If a driver is in an accident and needs a lawyer to clear his name, who pays for the attorney? the company, the truck insurance or the driver.

 

The trucking company lawyers are there to clear the company. If the driver did something stupid, then the driver will be roasted by the company lawyers to protect themselves. And of course rightly so.

 

The fine line is between stupid and a mistake is a matter of opinion. Mistakes can happen at work, i believe drivers shouldn't be treated as a criminal when they are involved in an accident.

 

The fine line you speak of is really not a matter of your opinion. It is a matter of what the court thinks.

In my opinion if it involves a lawsuit you would be best served by having your own lawyer. As Fozzy says the company lawyer and the insurance company will protect the company. That is what he/she is hired to do. Just like your lawyer is there to protect your interest.

And you sure need your own lawyer if there is criminal charges brought against you.

kc0iv

 

If YOU need and attorney then it is YOU who will foot the bill.

 

Any incident has two parts, at fault and preventable. At fault is simple enough, who broke the law, if anybody, causing the incident. Preventable is where things get trickier, could the driver have done anything to prevent the accident whether he was at fault or not. Deciding if it was preventable is usually determined by the company safety department, sometimes with input from DOT and the insurer. Preventable is why you need your own lawyer because there are some companies who will say an incident was preventable, whether it was are not and putting a black mark on your employment record/DAC, this is called shedding blame.