By Dan Noll on July 8th, 2025 in Articles, Semi-Truck Accidents
What Is the Link Between Driver Fatigue and 18 Wheeler Crashes in Illinois?
Driving while fatigued or falling asleep at the wheel is one of the most common causes of preventable trucking accidents in the United States.
The experienced trucking accident lawyers at the Noll Law Office know that, although most of us are familiar with driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs, research reveals that driving while fatigued may be just as dangerous if not more dangerous than drunk driving. Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicate that over 50,000 people are injured and almost 800 people are killed in traffic accidents caused by a fatigued driver.
As to big rigs, driver fatigue causes slower reaction times, poor judgment, and microsleep, making it a major cause of 18-wheeler crashes in Central Illinois. Other statistics from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) report 13% of truck drivers involved in crashes were fatigued.
At the Noll Law Office, their experienced legal team handle all types of motor vehicle accidents, including those involving large commercial vehicles like big rigs, box trucks, semi tractor trailers, and other types of 18-wheelers. Dan Noll and Sarah Noll are fifth-generation lawyers who have developed a reputation for protecting the rights of victims and their families throughout Central Illinois and the rest of the state – including against some of the largest insurance carriers and trucking companies in the region.
If you or a loved one were seriously injured in an 18-wheeler wreck, schedule your free case evaluation today.
How Federal and Illinois Laws Define and Regulate Fatigue in Truck Drivers
Due to the grave danger of driving while fatigued, there are federal rules and state laws that are aimed at preventing avoidable trucking accidents caused by fatigued or sleeping drivers. These rules and laws are focused on both establishing the rules of the road as well as traffic safety. When they are violated and such violation causes a trucking accident in Illinois, victims and their families may be entitled to compensation.
Federal Hours-of-Service (HOS) Rules
The federal regulations are promulgated by the FMCSA, which is the agency responsible for managing and overseeing commercial trucking throughout the United States. The FMCSA regulations apply to all truck drivers and trucking companies, no matter what state they are licensed in, driving through, or going to. These regulations set the minimum requirements that truck drivers and trucking companies must comply with, even if the state law is less-restrictive. FMCSA violations are very serious and can lead to catastrophic personal injuries that may be fatal.
The most important FMCSA regulations relate to the hours of service, or HOS, rules. These rules govern how long a truck driver may operate a commercial vehicle within a certain time period. Such limitations include the following:
- Maximum drive time of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty
- Minimum break of 30-minues after driving for 8 cumulative hours without at least a 30-minute break
- Maximum driving window of 14 consecutive hours after going “on duty” before having to take a 10-hour consecutive break
- Maximum “on duty” window of 60 hours in any 7 consecutive days
- Maximum “on duty” window of 70 hours in any 8 consecutive days, and
- Other rules that may be applicable in certain situations that your experienced trucking accident attorneys could use to help support your claim.
Illinois-Specific Enforcement and Case Law
In addition to the federal regulations, Illinois has legislatively-made statutes which further set forth the conduct required of truck drivers and trucking companies operating within Illinois’ borders. There is also the common law, or judge-made law, which further interprets these laws as well as sets forth the conduct which a reasonably prudent driver must adhere to when operating a motor vehicle.
Some of the specific Illinois laws that may apply to trucking accident case include the following:
- Illinois as strict commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements that all operators must comply with and pass a written and practice test
- IDOT inspections for trucking violations on size, equipment, maintenance, usage, licensure, and other requirements
- Common law decisions applying, at least in part, hours of service violations to serve as a grounds for negligence against a truck driver and a trucking company who has employed the truck driver (agency relationship), such as Sperl v C.H. Robinson, and
- Other relevant laws, regulations, and common law that could apply and be used by Dan Noll or Sarah Noll to help prove your case.
What Are the Signs That Driver Fatigue Played a Role in a Truck Accident?
The difficult thing about proving a driving while fatigue case is that there may be many different signs of fatigued driving, or none at all. Hence why the hours of service regulations and other applicable laws and rules are very important to support your case. However, there are some common signs that may indicate that a driver is driving while impaired due to a lack of sleep or excessive fatigue.
