We all know the feeling: that uncomfortable tightening of the chest we get when we look into our rearview mirror and see an 80,000-pound 18-wheeler truck barreling down on our back bumper. This feeling is not entirely irrational. According to federal statistics, such trucks cause thousands of collisions each year. Given a truck’s size and weight, common sense tells us that a collision between a big rig and a car-or even an SUV-is likely to turn out badly for the car or SUV.

In a collision between a truck and a passenger automobile, the fatalities occur in the automobile 98% of the time. To put concrete numbers on the problem, in 2004, such crashes killed almost 5,200 people (12% of all traffic fatalities) and injured 116,000 more. This is the equivalent of 25 fully loaded jumbo jets crashing every year.

Some of the reasons are obvious: Trucks are bigger, heavier, and longer than cars; they need more room to maneuver; and they take a lot more road to come to a stop. Many collisions involving trucks are caused by the same things that cause run-of-the-mill car accidents: poorly maintained trucks, speeding, overly aggressive driving, failure to yield the right of way, or bad driving conditions caused by rain or snow, etc. However, there are many other causes of these collisions, causes that are very avoidable.

One of the biggest causes of crashes is excessive truck size. Federal law currently limits trucks to no more than 80,000 pounds in weight, but an 80,000-pound truck is more than twice as likely to be involved in a fatal accident as a 50,000-pound truck; furthermore it causes more “wear and tear” to the roads.

Trucks are also getting longer, with the industry-standard trailer having grown from 40 feet long in the 1960s to 53 feet long today. Longer trucks mean larger blind spots, resulting in more accidents. Additionally, many roads (including interstates) were designed when trucks were shorter, and their ramps and merge lanes were not designed to handle today’s longer trucks. As a result, these trucks cross over into other lanes of traffic, increasing the danger of a collision.

Larger, longer, and heavier trucks require more braking time, meaning that they are more likely to be in a collision because they cannot stop. For example, a truck weighing 100,000 pounds can take up to 25% longer to stop than one weighing 80,000 pounds.

Other truck-related collisions are caused by a driver’s inexperience in operating a particular kind or size of truck. Still other collisions are caused by tired truckers who have been on the road for too long and are fatigued, an increasing problem with the deregulation of the trucking industry, changes in the ways goods are shipped to a “just-in-time” delivery system, and even recent changes in the rules governing how long a trucker may drive before he is required to stop for a rest.

Suits involving truckers are often more difficult to prove than other kinds of collision suits, for several reasons. First, it may be difficult to find the trucker after the collision. The nature of a trucker’s job means that he might be involved in a collision in a state far from where he lives and to which he will never return.

Trucking companies are also very skilled in defending themselves against negligence claims (which, to them, are just a part of doing business), and they can be very aggressive in denying claims, because every dollar that they pay out in compensation to accident victims is a dollar that does not go into their pockets.

Finally, most commercial big-rig accidents involve far more parties than the typical fender bender (the driver, the trucking company, multiple other drivers, the shipper(s), the insurance adjuster, and the insurer, just to name the most common), and the legal relationships among all of these parties can be difficult to unravel.

A person who has been involved in a collision with a trucker is entitled to recover an amount necessary to compensate him for his injuries. This amount may include compensation for such items as medical bills, time lost from work, pain and suffering, mental anguish, disfigurement, and loss of earning capacity. The complexity of these cases means that you should consult an experienced attorney and should NOT rely on the trucking company’s insurance adjuster to look out for your interests.

Call us if you or a loved one has been involved in a big-rig collision. We will be happy to discuss the matter with you and work to get you the compensation that you deserve.

Of all of the causes of truck collisions, one of the most preventable gets the least press: driver fatigue-in other words, tired truckers.

Although federal law both limits the maximum number of hours that a truck driver is supposed to drive and prohibits truckers from driving if they are “impaired through fatigue,” the fact is that more and more big-rig drivers are taking to the highways without enough sleep. There are several reasons for this, including the relaxed industry regulation that has resulted in less-experienced truck drivers on the road.

