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Phone: (805) 962-4944  Fax: (805) 963-1483

 

 

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Trucking Accidents

You should know that cases involving trucks are very different from those involving cars or personal vehicles. 

When someone is injured in a semi crash, the damage can be severe and most cases, fatal. And,  if a driver or trucking company has been careless they should pay dearly.
 

  • There are numerous state and federal regulations relating to trucks and the trucking industry. We are familiar with these and how they can help show negligence in the accident.
  • There are many parties involved in shipping a container of freight, from the the driver, to those who packed the load, to the company required to maintain the rig in a safe condition. We identify any and all at-fault parties.
  • The injuries in trucking accidents are almost always more severe and we will need to carefully assess your financial needs into the future, with the help of life care planners and other experts, we will aggressively seek a settlement that ensures that all your current and future life needs are met.

Causes of Truck Accidents

 

1) Truck Accidents Caused By The Truck Driver: Many truck accidents are caused because of a fault on the part of the truck driver. The following actions constitute truck driver errors that result in truck accidents:

  • Driving the truck without having the necessary qualifications and the required training.
  • Driving over the allowed speed limits in order to meet tight schedules and deadlines.
  • Drinking alcohol or taking other drugs that can impair the truck driver’s physical and mental abilities, thus causing truck accidents.
  • Driving for continuous hours on end without taking a break and getting enough rest. Truck driver fatigue is the leading type of truck driver error that causes truck accidents. Many truck drivers fall asleep at the wheel, or lose focus while driving as they do not get enough sleep and rest, which ultimately results in truck accidents.
  • Not securing heavy loads properly on the truck.
  • Loading the trucks to more than the maximum capacity.
  • Driving tankers that have liquid loads of less than three quarters the maximum capacity. This causes the liquid load to slosh and move the weight about, thus making the driver lose control of the truck and end up in an accident.
  • Not carrying out the required pre-trip and during the trip inspections to ensure that the cargo is secure and safe

 

2) Error of Passenger Vehicle Drivers: The majority of the truck accidents are caused because of an error on the part of the driver of other smaller vehicles involved in the accidents. Such errors include:

  • Driving in the blind spots and no-zones of the truck. Due to the big size and length of trucks, there are certain areas beside and behind a truck that are not visible to the truck driver. Driving your car in such zones often causes truck accidents as the trucker does not even know that the other car is there.
  • Cutting lanes right in front of the truck.
  • Not keeping enough distance from the back of the truck.
  • Trying to overtake the truck from the wrong side.

Statictics

Twelve percent of all traffic fatalities in the United States are caused because of truck accidents. Tractor trailer truck accidents are especially dangerous. In such truck accidents, an alarming 98% of the time, the passengers or driver in the other vehicle is killed as opposed to people in the truck.

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