DOT Moves to Slash Dozens of Trucking Regulations
So far in 2025, over 1,000 Americans have suffered injuries in traffic crashes involving buses and trucks. Even as the number of truck-related accidents continues to climb year-over-year, the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) has recently moved to eliminate and/or relax dozens of federal trucking regulations that directly impact U.S. motorists. Changes in these regulations have the potential to significantly impact road safety across the country, and may even contribute to more injuries and fatalities in Ohio and beyond.
Due to the safety concerns associated with these regulatory changes, personal injury attorneys across the country are preparing for a potential influx of claims related to commercial vehicle crashes. Let’s take a closer look at what the DOT is proposing and discuss how deregulation could impact injury rates, liability claims and compensation availability in Ohio trucking accidents.
What is the DOT proposing?
The U.S. DOT, through its Office of the Secretary, recently unveiled plans to review and potentially eliminate over 60 existing trucking regulations as part of a broader deregulatory initiative. While not all changes are final, the areas under review include critical safety measures pertaining to:
- Hours-of-service (HOS) limits
- Vehicle inspection and maintenance protocols
- Driver qualification standards
- Record-keeping and reporting requirements
- Hazardous materials transport rules
These regulations were originally designed to ensure safe operating conditions on America’s highways by reducing driver fatigue, maintaining vehicle integrity and holding carriers accountable for both major and minor safety violations. Reducing or removing these long-established requirements has the potential to increase the likelihood of dangerous truck crashes while making it difficult to prove negligence in certain personal injury claims.
What purpose do trucking regulations serve?
Trucking regulations aren’t just red tape, they’re guardrails. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the DOT have long maintained strict rules for commercial carriers as part of their ongoing efforts to mitigate the risk of serious crashes involving 18-wheelers, semis and other large commercial vehicles.
Some of the most important safety regulations currently in danger of being altered or eliminated include:
Hours-of-Service (HOS) rules
Currently, truck drivers and their employers are required to adhere to strict HOS rules that limit how long truck drivers can be on the road without rest. These regulations are intended to reduce driver fatigue, which is considered a leading cause of trucking accidents. By loosening these HOS limits, the DOT may inadvertently increase the number of fatigued drivers who navigate busy streets and highways and put millions of American motorists at risk in the process.
Inspection and equipment requirements
Vehicle inspections play a critical role in ensuring commercial vehicles are functioning properly before, during and after a trip. To that end, trucking companies are required to inspect brakes, tires, lights and other safety-critical systems to ensure these components are compliant with established regulations. Proposed revisions to safety requirements and enforcement efforts could result in less safe equipment being used on local roadways with limited recourse for addressing potential safety threats.
Recordkeeping processes
Truck drivers and their employers are currently expected to adhere to strict reporting and recordkeeping requirements in order to maintain a paper trail verifying proper maintenance protocols have been followed. Existing regulations mandate that drivers maintain logs of repairs and inspections and keep a user manual on-hand for their in-vehicle electronic logging devices. Proposed changes would relax these reporting requirements, thus impacting the availability of potential evidence in a personal injury or truck accident claim.
How will deregulation affect Ohio drivers?
Ohio is a major corridor for the commercial trucking industry, with interstates like I-70, I-71 and I-75 serving as key freight routes. Subsequently, any relaxing of federal trucking regulations could disproportionately affect drivers in our region by increasing the likelihood of dangerous traffic incidents and administrative confusion.
A few potential consequences of deregulation may include:
- An increase in the number of truck accidents that result in injuries or fatalities
- Higher risk for multi-vehicle pile-ups on highways
- Increased rates of driver fatigue-related crashes
- More mechanical failures from poorly maintained trucks
- Increased traffic congestion on popular freight routes
Any time the risk of accidents increases, so does the risk of serious harm befalling Ohio drivers and passengers. Not only do these accidents pose major danger to the physical well-being of local motorists, but they can also lead to long-term personal, financial and emotional strain for accident victims from all walks of life.
Could deregulation impact liability in a personal injury case?
When a truck accident occurs, the first step in assessing the viability claim is determining who was most likely to blame for the collision. In many cases, federal and state regulations play a crucial role in determining liability because violations of established law often serve as evidence of negligence and/or recklessness. If a driver violated HOS rules or failed to complete proper inspections, that information could play a central role in a strong negligence claim.
If these regulations are rolled back, however, proving fault could become more challenging. Not only does deregulation lower the bar for drivers’ legally established duty of care, but it also impacts the way companies document the actions and driving records of their employees. While drivers and carriers still owe a duty of care to others on the road, rolling back these regulatory requirements could create new hurdles for injured parties seeking justice for incidents involving commercial vehicles.
Some things never change
As regulatory requirements continue to evolve, Ohio motorists must make big moves to effectively advocate for themselves in the wake of a truck-related traffic accident. At Soroka & Associates, LLC, we pride ourselves on providing clients with the most up-to-date insight into the legal process throughout the duration of their personal injury claims.
Regardless of whether an accident occurred before or after these recent calls for deregulation, injured motorists in Columbus and the surrounding areas deserve legal representation they can count on to support their pursuit of justice. Our local team knows what it takes to conduct a thorough investigation, identify liability issues, negotiate with insurance companies and represent clients in court.
If you or a loved one has been involved in a truck accident in Columbus or anywhere in Ohio, you don’t have to navigate complex regulatory shifts in a vacuum. Contact Soroka & Associates, LLC today. We can review the details of your accident, explain your legal options and help you take the necessary steps to secure the justice and compensation you deserve.