A car crash caused by a fatigued driver can happen in the blink of an eye. One moment, the vehicle ahead is following traffic normally, and the next, it drifts across the center line or fails to slow down for a stopped car. Victims of these crashes often feel confused about how another driver could lose control without ever hitting the brakes. A person does not have to be fully asleep to lose the split-second reaction time needed to prevent a serious wreck.
At Callahan & Blaine, PC, we help people hurt in car accidents, including those caused by drivers who were too tired to operate a vehicle safely. Fatigue-related crashes often leave victims with serious injuries and little clarity about how blame gets assigned to a driver who never appeared impaired at the scene. Knowing how fatigue affects reaction time and judgment is the first step toward identifying who may be held liable.
How Fatigue Impairs Driving Ability
Fatigue slows the brain’s ability to process information quickly. A driver who has been awake for many hours may experience delayed reaction times, reduced attention, and trouble judging distance and speed, all of which raise the odds of a crash. Some drivers even experience microsleep, brief moments of unconsciousness lasting only a few seconds, without realizing it happened at all.
Drowsy driving statistics compiled by New York’s Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee show driving after more than 20 hours without sleep can impair a driver about as much as a blood alcohol content of .08 percent, and fatigue-related crashes cost society more than $109 billion each year in injuries and deaths. Numbers like these show why fatigue deserves the same scrutiny as drunk or distracted driving after a crash.
Common Causes of Driver Fatigue
Several factors can push a driver past the point of safe operation, and many of them are preventable with better planning and rest. A driver who recognizes these risk factors ahead of time has a real opportunity to avoid getting behind the wheel while dangerously tired, including:
- Working long shifts or overnight hours without adequate rest
- Undiagnosed sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea
- Certain prescription or over-the-counter medications
- Driving between midnight and 6 a.m., when the body’s natural drive to sleep is strongest
Any of these factors can turn an otherwise careful driver into a hazard for everyone else on the road. Commercial truck drivers face many of these same pressures, often compounded by long hours on the road and tight delivery schedules. A trucking company that pushes drivers past safe limits, or a driver who falls asleep behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler, can cause catastrophic harm to everyone nearby because of the vehicle’s size and weight.
Who Can Be Held Liable for a Drowsy Driving Accident?
Liability for a drowsy driving crash can fall on more than one party, depending on who was behind the wheel and why they were driving tired in the first place.
Liability of the Driver
California law requires every driver to operate their vehicle with reasonable care for the safety of others on the road. Choosing to drive while dangerously tired can break that duty just as clearly as speeding or running a red light. When a driver causes a crash after nodding off or losing focus from exhaustion, proving negligence often comes down to phone records, work schedules, and witness accounts showing how long the driver had been awake before the crash.
Liability of an Employer or Trucking Company
When the tired driver was working at the time of the crash, liability may extend beyond the individual behind the wheel. Employers who schedule shifts that make rest nearly impossible, or trucking companies that ignore federal hours-of-service rules, may share responsibility for the harm that follows. Fatigued driving is often compared to drunk driving because the effects on reaction time and judgment are strikingly similar, which is one reason courts and insurers take these cases seriously.
Hire Callahan & Blaine, PC to Handle Your Litigation Matter
For 40 years, Callahan & Blaine, PC has secured record-breaking verdicts and settlements for people hurt across California, including the largest personal injury settlement in United States history at $50 million. Our team of 29 trial lawyers, each with at least eight years of litigation experience, knows how to dig into phone records, employment files, and crash data to show how a fatigued driver caused a wreck.
If you were hurt by a driver who fell asleep behind the wheel or ignored the clear signs of exhaustion, submitting your case for review may be the first step toward holding the right party accountable. Contact us to submit your potential case.
