Here in the Chicago Area, most people are employed in the transportation industry according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (“BLS”). Statistics also confirm that working in the transportation industry poses the greatest risk of any industry for death or serious, permanent injury. Serious or deadly vehicular accidents are a constant threat to these workers. See, What are the Most Dangerous Jobs in Chicagoland?
Of course, the transportation industry is huge and multifaceted. Workers are involved in all sorts of tasks, and have jobs on worksites as varied as railyards, shipyards, warehouses, and factories. For many people, truckers and commercial truck drivers are the most well-known employees of companies who profit from transportation services. It is true that truckers are technically delivery drivers. They are professionals behind the wheel of big rigs, tractor trailers, 18-wheelers, and semi-trucks, taking goods and cargo across Illinois to various Chicago destination points as well as along Illinois interstates to stops all around the country. Read, Why Are There So Many Serious or Fatal Semi-Truck Accidents in Chicagoland?
However, a growing segment of the transportation industry correlates to the expanding e-commerce marketplace, where “last mile deliveries” are made by a variety of delivery drivers, employed by various entities or who are operating in the “gig economy.”
These delivery drivers do not have the longstanding legal protections provided to the professional truckers, although all are in the job of delivering various products and goods. See: Amazon Delivery Vehicle Accidents in Illinois: Chicagoland Amazon Truck Crashes.
Meanwhile, the accident risks that these last mile delivery drivers face can be just as dangerous as any hazards posed to the semi-truck driver here in Chicagoland.
Reasons for Chicago Area Delivery Driver Accidents
There is no simple answer to reducing the risk of a motor vehicle accident involving a delivery driver on the job here in Chicago. Any number of things can contribute to a serious or deadly collision involving a delivery truck, van, SUV, or car, such as:
- Negligent driver in another vehicle;
- Bad weather conditions (tires can blow in high heat; icy conditions can cause loss of control);
- Premises conditions (like blocked views caused by unkempt properties or poor lighting);
- Speeding (where employers are pushing the driver to meet a delivery deadline or schedule);
- Inadequate training of the delivery driver;
- Shifting cargo loads caused by shipper errors, poor packaging, etc.;
- Failure of delivery vehicle due to defective part;
- Failure of delivery vehicle due to improper repair or maintenance;
- Failure of other motor vehicle due to defective part; and
- Failure of other motor vehicle due to improper repair or maintenance.
For more, read: Myth That Driver Error Causes 94% of Car Crashes: The Complexities of Motor Vehicle Accident Causation; Shifting Loads and Unstable Cargo: Dangerous Causes for Semi-Truck Crashes; and When Defective Products or Manufacturing Mistakes Cause Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes.
For those delivery drivers who are hurt on the job in the Chicago Area, it is important to know that Illinois law is based on fault in an accident. This means that the accident victim has a legal duty to prove by admissible and authenticated evidence the parties whose actions, or failures to act, breached legal duties defined by law.
And the victim must also show that these failures in the duties of care and safety were a cause of the collision or crash which resulted in the victim’s injuries. Damages may also be available for the victim’s loved ones under Illinois personal injury law.
Duties to Keep Chicago Delivery Drivers Safe on the Job
For any company, corporation, or business owner who pays drivers to deliver parcels, packages, or goods (including food), there are legal duties to protect their delivery drivers from harm on the job. These include things like:
- Making sure the delivery driver has been trained in defensive driving;
- Making sure the delivery driver is trained in loading and unloading packages and parcels to keep loads steady in transit;
- Investigating the driver’s past driving record;
- Investigating the driver’s past criminal record for things like DUI convictions;
- Checking the delivery vehicle for any needed repair or recall;
- Making sure the delivery vehicle is in proper working order (tire pressure, working lights, etc.);
- Having an established safety policy and protocol for drivers and dispatchers (like what to do in the event of safety concerns en route, etc.);
- Maintaining direct communications with delivery drivers on the job;
- Making sure that delivery schedules are not so intense that drivers are at risk of overwork fatigue or the temptation to speed;
- Providing regularly scheduled work breaks for delivery drivers; and
- Maximizing safety in delivery routes with route optimization software.
Unfortunately, the delivery driver employed for a “last mile delivery” may have complicated legal hurdles to meet in getting legal redress from those who profit from their work. Companies like Amazon have worked hard to build legal barriers that attempt to block them from being held liable for delivery driver injuries. Read, Legal Liability for Delivery Truck Accident Injuries: How Many Have Responsibility for the Crash?
Delivery Driver Claims for Damages After Accident in Chicagoland
Sadly, both safety organizations and advocates for worker victims like delivery drivers know all too well that many companies intentionally choose to put profits over people. They fail in their duty of care and safety because it maximizes their bottom line. Sometimes, their revenue-enhancing choice will result in serious accidents and fatal injuries for the worker who has been denied their legal right to job safety.
It will be the responsibility of the delivery driver to pursue legal avenues for justice within a relatively short time period. This is clear under Illinois law, even though the driver-victim and their loved ones will have to simultaneously deal with the painful realities of the delivery accident and its aftermath (e.g., medical care and treatment; rehab; pain and suffering; financial stressors; etc.).
To learn more, read:
- Job Site Injury in Illinois or Indiana: When Accidents at Work Are Not Worker’s Compensation Claims
- Companies Ignore OSHA Safety Regulations and Workers Get Hurt on the Job
- Profits Over People: Corporate Greed in the News.
For many, this means seeking out the help and support of an experienced Illinois personal injury lawyer to help in getting recompense from all the wrongdoers. Accident reconstruction as well as legal analysis may be needed in order to determine every party who has breached legal duties, contributed to the cause of the accident, and has liability under the law. This is particularly important for any delivery driver labelled a “gig driver” in a “last mile delivery.”
Read, Accident Reconstruction Experts and Injury Claims; and Why a Lawyer who is a Trial Attorney Is Important for Accident Victims in Personal Injury Cases.
Delivery drivers throughout the transportation industry are at great risk of harm while on the job here in the Chicago Area. They have complicated cases for justice in some instances, especially our local gig drivers. Please be careful out there!
