Thousands of large commercial trucks travel across Nebraska’s roads and highways each day. These massive vehicles can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, and they include semi-trucks, tractor-trailers, box trucks, and other heavy-duty vehicles. The sheer weight and size of large trucks mean they can cause utter devastation in truck accidents in Nebraska, often resulting in catastrophic, even fatal injuries to occupants of smaller passenger vehicles.
If you suffered injuries or lost a loved one in a Nebraska trucking accident someone else caused, you likely qualify to obtain compensation. However, the claims process is complex, requiring substantial evidence to support your claim and establish liability on the truck driver or owner. One common method of obtaining evidence regarding the truck accident is to obtain the data from the truck’s black box recorder. It’s important to understand the role of a black box in a truck accident case, and how an attorney can use that information to help you get the compensation you deserve.
Read on to learn more about truck black boxes and their role in proving liability and negligence in truck accident claims. For specific advice and counsel regarding your truck accident claim, contact an experienced Nebraska truck accident attorney near you for assistance.
Nebraska Truck Accident Statistics and Causes
According to the Nebraska Department of Transportation (NebraskaDOT), 1,261 fatal trucking accidents occurred in Nebraska in a recent year that involved semis and tractor-trailers. Additionally, 954 fatal accidents occurred that involved other heavy commercial vehicles. Statistics show that the number of fatal truck accidents has increased over recent years.
Some of the most common reasons for commercial trucking accidents include:
- Excessive driver speed
- Driver distraction or inattention
- Loss of control of the vehicle
- Inadequate visualization of roadway hazards
- Overloaded or improperly loaded freight
- The mental and physical state of the driver
- Mechanical and vehicle failure
The vast majority of these accidents are completely preventable. Event data recorders (EDRs) or electronic control modules (ECMs), also known as a truck’s black box, can help unravel the reason for an accident when one does occur. These devices operate similarly to an airplane’s black box in that they record data to show what was happening with the truck directly before, during, and after a wreck.
Suppose you’ve been injured in an accident involving a large commercial vehicle. In that case, it’s time to hire an Omaha attorney familiar with the legal implications and evidence recovery process in personal injury lawsuits against trucking companies. The lawyers at Berry Law understand the crucial role that EDRs play in helping to determine liability in these cases. They will listen to your story, examine the evidence, and advise whether you have a case.
What Is a Black Box and What Does It Do?
A truck’s black box records information about the vehicle’s status. It then stores data regarding the truck, the trip it was on at the time of the accident, and its location directly before the accident occurred. Some models of EDRs record data continually and store it for longer periods of time, while others only keep it from the few minutes leading up to the detection of a crash.
Digital data that is recovered from a black box can later be used by law enforcement, accident investigators, attorneys, and insurance companies to learn information about the circumstances surrounding an accident, including who was at fault. That information may be critical in building a case for a potential liability lawsuit. Although black box recording devices are not required by law, most trucks built after the 1990s have them anyway as part of the vehicle’s engine component system. Older trucks made prior to the 1990s and still operating on the road today may not have an EDR. Many major national trucking operations also employ the use of satellite tracking equipment or trip recorders to monitor their trucks when they’re on the road.
Black box data is vital in the event of a large truck accident because of the electronic information it contains. It may be the key to unlocking the answer as to what happened in a crash. The records from a truck’s black box can provide you and your attorneys with a crucial piece of the puzzle that helps to support your claims in a personal injury lawsuit. It may prove negligence on the part of the truck driver or trucking company if, for example, the driver was speeding, lost control of the truck, or failed to brake at a stop signal.
For example, black box data can provide evidence that a driver drifted from the roadway to the shoulder of the highway, which may indicate a distracted or fatigued driver at the time of the wreck. If black box records show that a driver suddenly swerved before crashing, such a maneuver may explain a rollover accident. Black box data that points to a steering wheel turn directly before a blind spot accident may prove that the driver of a truck was attempting to merge into another lane before the crash.
What Information Does an EDR Store?
