Truck accidents can result in severe and sometimes fatal injuries for those involved. When pursuing a personal injury claim after an incident, proving the truck driver, carrier, or dispatcher acted in a reckless or careless manner is essential to obtaining fair compensation for your losses. Thus, seeking help from a seasoned lawyer with collecting evidence in Denton truck accidents is key to achieving a successful result in your case.
Electronic Control Modules (ECM)
In any kind of trucking wreck, but especially those resulting in catastrophic injuries, it is important to preserve the electronic control modules (ECM) found within the 18-wheeler and passenger cars. ECMs—more commonly known as black boxes—can capture all of the evidence that is critical in proving fault following an incident. ECMs can reveal how fast a person was driving or even their breaking history. Thus, if a truck driver was speeding or failed to hit their brakes due to distracted driving, or any other reason, an ECM can help prove this story in court. However, the driving data stored within ECMs does not last forever, which is why it is so crucial that this information is gathered quickly following an accident. If a person does not act swiftly, they risk the information disappearing due to the truck being put back on the road and the ECM being overwritten with new data.
Restrictions on Driving Time
ECM data can also reveal how long the truck driver had been operating the vehicle. That information can then be cross-referenced with the trucker’s official driving log to reveal if any of the documentation has been falsified. Truck drivers have legal restrictions on how long they are allowed to drive at a time. If a trucker was running over their maximum number of hours and caused a crash with another vehicle due to their own exhaustion, ECM data could be utilized to hold them legally accountable for their actions. On the other hand, if a truck operator went over their restricted number of driving hours because their supervisor instructed them to, then the trucking company could also be sued for damages in a claim. Thus, collecting evidence in a timely manner in Denton truck wrecks is extremely significant when filing a personal injury suit.
