When Trucking Companies Violate Federal Hours-of-Service Rules in Minnesota
According to preliminary data from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), 68 Minnesotans died in bus and truck-related accidents in 2024. Since 2021, the FMCSA has reported over 12,000 crashes involving large trucks and buses across Minnesota, many of which resulted in serious injuries and hundreds of fatalities.
To offset some of the unique risks posed by large vehicle accidents, the FMCSA mandates strict hours-of-service (HOS) limits that cap the amount of time drivers can spend behind the wheel before taking a break. While these limits can be effective at mitigating harm for truck drivers and other motorists, not all drivers or carriers honor them as they should. Here’s an explanation of how HOS rules can help prevent accidents and an overview of how Minnesotans can hold carriers accountable for dangerous violations of HOS limits.
What are federal hours-of-service rules?
Hours-of-service or HOS rules are a set of federal safety regulations that limit how long commercial truck drivers can spend on the clock before needing to take a rest period. They also establish how long drivers must remain off-duty prior to resuming service.
Here is a brief overview of some of FMCSA’s current HOS rules for property-carrying drivers:
- 11-hour driving limit: Drivers cannot drive for longer than 11 hours during a shift and may only drive for this long after spending 10 consecutive hours off duty.
- 14-hour on-duty limit: Drivers may not be on the clock for longer than 14 hours, even if they spend less than 11 hours actually driving during that window.
- 30-minute break requirement: Drivers must take a 30-minute rest break after 8 cumulative hours of driving without at least a 30-minute interruption.
- 60/70-hour weekly limit: Drivers may not spend more than 60 hours on duty in a 7 day period or 70 hours on duty in an 8 day period. Drivers must spend 34 consecutive hours off-duty before they can start the clock on a new 7 or 8 day period.
There are limited statutory and regulatory exceptions that may apply in specific circumstances.
On paper, these rules aim to enhance the safety of roads and highways by reducing driver fatigue and providing a framework for accountability when violations occur. While FMCSA’s regulations aren’t exactly foolproof in terms of preventing truck accidents, they can significantly reduce the likelihood of accidents linked to driver fatigue and ensure truck drivers are prepared to do their jobs safely and effectively.
Why driver fatigue is so dangerous
In the sample of crashes analyzed in FMCSA’s Large Truck Crash Causation Study, approximately 13% were linked to driver fatigue. In Minnesota, that figure translates to 1,500 preventable truck accidents every year. Driver fatigue is dangerous under all circumstances, but drowsy truck drivers pose enhanced risks to motorists, pedestrians, cyclists and more thanks to the massive size and scale of commercial vehicles and the accidents they cause.
When a truck driver is fatigued, they may be slower to react, suffer from impaired judgment or struggle to make spur-of-the-moment decisions on the road. If a fatigued truck driver misjudges a stopping distance, reacts too slowly to a sudden roadway hazard or nods off and drifts into the next lane, they can cause serious harm to themselves and those around them.
Truck accidents come at high personal and financial costs – to accident victims and the drivers that injure them. Between property damage, medical bills, rehabilitation costs and more, large-scale truck accidents often yield hefty price tags that many victims choose to address via the civil court system.
HOS violations and personal injury cases
Minnesota is a no-fault state when it comes to certain injury-related expenses. Under this system, motorists injured in truck-related crashes can file claims against their own Personal Injury Protection (PIP) policies to recover compensation for certain costs. However, these policies are limited and may not provide sufficient coverage in accidents involving catastrophic injuries.
Under Minnesota law, truck accident victims may be within their rights to file a separate personal injury claim against a truck driver or carrier if:
- Their reasonable medical expenses exceed $4,000
- Their injuries result in:
- Permanent disfigurement
- Permanent injury
- Death
- Disability for 60 days or more
Additionally, Minnesota truck accident victims must be able to show that their injuries were caused by a truck driver or carrier’s breach of their legal duty of care. HOS violations may constitute such a breach and serve as the basis for a claim of liability against the driver or their employer.
Keep in mind that Minnesota personal injury claims are subject to the state’s modified comparative negligence system, which means you’ll only be able to recover compensation for a truck-related accident if you were less responsible than the other party. If you were, say, 40% responsible for the crash, you can still recover compensation, but your final damage award will be reduced by 40% as well.
An experienced truck accident lawyer can help you better understand how comparative negligence may apply in your case and can work with you to gather the evidence you need to argue that HOS violations or other forms of negligence directly caused your suffering.
Building a case
If a driver violates HOS requirements and causes an accident as a result, injured victims may be within their rights to fight for compensation. These cases can be complex, however, and many require extensive evidence, investigation and documentation. In some cases, responsibility for a crash may be shared between an individual truck driver and the carrier that employs them.
If a trucking company was aware that their driver had exceeded HOS limits and allowed them to drive anyway, the carrier itself may be on the hook for damages in the event of a crash. Similarly, if a driver falsified their records or failed to accurately report their hours to their employer, victims may be within their rights to seek compensation directly from the driver.
In either case, supporting evidence will make or break these cases, as HOS documentation often serves as the cornerstone of these claims. Depending on the circumstances, that evidence may include:
- Electronic Logging Device (ELD) data that tracks driving and rest periods
- GPS records
- Communications between the driver and their employer
- Cell phone records and text exchanges
- Fuel receipts and toll records
- Personnel files, inspection reports and safety records
All of this information can be used to highlight HOS violations and inconsistencies in truckers’ accident accounts. This kind of evidence doesn’t last forever, and that’s by design. If it isn’t preserved quickly, it can be lost or overwritten, which is why it’s so important to speak to a lawyer as soon as possible after a crash to get the ball rolling on evidence collection. An attorney can send preservation requests, communicate with insurance companies and face off against corporate lawyers looking to protect their clients’ interests rather than seeing that justice is served.
Final thoughts
Truck accident cases involving HOS violations are complex, but with the right combination of detailed evidence and experienced legal support, injured victims may be able to recover the compensation they need to address their losses. Truck drivers and trucking companies must follow strict rules and regulations to ensure the safety of motorists across our state, and truckers who violate these rules should be held accountable under the law.
At Bradshaw & Bryant, our team understands how devastating truck accidents can be, and we are dedicated to helping injured victims and their families fight for what they deserve. If you suspect driver fatigue or HOS violations may have played a role in a crash that caused you harm, we are standing by to help you explore your options and identify the best possible path forward.
Give us a call today or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation, and let’s chat about how our truck accident team can help you decide what next steps might be right for you.