You know what it is like to pass a tractor-trailer on the highway. Your hands clinch the wheel firmly as you attempt to safely maneuver around the truck. Can you imagine what it would be like to be involved in a crash with one of these big rigs? From sideswipe collisions to rear-end crashes, any contact with an 80,000 pound truck will result in severe property damage to your vehicle and the potential for catastrophic injuries.
Unfortunately, tractor/trailer, truck, and automobile injuries and deaths occur all too frequently. Often these sad occurrences could have been prevented and involved some kind of negligence or wrongful death. Over the years, the attorneys at the Bailey and Oliver Law Firm have helped individuals successfully pursue compensation on hundreds of tractor/trailer, truck, and automobile negligence cases.
Due to the sheer size and weight of trucks, the speed at which they travel, and their blind spots, others on the road are exceptionally vulnerable to negligent and reckless driving by truckers. Truck drivers and trucking companies have a legal responsibility to follow the rules of the road, and that includes compliance with wide-ranging federal regulations. Trucks involved in collisions are often in violation of one or more of these regulations. The regulation of the trucking industry is complex, many parties may be accountable and understanding the causes of truck collisions is often difficult.
However, truckers and trucking companies routinely ignore these laws and regulations in order to meet strict delivery deadlines. Sometimes, that leads to truckers piloting ten-ton vehicles on very little sleep or taking drugs to stay awake. At other times, trucking companies fail to maintain brakes, tires, lights and other equipment, putting their own drivers and everyone around them at risk of a serious truck accident. And a few unscrupulous companies knowingly employ cheap but unqualified drivers who never earned a commercial driver’s license in the first place. Federal statistics show that large trucks are only three percent of the vehicles on our roads but are involved in 12 percent of traffic fatalities. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulates the trucking industry and recently published the top causes of tractor-trailer crashes. They are as follows, from most common factor to least common:
- Braking failure
- Traffic congestion
- Truck operator prescription drug use
- Truck operator driving his tractor-trailer too fast for road conditions
- Truck operator’s unfamiliarity with the road
- Roadway construction
- Truck drivers failure to stop at a electronic traffic signal, stop sign, or crosswalk
- Truck operator’s use of over-the-counter drugs
- Failure of the truck driver to keep a careful lookout of the roadway (inattention)
- Truck driver fatigue
You are entitled to expect others will be safe and follow the rules of the road. But even the most careful and skilled drivers cannot always avoid the negligent actions of others. In 2008, an estimated 2.35 million people were injured in motor vehicle crashes. The failure of another to use reasonable care while operating a motor vehicle constitutes negligence. Motorcycle riders are especially defenseless when involved in an accident with a careless driver—motorcyclist fatalities continued their 11-year increase in 2008, reaching 5,290 in 2008. The vast majority of motorcycle accident injuries are due to the negligence and inattention of automobile or truck drivers who claim they “never even saw the motorcycle.” If you have been seriously hurt in a car crash or motor vehicle accident, you need experienced attorneys to represent you.
Often, to litigate an automobile accident case requires hiring accident reconstructionists, human factor experts, and crash impact specialists. When drugs or alcohol are involved in an automobile accident case, a toxicologist is retained. Experienced car accident attorneys know which experts will be required beforehand. The Bailey and Oliver Law Firm has worked with respected professionals in virtually every field that might be called on for your accident case.
When we accept your case, we will work exceptionally hard and commit our every resource to achieving the best result for you and your family, including proceeding to trial if that becomes necessary, all the while caring for you and your family. If you or any one close to you has suffered an injury due to a trucking or automobile accident, please contact the Bailey and Oliver Law Firm to discuss your rights and possible avenues to recover compensation for your injuries.
