Truck accidents are rarely simple. If you’ve been hit by a big rig, you’re likely asking the right questions – what caused the crash, and who’s responsible?
One piece of evidence that can matter a lot is the truck driver’s travel log. These logs can reveal truck driver negligence, and in many cases, they directly affect how much you could recover in a settlement.
What Information is Included in a Truck Driver’s Travel Log?
Truck drivers must document their hours on the road. These records are called travel logs or Hours of Service (HOS) logs. Whether they’re handwritten or digital, they include a lot of detail.
Here’s what you’ll find in a typical travel log:
- Start and end times for each driving period
- Total hours driven each day
- Break periods and off-duty hours
- Location entries (cities, states, or highway markers)
- Odometer readings and mileage
- Daily entries showing compliance with driving limits
Most drivers now use electronic logging devices (ELDs), which are connected to the truck’s engine and automatically track movement and time. These devices are more accurate and harder to change than paper logs.
These records can be used as strong evidence after a truck accident, if they’re reviewed correctly.
How a Travel Log Could Help After an Accident?
A travel log is more than paperwork. It’s a timeline. It tells you when the driver was on duty, how long they’d been driving, and whether they followed legal rules. That’s powerful in a legal case.
Here’s how travel logs can help your accident claim:
1. Showing Driver Fatigue
Truck drivers are required to take breaks and limit their hours. If the log shows the driver skipped rest or drove too long without stopping, that could point to fatigue. Fatigue is a common cause of serious truck crashes.
2. Catching False or Edited Logs
Sometimes logs are faked. A driver or trucking company might try to cover up excessive hours by adjusting entries. But these can be cross-checked with GPS data, fuel receipts, and weight station records. If anything doesn’t match, that’s a red flag.
Falsifying logs isn’t just wrong, it’s illegal. If your attorney finds this, it helps prove truck driver negligence.
3. Building a Timeline Around the Crash
The more your lawyer knows about the driver’s schedule, the stronger your case. Was the driver on their tenth hour without a break? Were they operating outside legal driving hours? The log helps fill in those details.
That’s critical when determining what led to the accident and who’s at fault.
4. Uncovering Company Pressure or Oversight
Travel logs can also point to bigger issues, like company pressure to drive longer than allowed. In some cases, a trucking company might set delivery times that require drivers to ignore safety rules. That opens the door to a claim against the company, not just the driver.
Laws and Regulations that Govern Truck Drivers
Truck drivers are subject to strict federal rules that control how long they can drive and when they must rest.
Key federal rules include:
- Drivers can’t drive more than 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off-duty
- They must take a 30-minute break after 8 hours of driving
- They’re limited to 60 or 70 hours of on-duty time in a 7- or 8-day period
- After reaching those limits, they must take a full 34-hour rest before starting again
These rules are designed to prevent fatigue and keep roads safer.
Drivers also must use electronic logging devices (ELDs) to track their time unless they fall under limited exemptions. If a driver wasn’t using an ELD when they should have been, that’s a compliance problem and it could strengthen your claim.
Why This Matters in a Truck Accident Settlement
A settlement in a truck accident depends on showing who was responsible and whether any rules were broken. The travel log can provide that proof.
Here’s how it helps:
- Shows how long the driver had been on the road
- Confirms if required breaks were taken
- Identifies violations of federal law
- Points to driver fatigue or company negligence
- Strengthens your claim by showing clear fault
In short, the travel log can affect the size of your settlement or whether you get one at all.
That’s why it’s important to act quickly. Travel logs can be edited or deleted. A skilled lawyer can request them before they disappear and compare them with other records to build your case.
What You Can Do Right Now
If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, don’t wait. The trucking company and its insurer are already working to limit what they pay. You need someone in your corner, looking out for your side.
Call Lowe Law Group. We are experienced in investigating travel logs, ELDs, GPS data, and driving records. We move fast to preserve evidence. And we hold trucking companies accountable when they break the rules.
We’ve helped clients across the country get compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain & suffering, and more. If truck driver negligence played a role in your crash, we’ll find it and fight to get you what you deserve.
You don’t pay unless we win. Call us today for a free consultation.
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Final Thoughts
A truck driver’s travel log might not look like much but in legal terms, it can make or break a settlement. It offers real proof of what the driver was doing and whether they followed the law.
If you or a loved one was hurt in a truck crash, don’t leave that evidence sitting in a file. Use it. Let your lawyer build your case with it. And protect your right to a fair settlement
Contact Lowe Law Group today. We’ll help you understand your legal options—and we’ll get to work right away.