Some of the most common signs or driving awhile fatigued in Illinois include the following:
- Lack of skid marks or avoidance maneuvers
- Logbook irregularities or falsified entries
- Black box (ECM) data showing excessive hours
- Testimony from dispatch logs or co-drivers
- Eyewitness testimony of the accident
- Type of collision and what happened (i.e., rear-end without slowing down or driving off the road or across the median without reacting), and
- Other types of conduct that could indicate a driver was asleep or impaired due to excessive fatigue.
There are real-world examples for these types of fatigued driving truck accidents. For example, in an Illinois crash from July 2023, a commercial driver operating a bus caused a multi-vehicle crash resulting in serious injuries to many people and three fatalities due to driving while fatigued. In another example from Illinois, a 34-year-old was killed in a trucking crash due to truck driver fatigue.
Who Can Be Held Liable in a Fatigue-Related Trucking Accident in Illinois?
There may be several parties who may be liable in a trucking accident case in Illinois. Some potentially liable parties include the following:
- Truck driver (negligence due to fatigue)
- Trucking company (pressuring drivers, falsifying logs)
- Maintenance companies (improper equipment maintenance or installs)
- Manufacturers of trucks, tires, or other safety equipment
- Municipal or state agencies responsible for roadways
- Third-parties, such as other drivers, and
- Other parties who may be a substantial factor or proximate cause in your trucking accident in Central Illinois.
What Compensation Can Victims of Fatigue-Related Truck Accidents Pursue?
Victims and their families who have sustained physical, emotional, or financial injuries may be entitled to recover damages. Some of the most common damages that may be awarded in an Illinois trucking accident case include the following:
- Medical expenses (past and future)
- Lost income and earning potential
- Pain and suffering
- Punitive damages in extreme negligence cases
- Wrongful death damages
- Property damage
- Medical equipment or nursing care expenses
- Home or vehicle modifications, and
- Other damages that may be appropriate based on the unique facts of your case.
How Can Victims Prove Driver Fatigue in Illinois Injury Claims?
In order to recover compensation in an Illinois trucking accident, victims will need to establish liability, causation, and their damages. There are several ways to do this, which should be handled by an experienced trucking accident lawyer such as Dan Noll or Sarah Noll.
Some of the most common evidence used to help support a trucking accident case include the following:
Key Evidence Types:
- ELD (Electronic Logging Device) data
- Maintenance and dispatch records
- Driver’s trip sheets, highway tolls, and gas receipts
- Eyewitness accounts and surveillance footage
- Medical reports to prove personal injuries from truck accidents
- Police reports
- Expert reports, and
- Other pieces of evidence related to a crash in Illinois.
Role of Expert Witnesses to Help Support a Claim:
- Accident reconstruction specialists
- Sleep medicine doctors
- FMCSA compliance auditors
- Medical experts
- Engineers, including mechanical for the type of crash but also biomechanical to explain the types of injuries
- Day-in-a-life experts to show the before and after injuries to a victim, and the future impact of those injuries to a court or jury
- Economists to explain lost wage claims
- Vocational experts to prove work limitations, and
- Other experts as appropriate for your case.
Need an Experienced Trucking Accident Lawyer? Dan Noll and Sarah Noll Handle Driver Fatigue and 18 Wheeler Accidents in Central Illinois
Injured in a crash with a fatigued truck driver in Central Illinois? The experienced legal team at the Noll Law Office investigates quickly, preserves critical evidence, and holds trucking companies accountable for the negligence of them and their drivers. Their experienced Illinois trucking accident lawyers can help you and your family recover the compensation that you need and deserve under Illinois law.
To learn more about your rights to compensation after a trucking accident in Illinois – especially one caused by a fatigued or tired driver – schedule your free consultation with Dan Noll or Sarah Noll.
Unlike other bodily injury law firms, when you meet with your attorney at the Noll Law Office, that is who will be handling your case – not some young associated who is referred the case from out of the area. Rather, the Noll Law Office has five-generations of representing the local community, including victims of 18-wheeler wrecks due to fatigued drivers. Schedule your free consultation by dialing (217) 414-8889 or by sending a message here.