Trucking Industry Supports Bipartisan Bill

The trucking industry lends its considerable support to the bipartisan bill known as the Highway Accident Fairness Act of 2021. Its co-sponsors are Representatives Garret Graves (R-LA-6) and Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28).

The president and CEO of the American Trucking Association, Chris Spear, praised the House members for collaborating on a “common-sense bill to curb rampant lawsuit abuse against the trucking industry.” He went on to cite the growing problem of staged collisions and litigation financed by third-parties as factors that financially burden trucking companies.

Safety Jeopardized by Fake Wrecks, Insurance Scams

Each staged highway accident has the potential to harm or even kill innocent third-parties uninvolved in the scheme. Even when life and limb are not at risk, the costs rise for motor carriers and the companies that insure their drivers. These inflated costs get passed on to consumers via higher prices for goods and auto insurance premiums.

Leveling the Playing Field

Spear described the proposed bill as a way to “restore balance and fairness to the system and help ensure justice drives accident litigation – not profiteering and windfalls.”

To be sure, legitimate claimants would still be assured of fair, prompt relief when their damages warrant it. But there would be new transparency regarding the companies funding these accident litigation cases as profitable investments.

Other provisions of the bill include:

• Stabilizing the transit of interstate commerce
• Allowing the federal courts to hear interstate cases that are nationally significant
• Shielding state highway departments and law enforcement agencies investigating staged accidents from wasting their limited resources

Eliminating crime from insurance claims offers a win-win solution for everyone but the criminals and those who fund their illegitimate enterprises. In the often hostile climate of Washington, D.C., it is encouraging to see bipartisan support for a bill that could be a huge boon to the transportation industry.

Source: ajot.com