How is Liability Determined in Arkansas Truck Accidents?

Defining Arkansas Truck Accidents

First of all, let’s define a truck accident.

“Truck accident” is described as a collision between a trailer that weighs at least 10,000 pounds or more and another vehicle or a person walking by.

According to the federal Department of Transportation, 3,087 persons died in truck and bus accidents in the United States in 2019.

When it comes to governing trucking in the United States it is a mixture of state, local, and federal regulations.

Things to Do if you’re Hurt in Arkansas Truck Accidents:

We’ll educate you on what to do if you’re hurt in a truck accident in Arkansas in this blog.

We will inform you if you are eligible for reimbursement for your medical costs and charges, whether you require legal assistance, and who is accountable for damages in a truck accident.

“Respondeat Superior:”

Respondeat superior is more like a “vicarious” obligation.

In simpler terms, we can say that it transfers responsibility to the employer of a negligent party.

The answers to these questions will determine if the concept applies to a specific truck accident:

• Is the driver working independently or for the company?
• Was the carelessness, accident, and injury within the scope of work of the driver (in case they are working as an employee of a company)?
• Was the incident deliberate or was it inadvertent negligence on part of the driver?

In rare cases, the company that owns the vehicle may be held liable for the driver’s carelessness, but when it comes to contract workers, organizations cannot be held responsible.

In cases when the driver is working independently, the “Respondeat Superior” does not apply.

In this scenario, the accident will not be the company’s responsibility.

Duties of Truck Driver:

Even if the driver is an employee of a trucking company rather than a contract worker, “respondeat superior” only applies to carelessness that occurs within the scope and course of the driver’s work obligations.

Such obligations may be difficult to define.

The list of things mentioned below should be taken into consideration:

• The job description for a driver
• Variables in the driver’s negligence: the place, time, and nature of the accident
• The degree to which a driver has discretion over their work obligations
• The truck driver’s intentions at the time of the accident

In a case in which a delivery truck collides with your car, the employer will very certainly be found responsible since the truck driver was acting like an employee in the course and scope of their job.

However, in a situation in which the driver is not doing the organization’s work and takes the company truck and crashes it, the organization is in no way is to be held responsible for that situation.

As it falls outside of their scope of work.