Vargas v. FMI, Inc. - Trucking Accident Liability Challenged

Vargas v. FMI, Inc. - Trucking Accident Liability Challenged http://ift.tt/1CgLKVX

Vargas v. FMI, Inc. - Trucking Accident Liability Challenged

The trucking industry as a whole has gotten very savvy with the way in which it has structured operations in order to limit liability.

By hiring independently-contracted drivers, they seek to reduce the chance of a vicarious liability claim for employee negligence. By having separate firms owning the tractors and the trailers, they attempt to shield themselves under the Graves Amendment -- federal law written to protect rental car companies from renters' negligence but which truck companies have used to their advantage.

Despite a powerful trucking lobby that actively seeks to erode public safety protections and limit liability, there are still several key laws that hold trucking firms accountable in these instances.