Before 2004, the federal government allowed truckers to drive no more than 10 consecutive hours. Statistics from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) showed that the number of fatigue-related crashes jumped dramatically after eight hours of driving and continued to increase through the 10th hour allowed. Despite this evidence, the federal regulations were changed in 2004, and truck drivers are now allowed to drive up to 11 consecutive hours, meaning that there are more tired truckers on the road than ever.

As you might guess, the number of fatalities caused by large trucks increased in 2004 and 2005, with fatigue cited as a factor in 20% more accidents than under the old law. Interestingly, the FMCSA’s failure to consider the obvious (more time driving = more driver fatigue) has been cited by at least two federal courts that are considering whether these regulations should be allowed to continue.

The deregulation of the trucking industry has also resulted in increased competition among trucking companies, increasing the pressure on drivers to complete their routes quickly. Finally, changes in the ways that goods carried by trucks are distributed, such as the increased use of “just-in-time” delivery, have resulted in tighter deadlines for truck drivers than was the case in the past.

Taken together, all of these factors mean that the pressures on truck drivers to ignore the law and complete their deliveries, even if they are too tired to drive safely, will only increase.

All drivers should be aware of the “no-zone,” the area on the sides and rear of 18-wheelers where the truck driver cannot see a car. This dangerous area is easy to locate: If you can’t see the driver of the truck in his mirror, then he can’t see you.

The no-zone is dangerous for two reasons. First, if the truck driver cannot see you, he might try to pull into your lane, causing a crash. Second, if you drive in the no-zone, the truck and its trailer cut off your view to the side and reduce your view to the front, making it harder to avoid accidents.

If you are behind a truck, stay out of the no-zone so that the driver can see you. If you are passing a truck, do not linger in the no-zone–get through it as quickly as you can while still driving safely. Remember: No matter who had the right of way, when an 18-wheeler and a car collide, the car always loses.

Children are involved in over 45,000 ATV accidents every year. Amazingly, 95% of children between the ages of 12 and 15 who are injured on ATVs (and 65% of younger children) are injured or killed while riding a full size ATV intended for an adult. These full size machines are dangerous for children because they are too big and powerful for kids to control.
Alarmed by the number of injuries and deaths suffered by child ATV riders and passengers, neurologists who conducted a study of ATV accidents involving children issued a call for a number of common sense guidelines, including banning children younger than 16 from riding ATVs and requiring all ATV riders to wear a helmet. Such common sense would reduce the profits of ATV manufacturers, who oppose any such regulation and continue to market ever more powerful ATVs to children.
Regulations or not, if parents allow their children to ride ATVs, they should insist that their children safely ride ATVs of an appropriate size while wearing a helmet. This is not a cure all but should help reduce what is becoming an epidemic of ATV related injuries.

Insurance companies take in billions of dollars of premiums. But when the tables get turned and it’s time for an insurance company to pay you a settlement because you were injured in an auto accident, the insurance company sings a different tune. An insurer will use any excuse to avoid paying a fair settlement, but some of the more common ones are listed below.

1. You were speeding and therefore could not avoid the accident (sung to the tune of Hot Rod Lincoln by Commander Cody)
2. Your car had defective equipment that caused the accident (sung to the tune of Manic Mechanic by ZZ Top).
3. You failed to use a turn signal (sung to the tune of Turn! Turn! Turn! by The Byrds).
4. You were not paying attention before the accident (sung to the tune of Carefree Highway by Gordon Lightfoot).
5. There were no witnesses to the accident except for the passengers in your car. . . and they don’t count. (Can I Get a Witness? by Marvin Gaye).

Don’t let an insurance company give you the old song and dance routine and avoid paying you what you deserve. Call us today and we’ll make the insurance company sing sweet music to your ears.

And is your insurance company one of our Worst Insurance Companies? Maybe you’re smart enough to have picked one of our Best Insurance Companies to insure your car. Find out now!