Truck maintenance expert witnesses may write reports and opine on on issues including federal motor carrier safety regulations, truck inspections, and related topics. The Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association writes:
In order to ensure that a motor vehicle functions safely, the vehicle and its safety systems and components must be properly maintained. Unfortunately, this regular and necessary maintenance is not always performed. In fact, the Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association (AASA) estimated that $54 billion of vehicle maintenance was unperformed or underperformed in 2009 alone. Regular safety inspections help ensure that critical safety equipment on vehicles is functioning properly.
Recent studies conducted by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the Missouri State Highway Patrol demonstrate that effective state inspection programs save lives. For example, the Pennsylvania study estimated the state will have between 115 and 169 fewer fatal crashes each year because of the state’s annual vehicle inspection program. This corresponds to between 127 and 187 fewer fatalities annually. The Pennsylvania study went on to estimate that fatal accidents are 13 percent higher in states without vehicle safety inspection programs than in states with programs. In the United States, each state government is free to decide whether to require vehicle safety inspections, as well as to stipulate the specifics of the inspection program. Fewer than half of the states currently require vehicle inspections. Fourteen states have an annual safety inspection program in place, while three states require safety inspections once every two years. Two states require an inspection prior to the sale or transfer of a vehicle and one state requires an inspection when registering a vehicle from another state jurisdiction. This leaves 30 states and the District of Columbia without a safety inspection program.
Read more: mema.org.