Articles Posted in Trucking Accidents

In Australia, the Rail, Tram and Bus Union has initiated a campaign that may see fewer large trucks on the road. The campaign aims to ban road transport of hazardous materials over long distances. The campaign will see dangerous materials – including gasoline and fuels – transported by rail instead of truck. Many experts note that this campaign was launched after the holiday season of 2009, when eight people were killed in trucking accidents in a ten day period.

Experts in the US have suggested that certain goods are better transported by rail rather than by truck, as well. A study of heavy trucks in Maine, for example, found that car accidents and traffic accidents involving large trucks were growing and that these accidents had high rates of personal injury as well as fatalities.

The Maine Study, published by The Truck Safety Coalition, found that Maine permitted large trucks of 100,000 pounds – including trucks carrying hazardous goods – to transport items on residential and lower-class local streets. This was done despite research which showed that larger trucks had higher accident risks due to rollover hazards and braking issues.

According to The Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), truck drivers spend, on average, 44 hours in their cabs when their trucks are not moving. Drivers remain with their trucks while the trucks are loaded, unloaded, transported by ferry, serviced, and so forth. However, many companies only pay their drivers by miles driven. This means that drivers who are paid in this way spend an average of 44 hours per week not being paid.

According to trucking industry experts, this method of paying drivers sets a dangerous precedent. Drivers need to drive in order to make deadlines and in order to get paid. If drivers are not paid for 44 hours on the job (or the equivalent of more than a full workweek), they must work extra hard in order to earn a living wage. According to experts, this way of paying drivers encourages them to speed, as drivers strive to make up their unpaid hours with some paid hours.

Most drivers earn $38,000 – $50,000 per year and must spend considerable time in a truck, away from their families. A pay structure based on hours driven depletes the quality of life for drivers – who must spend hours more on the road to make their wages – and encourages drivers to speed in order to make more money.

Trucks from the US cause thousands of deaths and serious personal injuries in trucking accidents each year. However, not all trucks on US roads are from the US. Trucks from foreign countries are also allowed on US roads as they deliver products from other countries into the US. This has caused some controversy and has raised a number of questions about safety.

A program under the Bush administration in 2008 permitted 100 Mexican trucking companies to operate their semi trucks on US roads. Some experts in the trucking industry claimed that this move may possibly risk the rate of truck accidents, pedestrian accidents, and car accidents involving trucks on US roads. Although the Bush administration eventually stopped the program, the Obama administration spoke of reviving the program.

Currently, all US trucking companies must meet very strict safety regulations. These companies must also keep strict records so that in the event that an accident does occur, investigators have access to all the information they need. However, Mexico has different regulations. In fact, trucking experts note that in that country there is no record-keeping system to keep track of trucks, drivers, and accidents. Regulations are also more relaxed than in the US, some trucking industry experts claim.

You probably pass them on the streets every day – dangerous trucks that could cause an accident that leads to fatalities or permanent serious injuries. Do you know how to spot a dangerous truck? Being able to locate and stay away from dangerous trucks can help prevent a truck-car accident. Being able to identify and report unsafe drivers could prevent an accident as well. Here’s what to look for.

1) A trailer that is weaving dangerously from side to side. A truck that is overloaded past its capacity may suffer from tire blowouts, tire defects or other serious mechanical failures. If a trailer is not correctly attached or a load is not correctly secured, a truck could cause a serious accident. A trailer that moves excessively from side to side can enter other lanes of traffic as well.

2) Leaks or objects falling from the trailer. Any leaks from a truck could indicate that the truck is not property maintained. Leaks of cargo may suggest that the cargo is not correctly stored. If the leaks are of flammable materials, the truck could cause a serious fire and burn injuries. Any objects that fall from the trailer can obstruct traffic and crash into oncoming cars, causing car accidents. Always report such incidents.

