When it comes to dangerous accidents on the Florida roadways, a collision with a commercial truck ranks at the top. Commercial trucks can weigh 20 times as much as the average passenger vehicle, so even at low speeds, the impact can be devastating. Additionally, many commercial trucks carry fuel, chemicals, and other hazardous materials.
If you’ve been injured in a commercial truck accident in South Florida, Long, Jean & Weschler, P.A. has the experience and resources to ensure that you receive full and fair compensation from the responsible parties. If you’re worried about paying for an attorney, our legal team works on a contingency basis, which means that you don’t have to pay out of pocket for our representation. We receive compensation once the case settles or we win through litigation. Call our Pompano Beach personal injury law firm for a free consultation.
How Common Are Commercial Truck Crashes?
According to the Institute for Safer Trucking, there were over half a million truck crashes in 2021. 154,993 of the 533,582 commercial truck accidents involved injury to one or more parties, and approximately 29% of the time, truck accidents resulted in injury. While car vs. truck accidents are less common than car vs. car collisions, the rate of injury is much higher.
The same report demonstrated a 47% increase in truck crash fatalities for the ten-year period ending in 2021. In 2021, Florida had 373 truck crash fatalities, ranking it third in the country behind Texas and California.
Why Truck Accidents Are So Dangerous
Federal law requires that the gross average vehicle weight of commercial trucks remains below 80,000 lbs. That means that the truck, trailer, and load cannot exceed 40 tons in weight. By comparison, the average weight of the personal vehicle is approximately 4,100 lbs or a little over two tons. Because energy at impact is directly proportionate to the mass of the vehicles, a car being struck by a truck can experience 20 times the energy of a car struck by another car at similar speeds.
That amount of energy can be devastating and often fatal. Trucks are also much more difficult to operate, and even a small misstep or distraction can lead to a serious accident. For these reasons, commercial trucks and their operators are much more heavily regulated than personal vehicles and their drivers.
When a driver is responsible for transporting hazardous materials, they must have additional qualifications, and the standards for vehicle operation are even more rigorous. Vehicles must bear a placard identifying the properties of their contents.
Top Causes of Commercial Truck Accidents
Almost anything that can cause an accident in a car can also cause a truck accident. However, there are some causes that are more prevalent in commercial truck accidents than in car vs. car accidents.
Driver Fatigue
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulates the amount of time that commercial truck drivers can operate their rigs. For instance, a property-carrying driver (no passengers) can only operate their vehicles for 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off.
This might sound like plenty of time if the driver parks their vehicle, eats dinner, and then goes to bed, but the reality is often quite different. Many drivers get back behind the wheel with only a few hours of sleep. Others find ways to cheat on their logbooks to make it appear that they’ve been off for longer than they have.
This is just an example of the many different regulations that govern mandatory breaks for drivers. Our legal team can subpoena log books, GPS records, and other information that will help determine whether or not driver fatigue was a factor in your truck accident.
Intoxicants
Driving large trucks can be a physically demanding and stressful job. Many drivers use prescription or illicit drugs to help them remain alert. Others get hooked on painkillers due to work-related pain and injuries. Many drivers drink when on their breaks or even while they’re operating their rigs. The legal BAC limit for commercial truckers is half what it is for car drivers (.04%), which means that if a driver has even a couple of beers, they’re likely over the legal limit.
Distracted Driving
Like all drivers, truckers have more than their fair share of in-cab distractions. In addition to the sound system and vehicle dials, many modern vehicles have built-in computer screens to assist drivers with communications and routes. Radios to communicate with dispatch and other fleet members are also common. And, of course, almost everyone has a smartphone. When you operate a large commercial vehicle, you can’t take your eyes off the road for even an instant, but this happens all of the time — sometimes leading to serious accidents.
Improper Load
Cargo must be packed tightly or strapped down. If the trucker is transporting a liquid, the motion of the contents can change the feel of the truck from one moment to the next. Improper loading can cause a truck to jackknife on turns. The contents may also slam against the doors and fall into the roadway or come off the bed of an open truck. Imagine the danger of a 50 lb box breaking free from a truck and hitting a car traveling at 65 mph.
Poor Maintenance
Trucks should receive maintenance for every 15,000 miles traveled and receive a thorough inspection for 30,000 miles. Trucks exhibiting any safety issues should be taken out of service for repairs. However, not all drivers or trucking companies are willing to lose the use of their rigs for repairs. Common maintenance issues that can cause accidents include:
- Faulty brakes
- Safety lights and signals not functioning
- Worn tire tread and tire blowouts
- Worn windshield wipers
- Broken trailer coupling devices
- Damaged mirrors
- Transmission failure
Our legal team can subpoena the maintenance records for the commercial truck that caused your accident. If the truck was improperly maintained, it could positively impact your settlement.
