The American Trucking Associations (ATA) has requested to see a study from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) that examines the accuracy of police reports that determine fault in a truck accident. Under the current FMCSA policy, fault is assigned to the motor carrier in all accidents, whether the trucker caused the accident or not. The CSA ranks the safety of motor carriers based on how many crashes their trucks are involved in, regardless of fault.
“FMCSA continues to use crashes that motor carriers did not cause nor could have prevented in measuring motor carrier safety performance,” said ATA President Bill Graves. “The public should see the results of the study the agency promised almost two years ago.”
Graves is right in that a thorough investigation of accidents is necessary in preventing them in the future, and it raises suspicions that the FMCSA will not fully disclose the study. However, the number of accidents a particular carrier is involved in should not be completely discounted—it can show a pattern of drivers who fail to avoid accidents.
If you or a loved one are harmed in a truck accident, contact an experienced attorney immediately.
Spevack Law Firm—Middlesex County truck accident attorneys.