Data that can be obtained from an EDR depends largely on the engine manufacturer, but it can include any of the following:
- Speed the truck was traveling immediately before a crash
- Frequency at which the truck operated over or under a particular speed limit
- Sudden decelerations and accelerations
- Whether or not the brakes were applied and at what point that occurred
- Number of hard stops a truck made and the rotations per minute (RPM) between stops
- Use of cruise control
- Monthly or daily truck activity logs
- Whether or not the driver was wearing a seatbelt
- Air bag deployment
- Tire pressure
- Engine oil levels
- Number of times a truck has been involved in a crash and the time interval between accidents
- GPS location and information
- Whether the steering wheel was turned at any given time
A black box may also reveal important communication between the truck driver and the trucking company that sheds light on the cause of the accident. For example, emails that reveal that a driver was fatigued, experienced mechanical problems, or had other issues on a trip that resulted in a wreck could be key pieces of evidence in a personal injury or wrongful death claim. Usage data can likely be compared to a trucker’s logbook to determine if the driver violated travel time rules regarding the hours spent on the road without a break. If one of these reasons led to the accident, the black box data may prove that the trucking company is liable for any damages incurred as a result.
Act Quickly to Get a Truck’s Black Box Data
Most EDRs store data for approximately 30 days before that information is recorded over, but some black box models could record over information in a much shorter period of time. It’s also possible that the trucking company may intentionally erase data related to an accident, choosing to destroy information that may be damaging to them in a civil suit.
Because the trucking company has possession of the black box, they also have control over the information it contains. They may not be eager to turn black box information over to investigators or attorneys, especially if their driver was at fault. Like any business, trucking companies operate on profits and will want to avoid taking financial responsibility for an accident to protect their profit margins.
Since it’s possible that black box evidence of your accident could be intentionally or accidentally erased, it’s important to recover this data as soon as possible following an accident before it’s destroyed. This may require you to compel the trucking company to hand over black box data. One way to do this is through your attorney, who can send an evidence preservation letter directly to the trucking company on your behalf.
The purpose of an evidence preservation letter is to inform the trucking company of your intentions to file suit and to direct them not to destroy information pertinent to the case. Such a letter should be sent immediately. Your attorney may also hire an expert in electronic recording devices to avoid problems or a loss of evidence when the information from the EDR is being downloaded.
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What Other Types of Evidence Can Help My Case?
Along with black box data, physical evidence, accident scene reconstruction, eyewitness testimony, and other facts of the case, can point to a trucking company’s liability in an accident.
It’s vitally important to work with a truck accident attorney as soon as possible after the accident to help collect and preserve important evidence before it’s lost. Your attorney can also obtain and use evidence of the losses and expenses you incurred because of the accident and your injuries. They may obtain your medical records to show the treatment you received and the costs associated. They can also use your pay stubs and other work-related information to show how much time you missed from work to recover or attend medical appointments.
You also want to share with your attorney any repair estimates or replacement costs for your vehicle and other personal property that was damaged or destroyed in the crash. You may also include receipts for out-of-pocket expenses you incurred, such as daycare costs, travel expenses, and home or vehicle modifications to accommodate your injury.
Additionally, you want to keep a daily journal of the impact your injuries have had on your life. This can serve as invaluable evidence if you wish to pursue non-economic damages. Your attorney can also help you collect eyewitness statements, and they may depose witnesses to get their testimony for use at trial.
What Kinds of Compensation Can I Receive from a Nebraska Truck Accident Claim?
While filing a personal injury claim can’t restore you or your family member’s physical health or reverse the damage done to your vehicle following a large truck accident, a victory in court can help you and your family recover compensation for the injuries you received as a result of a truck driver or trucking company’s negligence.
Some common forms of compensation you could receive include:
- Medical bills and treatment costs, including the costs of future medical care
- Lost income and other work-related benefits, which can include loss of future earning capacity if your injuries result in a permanent disability
- Property damage to repair or replace your damaged vehicle and other personal property
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Mental anguish
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
- Scarring and disfigurement
If the truck accident killed a close family member, you may also obtain wrongful death damages by filing a wrongful death claim. These types of damages can help cover final medical expenses, funeral and burial costs, and the loss of income the deceased provided to your household.
Contact an Experienced Nebraska Truck Accident Lawyer Today
If you’ve been injured in a commercial truck accident and are considering filing a claim against the at-fault party, black box data may hold the irrefutable evidence you and your legal team need to prove your case and receive the compensation you deserve.
The attorneys at Berry Law will advocate for your right to fair compensation and exhaust all avenues when it comes to collecting evidence to build a strong case. Reach out to our team today to get started.