Lack of Training and Inexperience
There are many variables that can impact the way that a semi-truck handles: different road gradients, debris on the surface of the road, mechanical issues, inclement weather, etc. In addition, other drivers can be unpredictable. Well-trained and experienced drivers are often able to compensate for unpredictable and dangerous conditions. Newer drivers are more prone to mistakes.
Blind Spots
Most motorists don’t realize that there are four large blind spots for semi-truck drivers. Some trucks have warnings reminding drivers of this fact, but changing lanes without clearing blind spots remains a significant cause of commercial truck vs. car accidents.
Image via North Dakota State Government Vision Zero
At Long, Jean & Weschler, P.A., our legal team can review your accident report and determine whether any of the above factors contributed to your accident. This will help us determine the degree of liability of the truck operator and/or owner.
What to Do After a Truck Accident
In the moments after a truck accident, you’re likely to be injured and disoriented. What you do in the first minutes and hours, however, can impact your physical and financial recovery. We recognize that you may be reading some of these tips after the fact. The most important step you can take if you’ve already been in an accident and have received medical treatment is to call our office.
Get to a Place of Safety
If your car is driveable, move it off of the roadway. If you believe that hazardous materials are involved, you may have to put a mile or more between you and the accident to ensure your physical safety. Nothing is more important than your physical well-being, so put distance between you and any immediate danger. If you exit your vehicle, watch for traffic and other road hazards.
Call 911
The dispatcher will simultaneously be sending units as they take your information. The dispatcher will need a description of the vehicles involved, the types of injuries, your exact location, and whether you can read the placards on the commercial vehicle. Follow their instructions.
Take Photos or Video
From a safe location, take pictures or a video of the accident scene. You’ll want to include vehicle damage, debris in the roadway, visible injuries, markings on the truck, placards, etc. It’s important to keep in mind that conditions may not allow you to complete this step. Under no circumstances should you put yourself in harm’s way to obtain evidence.
Talk to Witnesses
If anyone stops to render assistance, ask them to remain on the scene to talk to the police. If they insist on leaving, ask them for their contact information. Our office can contact them later.
Seek Medical Attention
Whether you feel injured at the moment or not, allow the EMTs to examine you on the scene. Allow them to transport you if they recommend it. If not, follow up with your doctor. Establishing a baseline for your injuries can help your legal team establish that they were the result of the trucking accident.
Avoid Making Statements
The insurance companies that offer coverage to truckers and trucking companies have professional legal teams that help them to avoid liability. Their lawyers and adjusters tend to be extremely proactive. Consequently, it’s not unusual to hear from an adjuster at the scene of the accident or within 24 hours of it occurring. The first thing that they will do is to try to get you to go on record about the accident. It’s within your rights to defer speaking about it and tell them you’re seeking legal counsel. They will then try to talk you out of finding a lawyer. They may offer you an immediate payment to cover your medical bills, lost wages, and a little extra for your inconvenience.
However, you are not going to know the full cost of your accident immediately. Additionally, you may have pain and suffering damages coming your way that the adjuster will not include. The reason that insurance companies don’t want you to talk to a lawyer is because they know that the average settlements are much higher among accident victims with legal counsel. One study by the Insurance Research Council indicates that the average settlement/award for a personal injury is 3.5 times higher among represented parties than those who forgo attorneys.
How LJW Legal Can Help
Long, Jean & Weschler, P.A. has helped hundreds of South Florida accident victims receive full and fair settlements. We have the experience and resources to take on the big companies that insure truckers, but we also take a personal approach to our client relations. Among the services we provide on a contingency basis are:
- Gather police reports, medical reports, and other documentary evidence.
- Retain the services of accident reconstruction experts and medical experts who can provide expert testimony relevant to your case.
- Subpoena and depose all witnesses, including the truck driver and first responders, who were on the crash scene.
- Issue letters of protection to medical providers so that they can be assured payment once the case concludes.
- Tabulate all economic and non-economic damages to prepare a demand letter.
- Negotiate with the responsible parties to try to reach a full settlement.
- Litigate the case through the civil court of jurisdiction.
Because we work on a contingency basis, we can begin work immediately. You will not have to pay a retainer or other out-of-pocket costs for our legal services. We receive payment at the end of the case and only if we win. Contact our office immediately. The sooner we’re involved in your case, the better the chance for a successful outcome.