A former trucking regulator with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) reported that the agency has a list of commercial truck drivers with histories of serious safety violations. This information may bolster victim’s claims against commercial trucking operators, or carriers, in trucking accident lawsuits.
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA 2010)
Compliance, Safety, Accountability, also known as CSA 2010, is the FMCSA’s initiative to improve commercial-motor-vehicle safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities involving large trucks and buses.
Driver Safety Measurement System (DSMS)
The CSA 2010 program uses a Safety Measurement System with many components. One component is the Driver Safety Measurement System (DSMS). The DSMS will enable law enforcement personnel to assess individual truck drivers records’ using 36 months of roadside inspection performance data.
This new procedure will not simply pin the blame for accidents on truckers to the exclusion of other factors. FMCSA has said that it does not use the system to assign formal safety ratings to or directly investigate individual drivers.
But the safety agency has said that the CSA 2010 program includes a list of specific safety violations referred to as red-flag violations. When a safety investigator conducts a carrier compliance evaluation or safety intervention, the investigator is informed if any of the carrier’s employees has received a red-flag violation. If so, the investigator is required to look further into the violation.
Moreover, former FMSCA administrator Annette Sandberg reported that the agency keeps a so-called “red list” of drivers considered the worst of the worst. Sandberg cautioned that carriers that hire red-list drivers invite scrutiny and will be carefully monitored for safety issues.
Trucking Company Liability for Employee Accidents
Information from both the CSA 2010 and possible red list will help increase safety for everyone on the road. It will also work against carriers sued in personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits for trucking accidents.
Carriers informed of the dangerous behavior of their drivers through the CSA 2010 program may be found negligent if they fail to correct the employee’s dangerous behavior and that employee later causes an injury. In addition, they also may be held liable for an accident if they hire a driver they knew or should have known was dangerous based on CSA 2010 information.
If you or a loved has been injured in a Pennsylvania truck accident, contact an experienced truck accident attorney in your area to discuss any legal claims you may have. A knowledgeable lawyer can explain your rights and legal options.