There are so many little details and nuances that go into the trucking industry; from basic operations to driver competence, there are hundreds of things that need to be followed or obeyed to ensure the safe transport of goods from point A to point B. The drivers need to be properly trained, and they have to obtain a valid commercial driver’s license; the company needs to comply with local and federal mandates; and in general, all parties involved need to think about safety ahead of profit margin.
No one would think that a simple sneezing fit could make all of these things irrelevant.
San Leandro, California was the scene of a bizarre trucking accident, where a trucker said he suffered a severe string of sneezes. Driving around 30 miles per hour, the driver crashed into a car dealership after the sneezing fit disoriented the driver. He crashed into a dozen or so cars, and no one was hurt in the accident.
But this still raises some questions. A sneezing attack certainly sounds like a convenient excuse for a driver who has just caused a major accident — however, the truck driver was not cited for the accident, nor did investigators claim anything nefarious was afoot.
Still, a sneezing attack is not an acceptable excuse for causing an accident. In fact, it isn’t an excuse at all. If you were involved with a minor wreck with another person, and they said to you “sorry, I just coughed a little and that’s why I hit your bumper,” you wouldn’t just accept that as a viable response, right?
There could still be liability concerns for the trucker and his company. What is the accident history of the driver? What about the company? Do they have a poor track record? These things can come into play with any truck accident; but they seem especially important in this case.
Source: Associated Press, “Truck accident nothing to sneeze at,” Nov. 29, 2012
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