A truck with a tired driver behaves in predictable ways. It drifts across the lane line or onto the shoulder, or runs into stopped traffic without braking because the driver's reaction time is gone or the driver nodded off. Fatigue crashes are common in the overnight and early morning hours, and they are often severe because nothing slows the truck down before impact.
Many truck drivers are paid by the mile or by the load, face tight delivery appointments, and lose hours waiting at docks. Florida's long freight corridors, including I-75, I-95, I-10, and the Turnpike, carry trucks that have often driven all night from out of state.
Federal law limits how long a truck driver may drive and work. When a driver breaks those limits, the records usually show it, if they are obtained before the retention period runs out.
1. Get medical care and note the signs of fatigue
Get medical care first. Florida PIP medical benefits generally require initial care "within 14 days after the motor vehicle accident" (§ 627.736(1)(a), Fla. Stat.). Then write down whether the truck drifted or braked, how the driver acted afterward, and anything the driver said about the trip or how long he or she had been driving. Note the exact time of the crash.
“within 14 days after the motor vehicle accident”
§ 627.736(1)(a)
2. Understand the federal hours of service limits
For drivers of property-carrying trucks, the main federal limits are (49 CFR 395.3):
- A driver "may not drive without first taking 10 consecutive hours off duty."
- After coming on duty, the driver may drive "a total of 11 hours" and may not drive after 14 consecutive hours from coming on duty.
- A driver must take at least a 30-minute break after 8 cumulative hours of driving, except for qualifying short-haul drivers.
- A driver may not drive after 60 hours on duty in 7 consecutive days, or 70 hours in 8 consecutive days if the carrier operates every day. The week can restart only after 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.
Florida applies these federal rules to interstate carriers and, with exceptions, to trucks operating only within the state (§ 316.302(1), Fla. Stat.). Certain intrastate drivers may drive up to 12 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, and are subject to limits of 70 hours in 7 consecutive days or 80 hours in 8 consecutive days (§ 316.302(2)(b)-(c)).
The hours limits are not the only rule. Federal law also bars a driver from operating while alertness is "so impaired, or so likely to become impaired" through fatigue or illness that driving is unsafe, and bars the carrier from requiring or permitting it (49 CFR 392.3). A driver can be within the hours and still be too tired to drive.
“so impaired, or so likely to become impaired”
49 CFR 392.3
3. Send a preservation letter before the records expire
Most carriers must require drivers to record duty status with an electronic logging device (ELD), with limited exceptions (49 CFR 395.8(a)(1)). The ELD records each driver's status as off duty, sleeper berth, driving, or on-duty not driving (49 CFR 395.8(b)). Carriers must keep these records and their supporting documents for six months (49 CFR 395.8(k)(1)). A preservation letter should go out within days and demand:
- ELD records for the driver for at least the eight days before the crash, plus edit histories and unassigned driving time.
- Supporting documents, including bills of lading, dispatch and trip records, expense receipts, fleet management messages, and payroll or settlement records (49 CFR 395.11(c)(1)).
- Engine control module and GPS or telematics data.
- Driver-facing camera footage.
- Delivery appointments, load tenders, and detention records from the shipper and receiver.
- The driver's qualification file, including the medical examiner's certificate (49 CFR 391.51(b)).
4. Compare the logs to the outside records
ELD records can be edited, and drivers sometimes log work time as off duty. We test the logs against records the driver did not create: fuel and toll receipts, SunPass and E-ZPass data, weigh station records, phone records, GPS pings, receipts from truck stops, and the shipper's gate times. A log showing sleeper berth time while the truck was being fueled is a false log.
5. Look at the carrier's dispatch and pay practices
A carrier may not schedule a run on a timetable that would require speeding (49 CFR 392.6) and must require its drivers to obey the safety rules (49 CFR 390.11). Federal rules also provide that "No person shall aid, abet, encourage, or require a motor carrier or its employees to violate the rules of this chapter" (49 CFR 390.13). Dispatch messages pushing the driver to keep going and delivery windows that could not be met legally bear on the carrier's responsibility.
“No person shall aid, abet, encourage, or require a motor carrier or its employees to violate the rules of this chapter”
49 CFR 392.6
Florida rules that matter
Deadline. For negligence claims arising after March 24, 2023, Florida generally allows two years to file suit (§ 95.11(5)(a), Fla. Stat.); a wrongful death action also has two years (§ 95.11(5)(e)). The six-month federal retention period for logs is far shorter.
Fault. Florida reduces damages by a claimant's share of fault and bars recovery for a person found more than 50 percent at fault for his or her own harm (§ 768.81(2), (6), Fla. Stat.).
Punitive damages. In some cases the evidence may support a request to add punitive damages. Florida does not permit that claim unless there is "a reasonable showing by evidence in the record" or proffered by the claimant (§ 768.72(1), Fla. Stat.). The standard is "clear and convincing evidence" of intentional misconduct or gross negligence (§ 768.72(2)), and an employer's liability for an employee's conduct is limited to the circumstances in § 768.72(3).
Insurance. Interstate for-hire carriers of nonhazardous property in vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more must carry at least $750,000 in public liability coverage (49 CFR 387.9). Trucks operating only within Florida must carry $50,000 to $300,000 per occurrence depending on weight (§ 627.7415, Fla. Stat.).
“a reasonable showing by evidence in the record”
§ 768.72(1)
Your checklist
- Get medical care within 14 days.
- Write down the exact time of the crash and how the truck moved before it.
- Record anything the driver said about the trip or lack of sleep.
- Have a preservation letter sent within days for ELD records and supporting documents.
- Keep your own receipts, phone records, and photos from the day of the crash.
- Do not give a recorded statement to the trucking insurer.
- Talk with a trial lawyer well before the two-year deadline.
How we handle these cases
We rebuild the driver's last eight days hour by hour from the ELD, the supporting documents, and third-party records, and we compare that timeline to what the carrier required of the driver. Where the evidence supports it, we pursue the carrier for its own conduct, not only the driver's. We represent people injured in truck crashes throughout Florida, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville. Meetings are by appointment only. Call 305-748-3789 to talk with us.
This article is general information, not legal advice for your situation. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.