asleep at the wheel

Capitalism in America gets a black eye with the recent housing crisis and the impact it has had on banking institutions. Someone was asleep at the wheel and not paying attention closely enough. Now we will all suffer the consequences for many, many years to come. It's all incredibly embarrassing.

asleep at the wheel = This is an expression we use in English to say that someone isn't doing his or her job properly. If you are asleep at the wheel of a car or a truck, you will crash. �