3 Common Causes of Truck Accidents

Clore Law · September 28 2015

Semi-trucks are an important part of our society. They haul everything from gasoline to lumbar all over the place. While the number of large truck accidents seem to be lower than other vehicle accidents, they are nevertheless involved in a significant amount of accidents every year.

Driver Error Can Cause Truck Accidents

The majority of accidents tend to occur because of driver error. Some of the most common errors include:

• Fatigue – truck drivers are usually expected to adhere to grueling schedules, sometimes driving for as long as 11 hours a day. To combat driver fatigue, rules have been created by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration that limits how many hours a driver can operate a truck in a given period. Sadly, drivers are incentivized by customers or trucking companies to break the rules, resulting in fatigued drivers and more opportunity for accidents.
• Alcohol or drug use – of course these are dangerous combinations. When a truck driver operates a vehicle while impaired, he or she is more likely to have a serious truck accident.
• Failure to conduct pre-trip inspections – the law requires truckers to conduct pre-trip inspections of their vehicles to ensure they're in a safe driving condition. Should a driver fail to conduct the inspection, the vehicle may have serious issues that make an accident more likely.

Defective Vehicles Can Cause Truck Accidents

Semi-trucks are complicated vehicles with thousands of parts that could fail. Accidents caused by defects can give rise to complicated lawsuits involving product liability law. Under this law, people who are injured by defective products could be able to recover for their losses by suing the manufacturer or designer of the product. What's more, if the truck driver or company should have known the piece of equipment or truck was faulty, victims can recover from those parties too.

Poor Weather Can Cause Truck Accidents

Snow, ice, rain and fog can have detrimental effects on a truck's performance. While poor weather is certainly not an excuse for negligent driving, federal regulations require truckers use extreme caution in hazardous conditions. These regulations even require truck drivers to stop operating their vehicles if the conditions become significantly dangerous. Various truck accidents can result from poor weather, including:

• Rear-end accidents – sleet, snow, rain and ice can negatively affect a driver's stopping distance. Should a truck driver be speeding in such conditions, a rear-end truck accident can result.
• Rollover accidents – trucks tend to have a larger vertical surface area that passenger vehicles, which means high winds can significantly affect their stability. In some instances, a particularly strong gust of wind can lead to a truck rolling on its side.
• Sideswipe accidents – poor weather can impact a driver's visibility, making the attempt to change lanes a challenge, causing a truck to sideswipe the vehicle next to it.

Do You Need a Lawyer?

If you have been involved in a truck accident, talk to the lawyers at Clore Law about the claims you could be entitled to. Call today at 843-722-8070.