Do You Need Truck Accident Lawyer?
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports that most fatalities in large truck accidents occur to victims in passenger vehicles. Large trucks on the road often outweigh passenger cars and trucks by 20 to 30 times and require 20 to 40 percent longer stopping distances. In fact, 96 percent of the people killed in two-vehicle accidents involving large trucks were in passenger vehicles. If you were involved in a truck accident in which someone was injured or killed, then you need a truck accident lawyer who understands the danger these drivers represent on roadways today.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents
There are many causes of truck accidents. As more truckers on the road for long hours every day, some factors are related to the equipment and others to drivers themselves. Common causes include things like:
- Driver fatigue. Drivers spend long hours on the road each day. While there are laws to limit the amount of time drivers spend behind the wheel, that doesn't mean they're spending their "downtime" sleeping. Drivers who are overly tired experience delayed response times, depth perception challenges, impaired judgment, and may even fall asleep behind the wheel.
- Speeding. Trucks this size take longer to come to a full stop than passenger vehicles, perhaps even longer when fully loaded, and speeding not only increases the risks of accidents but slows the ability of trucks to respond when accidents occur.
- Distracted driving. Distracted driving poses increasing risks to all drivers. Because trucks are so large, their danger to other vehicles on the road from distracted truck drivers increases.
This is in addition to other risks such as careless and aggressive driving, impaired driving, equipment failure, and poor maintenance.
In all of these instances, accountability is key to prevent these types of accidents from happening in the future. We must hold trucking companies responsible for the actions of their drivers. That is one of the reasons you need a truck accident lawyer.
Why Hire a Truck Accident Attorney?
Hiring an attorney who specializes in truck accidents means that you're hiring a lawyer who is skilled in this area of law, who understands the unique challenges you may face when going against large trucking operations, and the real dangers reckless drivers and companies who improperly maintain their equipment pose for regular drivers on the roads today.
A skilled truck accident attorney can't replace lost loved ones or eliminate injuries that occur in large truck accidents. They can hold these trucking companies accountable and ensure that you are compensated fairly for lost wages, medical bills, and your pain and suffering. For more information, reach out to a truck accident lawyer.
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