Most passenger vehicle drivers pass dozens of trucks each day on highways and roads. While most of these trucks are safe and are driven by responsible drivers, not all are. Some trucks are obviously a danger on the roads, and you may have driven right past these trucks on the road. You may have seen signs of danger – a speeding truck, a truck weaving on the road or taking reckless risks. Do you know what to do if you see an unsafe truck? Doing the right thing can help prevent a trucking accident and may save a life. Here’s what to do:

1) Take steps to keep yourself and your passengers safe. Your first priority should be to avoid a trucking accident. Give yourself extra room and expect the unexpected. Make sure that you and your passengers are all wearing seat belts. Be prepared to drive defensively.

2) Take down truck details. If you are driving with a passenger, ask the passenger to note the license plate number of the truck, as well as the company name and number on both the cab and the trailer, if possible. Keep in mind that the trailer and cab might be from different companies. If you are driving alone, pull over to jot down the information or call it in to a cell phone.

Congress as well as state governments have spend considerable amounts of time over the past few years discussing hours-of-service regulations for the trucking industry. This issue is so important because driver fatigue has been linked to many serious trucking accidents. Having federal and state governments set guidelines for hours-of-service is important, as it ensures that drivers get adequate rest when driving.

However, hours-of-service debates always spark controversy. Deciding the exact optimal number of hours per driver is difficult. As well, trucking companies want drivers to be able to drive for longer periods of time in order to ensure profitability. Drivers, too, often want to be able to drive for longer periods of time to ensure a good wage. As well, reducing hours-of-service to the bare minimum may also have some adverse effects, some experts warn, as it ensures that drivers must remain on the road longer to complete one delivery, and this extended period on the road can mean increased driver fatigue as well. Plus, very low hours-of-service may contribute to longer delays of delivery as well as increased costs for customers.

Hours-of-service rules limit how many hours and how long drivers can drive. The regulations also require drivers to maintain driver logs to ensure that all drivers comply with hours-of-service rules. The aim of hours-of-service is to ensure that drivers get adequate rest and are not pressured to drive too long before resting. The idea to is reduce trucking accidents and the personal injuries they cause by limiting one of the key reasons for driver fatigue: long hours behind the wheel. Since the hours-of-service rules apply to all drivers and trucking companies, trucking companies do not have to worry about losing a competitive edge by allowing drivers more time to rest.

Trucking accidents are often on the news. For many of us, trucking accidents are no more than an annoyance that makes rush-hour traffic even slower. However, for those who are unfortunate enough to be in a trucking accident, the effects of these accidents can be devastating. Trucking accidents often cause:

1) Wrongful death. Unfortunately, due to the sheer size and force of trucks, fatalities are a common result of trucking accidents. If someone’s negligence causes a trucking accident and you lose a loved one, you may have a wrongful death claim. You generally may have a wrongful death claim if you were directly related to the loved one and that person affected your current or future financial well-being. For example, if you have lost a spouse in a trucking accident, you may have a claim because you have lost half your household income.

2) Burn injuries. If a truck is carrying a flammable cargo, this cargo can spill or leak during an accident, causing a fire. If the cargo is not correctly secured, such a fire can quickly rage out of control, causing fatalities as well as serious burn injuries.

3) Head injuries and spinal cord injuries. The impact of a truck hitting a vehicle can toss passengers about with great force, causing head injuries and spinal cord as passengers ricochet off surfaces inside the vehicle. Air bags and seatbelts can help reduce such injuries, but even with these safety devices, brain injuries and spinal cord injuries are quite common in trucking accidents.

4) Cosmetic injuries. Burn injuries and cuts incurred during accidents can cause long-term scarring and injuries to the face, which can make victims feel uncomfortable and self-conscious. If a passenger is thrown from a vehicle, they may sustain serious cosmetic injuries as their face comes into contact with broken glass or with a pavement. Even passengers strapped inside a car may have debris fly at them, causing cosmetic injuries which require expensive surgery to repair.

5) Broken bones. The impact of a car-truck collision is often enough to break bones for passengers inside the car. Depending on the bones broken, these fractures can cause permanent injury or can take months or heal.

