The Trucking Lobby’s Contradictory Campaign On Accountability
Since the start of President Donald Trump’s term, the Department of Transportation has revoked a whopping 30,000 commercial trucking licenses that were illegally issued to foreign drivers. And that might just be the tip of the iceberg — an untold number of unqualified truckers remain behind the wheel of the 40,000-pound machines barreling across American highways.
Innocent motorists have already paid a steep price: Federal officials estimate that at least 239 people have been killed in accidents involving semi-truck drivers who couldn’t speak or read English well enough to pass a basic proficiency test.
Late last month, the Trump administration shut down 110 driving schools that had trained more than 5,000 drivers, later cited for failing to meet basic English-speaking requirements. One of those now-defunct schools certified a driver who later blew through a stop sign and killed a man. Another trained a driver later involved in a fatal Oklahoma crash.
Among many who are tragically caught in the industry’s broader negligence is Dalilah Coleman, who was just five when an illegal alien — with an illegally issued California trucking license — slammed his 18-wheeler into her family’s stopped car. Two years later, she’s still relearning how to walk.
And while trucking associations openly acknowledge the problem posed by rogue operators, they’re lobbying Congress to restrict one of the few tools that enables victims to hold these bad actors accountable.
Their target is “third-party litigation funding,” which allows outside investors to finance lawsuits in exchange for a portion of any damages or settlement. Third-party funding can help crash victims, or their surviving family members, afford the years-long lawsuits necessary to secure justice.
The trucking industry argues that third-party litigation can encourage excessive claims and drag out court proceedings. But for an injured plaintiff facing years of medical bills and a well-funded corporate defendant, outside financing can also provide the resources necessary to litigate a legitimate claim rather than accept a settlement simply because they have been outspent.
A serious accident can turn a family’s finances upside down. A victim may be unable to work while medical bills pile up. Meanwhile, trucking companies have deep-pocketed insurers with teams of lawyers who can drag cases out for years.
Third-party funding helps victims stay in the fight and get their day in court. Without it, many would be forced to take low-ball settlements out of financial desperation.
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The trucking lobby is advocating for several legislative proposals that’d impose onerous new restrictions on litigation funding. The American Trucking Association says this push is necessary to combat “nuclear verdicts” — when outraged juries award tens of millions of dollars in damages to the families of victims who were killed or maimed by negligent truckers.
But a large verdict is not necessarily an unjust verdict. There’s a profound difference between an unavoidable highway accident and a crash that happened because rogue companies turned a blind eye to fraudulent documents and put borderline-illiterate illegal immigrants behind the wheels of 40,000-pound semi-trucks. The trucking industry’s own research has shown that “pre-crash negligence,” such as improper hiring practices, can increase jury awards by almost 300 percent.
Massive jury awards send an unambiguous message to trucking companies and their insurers: clean up your act or pay for it.
Fortunately, the Trump administration has stepped up enforcement against companies and drivers that flout the law. In a recent three-day blitz across the country, federal authorities detained 51 illegal immigrants and placed 766 unsafe drivers and vehicles out of service.
The trucking industry has outwardly welcomed the administration’s crackdown on bad actors. Yet it’s simultaneously asking Congress to make it harder for victims’ families to hold those bad actors accountable.
If the trucking industry wants Washington to hold bad actors accountable, it should support accountability on both sides of the crash. That means cracking down on fraudulent licenses and unsafe drivers — but it also means ensuring that families injured by negligent companies have a meaningful opportunity to seek justice in court.
Stacy Washington is a decorated Air Force veteran, an Emmy-nominated TV personality, and an author. Her radio show, Stacy on the Right, airs on SiriusXM Patriot Channel 125 nightly from 9 pm to midnight Eastern Time.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller.
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