Whether we like it or not (and most of us don’t like it), we are asked to share roads and highways with large trucks. At best, these giant vehicles make it difficult to see other cars on the road and difficult to maneuver through traffic. At worst, semi-trucks can cause or contribute to serious and fatal accidents.
Because semi-trucks often weigh 20 to 30 times more than standard passenger vehicles, one does not need to be a physicist to understand that the truck is going to inflict more damage than it absorbs. Truck accidents are often fatal for occupants of smaller vehicles, even when the truck drivers can walk away without a scratch.
It seems unfair and counterintuitive that drivers entrusted with operating these giant vehicles have the least to lose if something goes wrong. Perhaps this is why, in the aftermath of serious truck accidents, investigations often reveal negligence on the part of the truck driver, the trucking company or both. Common causes of truck accidents include:
- Driver fatigue (sometimes due to violating hours-of-service regulations)
- Driver distraction or inattention
- Improper maintenance and repair (especially involving brakes)
- Overloaded trailers or unsecured cargo
- Speeding and aggressive driving
- Failure (on the part of trucking companies) to ensure that drivers have a clean safety record
We cannot take large trucks off the road entirely, but we can make sure that truck drivers and trucking companies are held liable when they harm or kill others through negligence. If you need to seek damages after an injurious or fatal truck accident, please discuss your case with an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible.