A bill is currently winding its way through the federal legislative process. The Mail Traffic Deaths Reporting Act of 2024 was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May and is currently being considered in the U.S. Senate. If passed, the bill will require the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to collect, track, and publicly report information related to deaths and injuries resulting from traffic crashes involving vehicles transporting mail.
According to USPS data, at least 79 people have been killed in the past three years in crashes involving the postal service trucks, however, an investigation last year by the Wall Street Journal revealed that number is likely higher because the USPS did not track and report serious crashes that involved its contractors.
Other shocking information the investigation uncovered included:
- More than 450 USPS contractors routinely exceeded driving-hour guidelines in 2021 and 2022.
- Forty percent of USPS trucking contractors violated safety rules created to prevent driver exhaustion in 2021 and 2022.
- One contractor broke these rules more than 200 times between 2017 and 2022.
The legal process is usually fairly straightforward when a person is injured in a crash caused by a negligent driver. In most cases, an injury claim is filed against the at-fault party’s insurance company. Then, the victim’s Virginia Beach car accident attorney and the insurance company will negotiate a settlement, or the claim will proceed to civil litigation, and a judge or jury will decide the case.
But what happens if the at-fault driver was a postal worker driving a USPS vehicle? Vehicle accidents with government-owned vehicles are handled differently and can be more complex than other types of vehicle accidents. Because the USPS is a federal government agency, different laws will apply and a different process for pursuing damages for any losses.
The Federal Tort Claims Act
When a victim is injured in a crash involving a USPS vehicle, it is federal law – under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) – that will apply and not Virginia injury law. Federal law makes it legally clear that the only entity that can be sued for damages by the victim is the United States government. Neither the USPS nor the USPS driver at fault for the crash can be sued.
There is also a specific procedure that victims need to follow. The first step a victim must take is filling out USPS (Form 95), providing details of the crash and the amount of damages they have suffered because of the crash.
Once the victim has filled out this form, there is a waiting period of six months before they can file a federal court claim. During this time, the USPS will investigate the victim’s claim. They may offer a settlement or attempt to negotiate a settlement amount. If no settlement is reached in those six months, the victim can file a federal court claim. However – and this is critical – both forms must be filed within two years of the incident.
One issue that may further complicate a victim’s claim is whether the postal driver was an independent contractor and not a USPS employee. If the driver was an independent contractor, an FTCA claim cannot be filed unless it can be shown that the USPS treated the contractor as an employee or that the agency had authority to control the contractor’s performance.
Call Our Personal Injury Law Firm Today
As you can see, collecting compensation when the other party is an employee of the government is a complex procedure and requires extensive knowledge of the FTCA. If you have been injured in an accident caused by a government employee, contact Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp to schedule a free case evaluation with one of our Virginia Beach car accident lawyers to find out what legal options you may have.
The legal team from Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp has been advocating for injured clients since 1985. We are dedicated to getting our clients the best possible outcome based on the circumstances of their cases. That dedication shows in the more than $100 million in settlements and verdicts we’ve obtained for our clients.
For your convenience, we have offices in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Hampton, and Portsmouth.
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Rick Shapiro has practiced personal injury law for over 30 years in Virginia, North Carolina, and throughout the Southeastern United States. He is a Board-Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (ABA Accredited) and has litigated injury cases throughout the eastern United States, including wrongful death, trucking, faulty products, railroad, and medical negligence claims. During his three-decade career, Shapiro has won client appeals before the VA Supreme Court, VA Court of Appeals, NC Supreme Court, SC Supreme Court, WV Supreme Court, TN Supreme Court, and three times before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, underscoring Shapiro’s trial achievements. In addition, he and his law firm have won settlements/verdicts in excess of $100 million. His success in and out of the courtroom is a big reason why he was named 2019 “Lawyer of the Year” in railroad law in U.S. News & World Report's Best Lawyers publication (Norfolk, VA area), and he has been named a “Best Lawyer” and “Super Lawyer” by those peer-reviewed organizations for multiple years. Rick was also named a “Leader in the Law, Class of 2022” by Virginia Lawyers Weekly (total of 33 statewide honorees consisting of lawyers and judges across Virginia). And in September 2023, Rick was selected as a recipient of the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) 2023 President’s Award. Although many nominations were submitted from across the country, Rick was just one of eight attorneys chosen by the prestigious National Board which certifies civil trial attorneys across the U.S. Rick was also recently named to Virginia Lawyers Weekly 2024 Virginia’s Go To Lawyers Medical Malpractice. The attorneys awarded this honor are nominated by their colleagues and chosen by a panel from the publication.
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