Getting Hired After A Wreck..

My husband is a truck driver and has had his CDL since October of last year. He has been working since he got his CDL. Today while at work he was in a wreck that was deemed not his fault by the police officer. He did not get a ticket. He was driving and a truck in front of him came to a complete dead stop out of nowhere, with no blinker. In order to miss him, he swerved to the left lane because there was no shoulder on the right lane and it was all he could do. There was a car that came up and ended up hitting his trailer and the truck that had short stopped. No one was injured, no one went in an ambulance, and no ticket was given. Of course the guy who just abruptly stopped tried to say that he had his blinker on. Luckily, the person driving behind my husband seen the whole thing and told the police officer what happened. The cop said that he isn't given him a ticket, that it wasn't his fault, that this was the only thing he could have done, and it the best case scenario. The lady's car is totaled, and his trailer is totaled. My husband says that this just ended his career. I guess my question is, is that the case? Does anybody have a similar story with an actual good outcome? I'm so thankful that no-one was hurt! I feel terrible for my husband because he absolutely loves truck driving. He works for a small company right now, and he had just got an in person interview with Sysco. He is devastated. He knows about the second chance companies, but says that they do not pay well, have horrible reviews, and that he would never be home. Any advice is appreciated!

While it may be true that this was the only thing that could be done at the time, it will likely still go down as a preventable accident. Trucking companies only look at the preventability of an accident, as in could he have done something to avoid it.

In this scenario, they're going to call it improper following distance, lack of awareness, unsafe speed, or whatever. And they are probably right. I'm not saying this to criticize your husband. I'm sure he feels bad enough already. Rather, I'm pointing out the reality of the situation, and how it's going to look to a trucking company.

As professional drivers, keeping our records clean is critical. We have to hold ourselves to higher awareness, and be ready for anything, even a truck randomly stopping in the middle of the road.

All that said, I would suggest he stay with his current company now for a while, if they will have him. His career is far from over, but he will have to maintain a steady clean record until he can put this accident behind him. Many drivers have done far worse and still moved on to a long successful career.

And when speaking to his current or future companies, he should take some ownership of his fault in this accident, even if he feels it couldn't have been avoided. Truth is, it probably could have.

So keep your chins up. He'll be fine if he takes the right steps going forward.

I agree with everything Turtle said. I feel though he shouldn’t completely give up on a Sysco. Your husband should just give them a call as soon as possible.

Let them know what happened and see if they want to continue in the process since he already had the in person interview. They may in fact decided to continue to move forward in the process. If not stay with the current company for the time being.

If I thought Sysco would still be interested, I'd say the same thing. They're obviously the better choice, and a definite step up.

Not much chance of them hiring after an accident, though. But there is still that chance, I guess. Worth a call, for sure.