Managing Partner
Truck accidents are extremely common—and extremely dangerous. In fact, accidents involving commercial trucks are far more likely to result in serious injuries and fatalities than those involving other types of vehicles. Fortunately, by taking precautions, it’s possible to drastically reduce your odds of being involved in an accident with a semi-truck. In this article, we discuss the top causes of truck accidents and how to avoid them.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents
Driver error: Driver error is one of the most common causes of commercial truck accidents. In fact, it’s been estimated that driver error is around 10 times more likely to cause a truck accident than any other factor. In addition to mistakes made related to driving, driver error may also include speeding and driving while fatigued.
Lack of training: Trucking companies are required to train their drivers. However, in an effort to cut costs and quickly get drivers out on the road, companies often cut corners in this area, resulting in truck accidents.
Equipment failure: Trucking companies and truckers are also required to maintain their vehicles. The failure to do so is a common cause of truck accidents. Common types of equipment failures that lead to truck accidents include:
- Poorly maintained or faulty brakes
- Worn or defective tires
- Missing or defective safety equipment
- Defective lights
- Unbalanced cargo
- Transmission failure
- Component defects
Avoiding Truck Accidents
Stay out of truck’s blind spots: Commercial trucks have large blind spots. The biggest ones are located to the right and rear of the vehicle. In addition, smaller ones are located on the mid-left side and right front corner. As a driver, it’s imperative to avoid remaining in these blind spots. Instead, when passing a commercial truck, you should do so quickly and safely.
Be careful when changing lanes and braking: In addition, you should be extremely careful when changing lanes and braking around semi-trucks. Commercial trucks can take as much as three times the distance to come to a stop as a car or other passenger vehicle. Therefore, if you brake too quickly in front of a truck, it may not be able to slow down in time to avoid hitting you.
Avoid maneuvering behind a reversing truck: Reversing in a commercial truck is extremely difficult—and dangerous. If stuck in tight quarters, it may take a truck driver several attempts to reverse. In addition, since a truck driver’s visibility is limited while reversing, vehicles in the truck’s blind spots risk being struck. Therefore, when you are in the vicinity of a reversing truck, you should remain patient and avoid trying to maneuver behind it.
Leave room for trucks to merge or change lanes: Finally, when a truck has its turn signal on, you should leave plenty of room for the driver to complete the turn. Blocking a turning truck’s path or trying to race by before it can complete the turn are recipes for disaster.
Contact a Long Island and New York Truck Accident Attorney
If you’ve been injured in a truck accident in Long Island, New York, you should contact the law firm of Dell & Dean, PLLC, for assistance. When you contact us for help with your truck accident case, we will devise a legal strategy and aggressively seek compensation on your behalf. Please contact us to arrange a meeting with a knowledgeable Long Island truck accident attorney.
Dell & Dean, PLLC handles truck accident cases throughout Nassau County and Suffolk County on Long Island as well as the boroughs of New York City, and the surrounding areas.
