleep, that impairment rises to the equivalent of a 0.10% BAC—well above the legal limit for any driver.

This level of impairment is not just "feeling drowsy." It manifests in specific, dangerous ways:

• Slowed Reaction Time: The most obvious effect. A well-rested driver sees a brake light and reacts. A fatigued driver sees it, processes it seconds later, and may be unable to stop their massive vehicle in time.
• Impaired Judgment: Fatigued drivers are more likely to make poor decisions, such as misjudging the speed of other vehicles, following too closely, or attempting an unsafe lane change.
• Microsleeps: This is one of the greatest dangers. A microsleep is a brief, involuntary episode of sleep that can last from a fraction of a second to several seconds. At 65 mph, a truck covers the length of a football field in just over three seconds. A three-second microsleep means the driver is traveling that entire distance completely blind.

Tired truck driver accidents often follow a distinct pattern. They frequently involve the truck drifting out of its lane into oncoming traffic or onto the shoulder. They also commonly result in high-speed, rear-end collisions when the truck fails to slow for stopped or slowing traffic ahead.

A Closer Look at the FMCSA Hours of Service Rules

To combat the well-documented risks of truck driver fatigue, the FMCSA created a complex set of regulations. These hours of service trucking laws are the central pillar of federal trucking regulations designed to keep exhausted drivers off the road.

While there are exceptions for different types of cargo or driving, the primary rules for property-carrying drivers (the vast majority of semi-trucks) are:

The 14-Hour "Driving Window"

This is often called the 14-hour clock. A driver cannot drive at all after 14 consecutive hours of being "on duty." This 14-hour clock does not stop for breaks, naps, or meals. Once it starts, it runs.

• What "On-Duty" Means: This is a key point. "On-duty" time is not just driving. It includes:
  • Pre-trip and post-trip vehicle inspections.
  • Waiting to be loaded or unloaded (detention time).
  • Fueling the truck.
  • Any repair work or supervising repairs.
  • Loading or unloading cargo.

If a driver starts their day at 6 a.m., their 14-hour clock expires at 8 p.m., regardless of how much driving they did.

The 11-Hour Driving Limit

Within that 14-hour window, a driver is limited to a maximum of 11 total hours of actual driving time. After 11 hours of driving, they must be off duty for at least 10 consecutive hours before driving again.

The 30-Minute Break Rule

A driver cannot drive for more than 8 consecutive hours without taking at least one 30-minute, off-duty break. This break is intended to combat the buildup of fatigue during a long shift.

The 60/70-Hour Weekly Limits

Drivers cannot drive after accumulating 60 hours on duty in any 7-consecutive-day period or 70 hours on duty in any 8-consecutive-day period. A driver can "restart" this weekly clock by taking at least 34 consecutive hours off duty.

How Commercial Truck Driver Violations Actually Happen

With these strict rules, how do tired truck driver accidents still occur so frequently? In the past, drivers used paper log books that were notoriously easy to falsify. Drivers kept two sets of books—a real one and a fake one for law enforcement.

Today, the federal Electronic Logging Device (ELD) mandate requires nearly all commercial trucks to have an ELD. This device connects directly to the truck's engine and automatically records driving time, making it much harder to cheat.

But "harder" does not mean "impossible." Commercial truck driver violations still happen in several ways:

1. Log Falsification: A driver can manually edit their ELD status. The most common method is to log time spent waiting at a loading dock—which is legally "on-duty" time—as "off-duty." This illegally "pauses" their 14-hour clock, allowing them to drive for longer than the law permits after they finally get loaded.
2. Pressure from the Carrier: This is the most significant factor in most HOS violations. A trucking company (motor carrier) may give a driver an impossible delivery schedule that requires them to break HOS rules or speed to meet it. When drivers are paid by the mile, they are financially incentivized to skip breaks and push beyond the legal limits.
3. Harassment or Coercion: The FMCSA has specific rules against carriers harassing drivers to violate HOS rules. If a dispatcher threatens a driver with lost loads, fewer miles, or termination for refusing an unsafe load, this is a direct violation that points to systemic negligence by the company.
4. Team Driving Violations: In team driving, one driver rests in the sleeper berth while the other drives. However, time in a sleeper berth is not always truly restorative, and log violations can occur if drivers "hot-swap" their ELD logins improperly.

Proving Truck Accident Liability Hours of Service

When a truck crash caused by HOS violations occurs, proving it requires an immediate and deep investigation led by a personal injury lawyer who specializes in truck accidents. The trucking company and its insurance provider will dispatch their own rapid-response teams to the scene to control the narrative and protect their interests. The victim needs a team doing the same for them.