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After a trucking accident causes personal injuries or fatalities, legal cases usually arise from the mess as people start to accuse each other – and various companies – of causing the accident. In most cases, several factors contribute to a trucking accident. These may include weather conditions, driver error, tire defects, mechanical defects and other issues. Understanding how trucking accidents can occur can help us all stay safer on the roads.

Many trucking accidents are caused by driver error. There are many things that truck drivers can do to make trucks dangerous on the roads. Some drivers simply have too little experience or training to drive safely, while some truck drivers exceed the speed limit. Some drivers drive under the influence or drive when tired, increasing the risk of a serious accident. Drivers are also responsible for inspecting the truck before a trip and ensuring that a truck is correctly loaded. Failure to do these things can result in an accident.

Truck drivers are not the only drivers on the road responsible for preventing trucking accidents. In many cases, drivers of passenger vehicles drive recklessly or make driver mistakes that lead to a trucking accidents. Many drivers drive in the blind spots of trucks, where truck drivers cannot see them. Other drivers cut lanes in front of larger trucks or follow too closely behind a truck. Since trucks have many blind spots and cannot stop as quickly as smaller vehicles, these errors can result in serious accidents and personal injuries. Like truck drivers, drivers of passenger cars sometimes get distracted, drive under the influence, speed, drive while tired or drive recklessly, increasing the odds of car accidents and truck accidents.

Of all trucking accidents caused by mechanical failures, the most common accidents leading to these collisions are tire defects and brake failure. According to the Department of Transportation (DOT), 29.4% of all accidents involving large trucks occurred as a result of brake-related problems. A sizeable number of accidents were cased by tire defects or tire-related issues.

Brake failure leading to a serious trucking accident may be caused by a number of factors. The driver may be liable if he or she does not apply or use the brakes correctly. The company loading the truck may be responsible if the truck was loaded incorrectly, causing undue stress on the tires. The owner-operator of the truck may be liable for the accident if the brakes were not correctly maintained. The brake manufacturer may be responsible if there was a defect in the design or assembly of the truck’s brake system. Unfortunately, after an accident, all parties involved tend to blame each other. A brake manufacturer may suggest that a truck company did not perform adequate maintenance, while the trucking company might blame an aggressive driver, who in turn might blame the company loading the truck. It often takes an astute Florida personal injury attorney to investigate all possible causes of an accident.

There are strict regulations handed down from the government to the trucking industry. These standards demand that all trucks have brakes which adhere to established automatic brake adjustment system requirements. Under federal guidelines, truck brakes must allow for a certain braking force (which is established differently for trucks of different weight. Under federal rules, all trucks must also have a braking system which allows them to stop from 20 miles per hour to full stop at a specific rate (the rate is determined by truck size). If a truck does not meet these guidelines, the company owning the truck, the brake manufacturer and the driver may be held liable for any damages occurring from a collision.

Everyone hopes that they never need this advice. Being in a truck accident almost ensures serious injury or fatalities. The size of these trucks ensures that any serious collision results in serious damage. As well, many trucking accidents take place on highways, where speed may also be a factor and may exacerbate the damages. If you are in a trucking accident, here is what you need to do:

1) Secure the safety scene. If you are in a trucking accident, your first priority is to get as many people to safety as you can and to protect others on the road from danger. Call 911 if anyone has been injured or if any damage has occurred and divert traffic from the scene. If there is a danger of fire, move everyone as far away from the truck as possible, and refuse to allow traffic to pass. This can help prevent further injuries, including serious burn injuries.

2) Get medical attention. Anyone who has sustained even slight injuries should receive medical help immediately. Keep in mind that seemingly small head injuries and other seemingly innocuous injuries may turn out to be more serious than initially thought. Getting medical help also helps you secure evidence if you have been injured. Get the contact information for any medical personnel who arrive on the scene to assist you. If you are admitted to a hospital, get the contact information of the attending physician as well as a copy of your medical records.