What a truck black box records depends on the type of recording device. Many commercial trucks are required to have an electronic logging device (ELD) to record driver hours of service. An ELD records truck engine use, distance traveled, and driver duty status. An electronic data recorder (EDR) may have data more commonly associated with a black box, such as brake deployment, speed, and seat belt use.
Black box information can impact a Greenville truck accident claim by assisting in accident reconstruction. The evidence may answer questions about fault and legal liability for the accident.
Our experienced Greenville truck accident lawyer at Bobby Jones Law explains what a black box monitors and how it can help your truck accident claim.
What Is a Truck’s Event Data Recorder (EDR) or “Black Box”?
When people think about black boxes, they often imagine a computer, recording vehicle data in the moments surrounding a crash. Most commercial trucks have a recording device like this, which is called an Event Data Recorder (EDR).
But EDRs are technically not the truck black box required by FMCSA trucking regulations. Commercial trucks are required to have electronic logging devices (ELD), which electronically record driver hours of service. While federal commercial trucking regulations require ELDs and not EDRs, most trucks manufactured in the 21st century have some version of an EDR.
Key Data Captured by Black Boxes in Commercial Trucks
Data that may be captured by a black box in a commercial truck may include:
- Driver hours of service
- Whether an engine was running
- Miles driven
- Brake application
- Speed at impact
- Steering angle
- Seat belt use
- Airbag deployment
- Location
- Engine throttle
- Service brake application
- Ignition cycle crash, ignition cycle download
- Multi-event, event number, time from event one to two
- Delta-V (change in velocity)
What the recording device captures depends on the type of device. Other than EDRs and ELDs, there may be telematics that provide additional activity data.
How Black Box Data Can Prove Fault After a Crash
Black box data can provide valuable information about a trucking crash that may not be available elsewhere. For example, a driver may testify that they applied the brakes before the crash, but they won’t be able to say exactly how many microseconds before impact. They won’t be able to calculate their steering wheel angle at impact. They may testify that they were wearing their seatbelt, but the black box data can confirm it.
Black box data can provide information that people don’t or can’t know. It can also verify whether or not someone is telling the truth or remembering correctly. The information can be used to piece together how the accident occurred. Typically, the black box information is used in conjunction with other evidence to establish fault or clarify disputed facts about the crash.
Preserving and Accessing Black Box Evidence After a Truck Accident
When it comes to truck black box information, it’s important to work quickly. Some data recording systems constantly record, including recording over previous data, until the system recognizes that an important event occurred. Other systems don’t record at all until the system recognizes unique or sudden behaviors that may indicate a crash.
Either way, it’s important to work quickly before the information is overwritten or destroyed.
It’s not always possible to start a lawsuit in hours or days after a trucking accident occurs.
A spoliation of evidence letter puts a person or company on notice of pending litigation. The letter must identify the incident, note pending litigation, and specify the evidence that must be preserved. You should deliver the letter in a trackable way, such as via certified mail or by using a professional process server.
If the trucking company doesn’t comply, its non-compliance may be used against it in the case. The court has discretion to determine the remedy. The court may instruct the jury to assume that the evidence would be favorable to you or prevent the trucking company from raising certain defenses or objections. But if the trucking company preserves the evidence, it may be admissible and can help you build a complete case.
If the person or company with the information is a non-party defendant, you’ll use a subpoena duces tecum. An attorney can help you approach the person or company to preserve the evidence.
Why Trucking Companies May Resist Releasing EDR Information
A trucking company may resist releasing EDR information if it hurts their case. They may strategize that refusing to release will frustrate your efforts to claim compensation. Their attorneys may want to review the information first to craft a plausible explanation. They may hope that the evidence is overwritten and lost.
That’s why it’s so important to work with an attorney for Greenville truck accidents. Bobby Jones Law can work quickly to preserve evidence for your case.
Using Black Box Evidence To Strengthen Your Greenville Injury Case
Black box data can affirmatively establish facts and can also be used to question other evidence, such as witness testimony. While black box data is highly credible, it may be refuted.
When using truck black box data to strengthen your injury case, it’s important to prepare to admit the evidence. The South Carolina rules of evidence apply in local Greenville courts. You may ask the other party to stipulate admission or use an affidavit of business records or records custodian. An attorney can help you admit black box evidence for your claim.
Look for Your Own Black Box Record
If you were the occupant of another vehicle, another place to check for recorded data is the black box in the vehicle that you were in. 49 CFR Part 563 applies to passenger vehicles. The regulation doesn’t directly require new vehicles to be equipped with EDRs, but most modern vehicles have them. The regulation creates minimum standards for what an EDR must record if installed in a vehicle.
Although it’s best to have information from all vehicles, your own vehicle data recorder can help you reconstruct the accident and prove your claim.
Contact an Experienced Greenville Truck Accident Lawyer
Are you wondering what a black box records and if it might help your case? Talk to an experienced Greenville truck accident lawyer. Call Bobby Jones Law.