Establishing truck accident liability for hours of service involves securing and analyzing evidence that goes far beyond a simple police report.

The Spoliation Letter: A Vital First Step

The most important action is to send a spoliation of evidence letter to the trucking company and all other involved parties. This is a formal legal demand that they preserve all evidence related to the truck, the driver, and the crash.

This evidence includes:

• The ELD data (which can be overwritten).
• The driver's full logs for the past 6 months.
• Dispatch records and instructions.
• Driver-dispatcher text messages and app communications.
• Bills of lading and delivery schedules.
• The truck's "black box" data (ECM).
• Fuel receipts, scale tickets, and toll records.

Without this letter, a trucking company may "accidentally" delete damning evidence, claiming it was part of their standard document retention policy.

Analyzing the Data for Violations of Trucking Safety Rules

After securing the data, the real work commences. A trucking accident lawyer will have experts cross-reference all these data points to find discrepancies that prove violations of trucking safety rules.

For example, the lawyer will ask:

• Does the ELD show the driver was "off-duty" at 2 p.m., but a fuel receipt shows them buying 150 gallons of diesel at 2:15 p.m. 50 miles away? This proves the log was false.
• Does the bill of lading show a delivery appointment in 10 hours that is 700 miles away? This is an impossible schedule, as it would require the driver to average 70 mph without any stops, proving the company coerced the driver into speeding and skipping breaks.
• Do the driver's logs show a pattern of driving right up to the 11-hour limit day after day? This demonstrates a pattern of cumulative fatigue that the carrier should have recognized and stopped.

Beyond the Driver: Proving Company Negligence

In many trucking regulation accidents, the driver is not the only liable party. The motor carrier itself can be held directly negligent for its own failures.

• Negligent Hiring: Did the company hire a driver with a known history of HOS violations, speeding tickets, or at-fault accidents?
• Negligent Supervision: Did the company fail to audit its drivers' logs? Did it ignore obvious signs of falsification or fatigue?
• Negligent Entrustment: Did the company provide a truck to a driver they knew was likely to be unsafe or was unqualified?
• Negligent Maintenance: Did a vehicle defect, like bad brakes, combine with the driver's fatigue to cause the crash?

By proving the company itself was negligent, a victim can often secure compensation far beyond the driver's limited insurance policy, tapping into the carrier's much larger commercial liability coverage.

What to Do After a Truck Accident Caused by Driver Fatigue

The complexity of these cases cannot be overstated. You are not just fighting a driver; you are fighting a sophisticated commercial entity and its team of lawyers. The steps you take immediately after the crash are vital for any future truck accident legal claims.

1. Call 911: Report the accident and request police and medical responders.
2. Document Everything: If you are able, take photos and videos of the scene, the vehicles, the license plates, the truck's DOT number, and any company logos.
3. Get Witness Information: Get the names and phone numbers of anyone who saw the crash.
4. Seek Medical Attention: Even if you feel fine, you must get a full medical evaluation. Adrenaline can mask serious injuries. This also creates a medical record linking your injuries to the crash.
5. Do Not Give a Recorded Statement: Do not speak to the trucking company's insurance adjuster. They are trained to get you to say something that can be used to deny your claim.

Most importantly, contact an experienced trucking accident lawyer immediately. The clock to preserve critical ELD data is ticking.

Need Legal Help? Brandon J. Broderick, Attorney at Law, is One Phone Call Away

If you or a loved one sustained injuries in a collision with a commercial truck, you cannot afford to wait. The legal team at Brandon J. Broderick, Attorney at Law, is fiercely dedicated to the pursuit of justice, and this commitment is never more critical than when dealing with the devastating consequences of truck accidents. These collisions are often complex and tragic, demanding a legal team that not only understands personal injury law but also possesses specific expertise in the regulations governing the trucking industry, such as Hours of Service (HOS) violations.

Our primary focus is simple: holding negligent commercial drivers and the large trucking companies that employ them fully accountable for the harm they inflict. We understand that truck accidents, particularly those resulting from fatigue and illegal driving hours, lead to catastrophic injuries, lifelong disabilities, and even wrongful death.

Do not delay in seeking legal counsel. Contact us today for a free, comprehensive, and no-obligation consultation. During this meeting, you will learn exactly how our specialized legal team can help you navigate the complexities of your claim, fight back against powerful trucking industry insurance carriers, and tirelessly pursue the maximum compensation you deserve. We are available day or night to assist you.