Licensing Fraud a Major Problem in Trucking Industry

What if you found out that the trucker driving next to you in the 18-wheeler had an illegal license?

Thousands of truck drivers are on the highways illegally. The federal government has discovered that licensing fraud in the trucking industry has become rampant, as truckers have been able to obtain fake commercial driver’s licenses. According to the Chicago Tribune, one truck driving school paid private “third party” testers to falsify the exams of 623 students. When the scam was discovered, only 142 of the truckers who re-took their exams passed.

Licensing fraud within the trucking industry has involved more than just trucking schools. Overburdened states have been known to hire private testers to certify truck drivers, which has led to many fraudulent commercial license cases. In Illinois, state officials sold hundreds of phony commercial licenses to unskilled drivers, including immigrants who couldn’t read or speak English and individuals who performed poorly on driving tests.

Safety advocates believe that there could be tens of thousands of truckers on U.S. highways with fake licenses. Not only are these truck drivers not skilled enough to drive tractor-trailers, they are operating vehicles that weigh up to 80,000 pounds and have the potential to cause serious injuries and death.

A couple of years ago, officials were preparing to send a letter to a trucker named Hussein Osman, requesting that he retake his commercial driver’s license test. State and federal agencies believed that Osman may have attended a driving school that was fraudulently helping provide licenses for hundreds of truckers. Before the letter was even sent out, Osman was involved in a fatal truck accident that took his life and the life of an Oklahoma State Trooper. It is frightening to think that other truckers with fraudulent commercial licenses, similar to Osman’s, are driving on Kentucky roads. They may cause serious tractor-trailer crashes in Kentucky.

As the trucking industry has grown, so has the number of fraudulent commercial licenses. Since 1980, the number of interstate trucking companies has grown from 20,000 to 564,000, which is due in part to the deregulation of the trucking industry. Therefore, more people are flocking to this industry and some are doing it illegally.

If you have been injured in a large truck accident in Kentucky, you need to contact an experienced truck accident attorney immediately. Semi truck accident cases are complex and require a thorough understanding of the law. The truck crash attorneys at Gray and White Law can help you recover the compensation you deserve. Call (502) 637-6000 or (800) 637-6033 for legal advice. We are experienced in handling large truck crash cases in Kentucky.