FMCSA Regulations and How They Affect Your Truck Accident Claim
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, or FMCSA, sets the federal safety rules every commercial trucking company and driver has to follow, covering everything from driver hours to truck inspections. When a trucking company breaks one of these rules, and that violation contributed to a crash, it can turn into some of the strongest evidence in your claim.
FMCSA regulations give you a federal standard to measure the driver and the company against, making it harder for a violating company to argue it wasn’t negligent.
What are hours-of-service rules?
Hours-of-service rules limit how long a commercial driver can be behind the wheel without rest, and they exist because driver fatigue is one of the most common causes of serious truck crashes. Under federal law, a driver can’t drive more than 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, or at all once 14 hours have passed since coming on duty. A 30-minute break is required after 8 hours of driving, and drivers are capped at 60 hours on duty over 7 days, or 70 hours over 8 days, unless they take a 34-hour break to reset the clock.
These numbers matter in a claim because electronic logging devices track them automatically, so if a driver’s logs show they were on the road past these limits, that’s a documented violation, not a suspicion. Contact Thomas Creech Law Office to learn more.
What do driver qualification files have to show?
Every trucking company is required to keep a driver qualification file for each driver it employs. That file has to include the driver’s employment application, a motor vehicle record pulled within 30 days of hire, a three-year safety performance review from previous employers, a current medical certificate, and an annual driving record review. Companies also have to check the FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse before putting a driver on the road.
If a company skipped any of this, hired a driver with a known history of violations, or never ran the required checks, that file becomes evidence the company was negligent in who it put behind the wheel. That gap often only surfaces once a trucking case is investigated properly.
What do maintenance and inspection logs require?
Trucking companies must keep maintenance records for every vehicle, drivers must file a daily written inspection report noting defects, and every truck needs a full inspection at least once every 12 months covering brakes, steering, tires, lighting, and other safety systems. Maintenance records must be kept for at least a year; inspection records for 14 months.
When a mechanical failure, like a brake or tire issue, contributes to a crash, these records show whether the company caught the problem and fixed it, or ignored it.
What are the drug and alcohol testing rules?
Commercial drivers face federal drug and alcohol testing before hire, at random, after certain accidents, on reasonable suspicion, and before returning to duty after a violation. Every result gets reported to the FMCSA Clearinghouse, a national database that tracks violations so a driver can’t simply switch companies to hide a failed test.
A missed random test, a skipped Clearinghouse query, or a driver who should have been pulled after a violation can all surface during an investigation.
How common are FMCSA violations in trucking crashes?
In 2022, 5,837 large trucks were involved in fatal crashes nationwide, a two percent increase from the year before.
How does an FMCSA violation help my case?
Finding a violation only helps if it connects to your specific claim. Here’s how that process typically works:
First, we request the driver’s hours-of-service logs to check for fatigue-related violations around the time of the crash.
Second, we pull the driver qualification file to see whether the driver was properly vetted and legally allowed on the road.
Third, we check maintenance and inspection records for defects the company knew about or should have caught.
Fourth, we check the FMCSA Clearinghouse for drug or alcohol violations tied to the driver.
Finally, we compare what we find against federal requirements. A documented violation connected to the crash is strong evidence the company fell short of a standard the law already set.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a lawyer to get a trucking company’s FMCSA records?
You can request some records yourself, but trucking companies and their insurers are not required to hand them over voluntarily, and records like electronic logs can be difficult to preserve once a claim is filed. A formal request, and sometimes a court order, is often needed to get the full picture before records are lost or overwritten.
What happens if the trucking company already deleted the driver’s logs?
Federal rules require certain records to be kept for a set period, and destroying them after a crash can itself become an issue in a claim. This is one of the reasons early action matters, so the right preservation requests go out before records age out of retention.
Does an FMCSA violation automatically win my case?
No single violation decides a case on its own, but a documented violation that’s connected to the cause of the crash is strong evidence a company or driver fell short of a legal standard, which can meaningfully support a negligence claim.
Are FMCSA rules different for local trucking companies than long-haul carriers?
Some exceptions exist, such as a shorter-haul allowance for drivers who stay within a limited radius, but the core hours-of-service, maintenance, and drug testing requirements generally apply to any commercial motor carrier operating under federal authority.
Can a violation from months before my accident still matter?
Yes. A pattern of violations, like repeated hours-of-service issues or a driver who was flagged in the Clearinghouse, can show the company knew about a problem and didn’t act, which supports a negligent retention claim separate from what happened the day of the crash.
Speak With a Greenville Personal Injury Lawyer
If an accident or negligent act has caused a serious injury, you do not have to deal with the legal process alone. Speak with Thomas Creech Law Offices to understand your options and the next steps in your case. Contact our personal injury law firm in Greenville, SC, to request a free consultation.
