A Texas man has recently filed a lawsuit against FedEx claiming that the company is responsible for injuries he received in an accident caused by one of the company’s drivers. In the lawsuit, Kevin Walters claims that in November 2012, a FedEx driver towing a trailer owned by FedEx was traveling west bound on Highway 75 (North Central Expressway) in Collin County. According to the complaint, the FedEx driver allegedly failed to control the speed of the truck; this caused the tractor to strike the vehicle directly in front of Mr. Walters. This, in turn, caused that vehicle to strike the vehicle of Mr. Walters.
As a result of the accident, Walters claims that he has suffered various injuries. To recover compensation for his alleged injuries, Walters has filed a negligence lawsuit in the Marshall Division of the Eastern District of Texas against various FedEx entities, as well as the FedEx driver. The FedEx driver is accused of negligently operating the truck by failing to control the speed of the vehicle. Furthermore, Walters claims that FedEx is also liable for his injuries because it allegedly failed to properly hire and train the driver. Walters is seeking damages in excess of $75,000 to compensate him for his injuries sustained in the accident.
FedEx and Other Mail Carrier Accident Statistics
There are thousands of FedEx and other mail carrier vehicles on the roads throughout the United States. All of these vehicles can pose a significant danger to other drivers on the road, especially if the truck driver is negligent or the vehicle has not been properly maintained. According to a report last year, drivers of FedEx Freight (which is just one unit that comprises the FedEx conglomerate), were involved in 730 accidents across the United States between 2012 and 2014. During that same time, the FedEx Freight drivers were cited 679 times for unsafe driving.
FedEx Freight is just a small part of FedEx’s entire fleet. The entire fleet contains more than 20,000 vehicles and employs 35,000 workers. With such a large number of vehicles and employees, it is not surprising that a large number of traffic accidents involve FedEx vehicles. Even thought he number of accidents and citations sounds high, FedEx Freight is not the worst mail carrier offender when it comes to truck accidents and violations.
Over the same two-year time period, United Parcel Service, Inc. drivers were involved in more than 1,500 crashes and cited for more than 1,100 for driving violations. UPS, however, does have significantly more drivers with around 87,000 drivers who drove more than 2.4 billion miles. UPS drivers drove more than double the amount of miles than FedEx Freight drivers, who drove only about 965 million miles during the same period.
Contact a Texas Truck Accident Attorney
If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident involving a negligent FedEx or other mail carrier driver, a Houston truck accident attorney may be able to help you recover damages for your injuries. Contact the truck accident attorneys at Zehl & Associates today for a free consultation. You can either call us at 1-888-603-3636 or visit one of our offices located in Houston and Austin.