Trucking Companies, Traffic Accidents, and Legal Woes: The State of the Industry

When the pandemic first occurred, Americans were terrified to hear accounts from Tyson and other essential service providers that “the supply chain was breaking”. In other words, these companies would no longer be able to provide goods and services to American grocery stores. It was our logistics companies that paved the way for these supplies to be distributed. However, the stress on the industry and the importance of their job resulting in a higher percentage of fatal accidents involving large commercial trucks. While not all of those accidents, even those that involve death or injury, will be successful lawsuits, many politicians fear that the strain on the trucking industry will make the industry unprofitable.

Trucking Company Bankruptcies

The owner of two defunct trucking companies recently filed for Chapter 7 in California. Royal Flush 89 Transport was hit with several lawsuits, most of which stemmed from breach of contract disputes. The owner filed for Chapter 7 listing assets at $50,000 and liabilities at over $500,000. If his Chapter 7 is allowed to proceed, he would be allowed to divest his personal responsibility to pay the $500,000 in liabilities.

His story is not unique. Many smaller trucking companies filed for bankruptcy over the last year and many of their reasons for filing for bankruptcy related to the pandemic. Another issue facing the trucking company was the cost of oil dipping below negative.

Large Companies Not Facing Same Issues

As the demand for goods increased during the pandemic, larger companies were able to position themselves better to face the coming demand and deal with other issues related to the pandemic. However, companies that moved freight for some industries that were shut down during the pandemic found themselves with no reliable income. Worse still, those businesses were also filing for bankruptcy forcing the trucking companies that depended on their business to also file for bankruptcy.

While the trucking industry at large appears to be doing well, the smaller companies with fewer than 30 drivers have taken a major hit.

Fatal Accidents Up During Pandemic

While the overall number of accidents is always tied to the number of vehicles on the road, the number of fatal accidents has spiked in 2020. So there are fewer accidents, but there are more accidents that resulted in a loss of life. This is because the majority of accidents involved commercial trucks. With fewer vehicles on the road and more pressure on the industry, more accidents occurred resulting in more personal injury judgments.

Talk to a Florida Truck Accident Attorney Today

Commercial trucking companies owe other drivers on the road a duty of care to ensure that their trucks are safe, their drivers are trained, and that the drivers are adhering to federal standards when it comes to rest breaks. When they don’t, people are severely injured or killed. The Coral Gables tire defect attorneys at Halpern, Santos & Pinkert can get justice for those injured or who have lost family to preventable accidents. Call today to learn more.

Resource:

freightwaves.com/news/legal-woes-force-owner-of-shuttered-carriers-to-file-chapter-7

https://www.tiredefectattorney.com/auto-recall-bundling-what-is-it-why-is-it-dangerous/