Truck accident discovery is critical because of the complexity of trucks themselves and the complexity of the relationship between the different companies and drivers that may be involved.What follows is a series of proposed Interrogatories to first the driver and then secondly to the truck owner or company that is responsible for the vehicle itself.
Interrogatories to the Driver
1. Give the dates and results of all medical examinations required by the U.S. Department of Transportation stating the date of the exam, the name of the examiner, the location of the examination and the results.
2. If you have been involved in any prior collisions or have received any prior traffic citations then give the date, circumstances, and outcome of each.
3. If you have been cited for any violations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations either in this incident or any other then give the date, circumstances of such and the outcome of any such citation.
4. If you have ever been placed out of service for any traffic citation or FMCSR violation, state the date, circumstances, and outcome of such.
5. Identify every state that has ever issued you a driver’s license, the date of such issuance, and the current status of that license.
6. Set forth in chronological form your prior employment, the name of the employer, dates of employment, and the reason for separation.
7. Describe all driver training that you have had giving the dates, the name of the company or individual that provided the training and any certificates that you have received.
8. Describe in detail the pre-employment screening process associated with the position that you occupied on the date of this incident giving the date of any such screening and the circumstances.
9. Provide in detail all training that you have received from the company that you were associated with in regards to the vehicle in question in this case.
10. As to any communications between yourself and the company with which you were associated with on the date of this incident give the date and time of those communications, the content of those communications, the names of the individuals involved in such communications and the nature of the communications, i.e. text, email, radio, or otherwise.
11. Describe in detail your relationship with any of the other named Defendants to this action as of the date of this incident.
Interrogatories to the Trucking Company or Companies
1. Identify precisely the owner of the tractor and the trailer involved and describe in detail all signage on either of these. Include within your answer the DOT number for each vehicle and all prior business names that you have ever operated under.
2. State whether or not the driver of the vehicle in question was acting within the scope of the employment at the time of the collision.
3. Identify in detail and by name any documents that constitute your safety policy or policies. State in what format they exist, i.e. paper, electronic, or otherwise.
4. Identify all policies concerning driver discipline for violation of any motor carrier safety regulations, stating the name of any such policy manual and state in what format these policies exist, i.e. paper, electronic, or otherwise.
5. Identify in detail your safety training practices for each driver and further identify all training documents and the names of the individuals responsible for overseeing safety as of the date of the incident in question.
6. Detail all factors affecting the driver’s compensation and within your answer set forth in detail precisely how the driver was compensated as of the date of this incident.
7. If the tractor involved in this collision is equipped with any on-board or satellite vehicle tracking equipment then identify any such equipment and state who is the current custodian of any data from that equipment.
8. State whether or not the driver who was involved in this collision was tested for the presence of alcohol or drugs after the collision and if so when, by whom, and what the results were of such testing.
9. Describe in detail the employment evaluation process for the driver in question. Your answer should include but not be limited to the date of the driver’s road test, who conducted it and what the results were.
10. In regards to the trip that the driver was working at the time of this collision set forth in detail the cargo that was being carried, the trip route, all stops and intended destinations.
11. Set forth in detail all means by which you communicated with the driver from the beginning of this trip up to time of the collision. Identify who is the current custodian of any such communications.
12. Identify the manufacturer and model number of the engine of the truck, the truck itself, and the trailer.
13. Set forth the gross and curb weight of the tractor and trailer as of the time of this collision or as of the beginning of the trip in question.
14. How many trucks and trailers do you own and/or lease and how many drivers do you employ or contract with as of the date of this collision.
15. If you contend that there was any equipment failure that contributed to this collision then identify the nature of the equipment that you contend failed, the nature of the failure, and identify any documents that would evidence any such failure.
16.If the truck in question was leased by you, then identify the date of any inspection of that truck, all documents evidencing any such inspection and in particular what the inspection disclosed.
17. Set forth in detail your relationship with any other Defendants in this lawsuit.
18. State who is the current custodian of all log books for the trip in question in this action and identify what form they exist in, i.e. paper, electronic, or otherwise.
