Missouri Truck Accident Lawyer Blog

A Missouri man who was rear-ended two years ago by a FedEx delivery truck is suing for more than $50,000 in compensation. Anthony Taylor filed his suit on January 24th, 2011, in Madison County Circuit Court where he claims negligence on the part of Stephen L. Herring, the driver for FedEx.

Taylor was driving west on Interstate 70 near Marine Township, when he was forced to slow his speed due to heavy traffic. Taylor claims Herring, driving a FedEx delivery truck, sped up behind him, crashing into the rear of his vehicle. Taylor stated both his neck and back were injured in the crash. He is asking for $50,000 for medical expenses, lost wages and court costs, and is currently represented by Creighton Cohn of Clayton, Missouri. Taylor and his attorney have requested a jury trial in this matter.

Many times FedEx, UPS and other delivery drivers can be the cause of serious automobile accidents because of pressure to make on-time deliveries as quickly as possible. This business expectation can lead to negligent driving and can often result in tragedy. In many cases, we have seen drivers who have received little to no training in these large trucks.

Continue reading "January, 2009 Accident Results in Claim Against FedEx" »

Last January, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood banned the practice of texting by truck drivers in order to cut down on tractor-trailer crashes. At the time of the announcement, it was only a regulatory guideline and not yet an official FMCSA rule. That changed at the end of last month when a final rule banning texting by truck drivers took permanent effect.

The final rule specifically targets texting, not just talking, as studies have shown it to impair attention far more and thus making it more likely to result in a serious injury accident. While any number of distractions can exist in the cab of a tractor unit and result in riskier situations, texting results in crash rate 23 times higher than focused, undistracted driving.

The ban comes at a time when text messaging has exploded as a means of communication. The total number of text messages sent last year was 22 times higher than it was just four years ago.

While support of the ban is pretty widespread, some groups, like the American Association for Justice, say it doesn't go far enough. They and other safety advocacy groups argue that there are many more in cab distractions that should be banned, such as some on-board computers. The final rule on texting bans the practice on personal phones and other dispatch or communications equipment, but many other on-board distractors are not addressed by the rule.

An investigation is underway to determine what caused a tractor-trailer accident on I-57 in Union County.

According to local media reports, the accident involved two tractor-trailers and no other vehicles. The two trucks involved were a 2009 Peterbilt, driven by James Woodley, 45, and a 2007 International Harvester, driven by Warren Gross, 31.

Woodley had parked his rig on the right side of southbound I-57 about five miles north of Illinois 146. Woodley had gotten out of the cabin to check his vehicle when, for some unknown reason, Gross's tractor-trailer crossed into the shoulder and collided with the left side of Woodley's trailer. Gross continued off the shoulder and eventually ended up down a ditch off the right side of the roadway.

Both rigs sustained extensive damage and the cleanup caused traffic to back up for nearly an hour.

Remarkably, neither driver was injured in this Illinois truck accident. Woodley was especially vulnerable, since he had exited his vehicle and was standing alongside it on the shoulder.

The crash is still under investigation, but we do know that Woodley's truck was legally parked on the side of the road. What is still to be determined is what caused Gross to drive into the shoulder and why he didn't see the other truck ahead of him.

Photo from BND.com

A truck driver, Jerald Jaynes, 52, and a passenger, William Burleson, 23, were both killed in a fiery tractor-trailer crash involving three big rigs near Highland, Illinois.

According to local media reports, the fatal accident occurred on I-70 just minutes after an earlier tractor-trailer crash farther along on the highway. In that incident, a trailer became separated from a truck cab and dumped boxes of food across the roadway and into the median. Traffic began to back up and another tractor-trailer, driven by Gary Fellure, 53, was at the back of the line of vehicles. For an as yet undetermined reason, Jaynes failed to stop and crashed his rig into the back of Fellure's truck causing it to instantly burst into flames. The resulting impact and explosion caused a chain reaction damaging yet another tractor-trailer and a pickup truck.

Both Jaynes and Burleson were pronounced dead at the scene. Several other drivers involved in this multiple-collision accident suffered minor injuries.

In the aftermath of this fatal Illinois truck accident, yet another minor wreck occurred when a motorcycle rear-ended another truck that had stopped due to the traffic backup.

Investigators will try to piece together exactly what happened and figure out why so many drivers failed to stop for the traffic backing up on the highway. Rear-end collisions are often caused when drivers become distracted or are following too close behind other vehicles. Once the full report of this accident is released, we will learn if either of these common causes were involved.

After a serious tractor-trailer crash, it is important to find out who or what caused the crash for two reasons. First, to learn how to prevent future accidents and hold accountable anybody whose negligence contributed to the accident. Second, to potentially recover compensation for the injured parties through the civil justice system.

Our firm represents the families of those who have been seriously injured or killed by a trucking company's negligence. Recently, we negotiated a $2 million settlement for the family of Cathie Dolter, 61, who was killed when she was hit from behind by a tractor trailer at a St. Louis area truck stop. If you or a family member have been involved in a tractor-trailer accident and would like to discuss your case for free, contact us to set up a consultation. Discussing your case comes with no obligation to hire and we don't receive a fee unless we win your case.