Did you know that as a matter of law, the trucking companies are required to provide to their applicants who are applying for positions as truckers both educational information on illegal substances as well as educational information on alcohol abuse. The trucking company actually has to provide the educational materials on the illegal drug use or alcohol abuse prior to the time that the trucker or the potential employee performs its first safety-sensitive function for the trucking company.
The trucking company cannot actually allow the trucker to perform a safety-sensitive function for the company unless the truck driver has an alcohol content of .04 or less. In addition, the trucking company has to make sure that the truck driver or the potential truck driver has tested negative for the use of illegal drugs. The company is not required to perform or have the trucker perform a pre-screening alcohol test if the driver has had in the preceding six months an alcohol test result of .04.
As to the use of illegal drugs and testing for that, if the driver has actually tested negative in the last six months for the use of illegal substances, then the trucking company does not have an obligation to test the driver again. If you have questions about whether your truck accident involved a driver who failed to abide by the alcohol policies and the drug policies that are mandated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Act, then call my office at 770-792-1000.