After an airplane accident, the plane's black box recorder can often provide investigators with powerful clues about what went wrong. After a big-rig or 18-wheeler crash, the truck's black box may be able to do the same for you and your personal injury attorney.
Black Box Recorders Can Help in Commercial Truck Wrecks
Also known as electronic control modules (ECMs) or event data recorders (EDRs), black box recorders have been used since the 1990s to prevent fraudulent warranty claims, and to allow trucking companies to closely monitor truck and employee performance. However, because these recorders collect such a wide range of data, they can also shed insight on truck accidents, and serve as evidence in a personal injury insurance claim or lawsuit.
Black box devices installed in large commercial truck often gather the following types of information:
- Overall average truck speed
- Highest speed
- Whether the truck exceeded the speed limit and, if so, for how long
- Time spend driving faster than 65 miles per hour
- Driving time
- Acceleration and deceleration speeds
- Hard braking events or sudden stops
- Speed and number of revolutions per minute (RPMs) recorded prior to the stop
- Seat belt usage
- Distance traveled
- Steering angles and throttle positions
- Airbag deployment
- Idling time
- GPS location
If you were hurt in a truck accident caused by another person or company's negligence, you may be entitled to compensation. Data collected from a truck's black box can be used by your attorney to prove fault and damages.
However, if you hope to use black box data as evidence in your personal injury insurance claim or lawsuit, you must act quickly and consult an attorney. Not all trucks have black box recorders and, even if the truck that hit you does, there's no guarantee that the information you want will be there when you need it. These devices are only designed to record events from the past 30 days and, in some cases, the data may be purposely destroyed by the trucking company. An experienced California personal injury attorney can help you find out if the truck involved in your accident had a black box and, if necessary, request an order to preserve this important evidence.
Consult Our Skilled Attorneys About Your Truck Crash Case
Hurt in a California truck accident? Contact Inland Empire Law Group today at (888) 694-3529 or (909) 481-0100 to schedule an appointment for a free initial consultation to discuss your case—and your legal rights and options—with a knowledgeable member of our team.
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