Many commercial vehicle drivers in New York and across the U.S. are traveling with bad brakes. By doing so, they are violating federal regulations and putting both themselves and others at risk for an accident. To address this issue, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance holds a brake inspection spree every year throughout North America. It is called Brake Safety Week.
For 2019, the event has been scheduled for Sept.15 to 21. As with previous inspection sprees, CMV drivers will be stopped at random. If they fail, they will be taken off the road until the issue that was found to violate federal regulations is fixed. Those who pass will have a CVSA decal on their truck to let others know.
The 2019 Brake Safety Week will be largely centered on brake hoses and tubing. If these are attached in the wrong way, are inflexible or have leaks, then this may provide enough matter for an out-of-service order. Another point to mention is that inspectors will use performance-based brake testers to measure braking efficiency, but only in the 14 jurisdictions that use these tools. Brake-related violations led to more than 4,500 truckers being put out of service during the 2018 International Roadcheck. These composed a startling 45% of all the violations detected during that three-day inspection spree.
Big rig accidents can result in catastrophic injuries, to occupants of other vehicles. If bad brakes were to blame, then victims may have a case against the trucking company. This is where legal representation may come in handy. A lawyer may have third parties investigate the crash and gather evidence, including truck maintenance records, before striving for a settlement.