A semi-truck pulling a trailer tipped over Monday morning, around 7:45 a.m. July 15, 2019, on busy I-295 just past the southbound Creek Road exit. Though the details of the accident aren’t known at this time, the crash did involve at least one passenger car.
Authorities at the scene say that two people were taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries, and the wreck left only one of the three southbound lanes open which severely hampered the morning commute. It’s unknown in which vehicles the injured were riding, but the crash is still under investigation.
Semi-Trucks and Freeway Accidents
Semi-trucks and other large commercial vehicles are important to the nation’s economy by ensuring the free flowing of goods across the nation. While studies show that driver of these trucks are involved in significantly fewer accidents than those of passenger vehicles, when they do crash, they can cause significant damage and inconvenience.
The main reason for this is their size and weight. A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh as much as 80,000 pounds, and this alone puts all others on the road at risk.
Difficulties Driving with Semi-Trucks
A significant problem for car drivers are the large blind spots of trucks. Many drivers think that because they see all those mirrors on the truck then they must also be seen by the truck driver. This isn’t true. The rule of thumb is that if you can’ t see the eyes of the driver in the truck’s mirror, then he or she can’t see you. Blind spot crashes are a significant factor in the over 4,000 deaths of people involved in large truck accidents every year.
Another problem is most driver’s lack of understanding of the dangers that theses trucks present. A study by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute that studied 8,309 fatal car-truck crashes to determine fault found that over 80 percent of all truck crashes that involved fatalities were the fault of the passenger vehicle while only 17 percent of the crashes were the fault of the truck driver. This shows that drivers operating around semi-trucks aren’t driving with the appropriate amount of due care and caution.
Who will pay for Injuries?
In all accident’s, the negligent driver’s insurance will cover damages. When the negligent driver is the truck driver, then there will be at least $750,000 dollars of policy coverage as required by the federal government.
However, since most of these accidents are the fault of the driver, then many times there is no obvious source of compensation. In the vast majority of cases, the car occupants get injured instead of the truck driver, and when the fault is the car driver, then the occupants of the car can make a claim against that driver’s insurance company even though they are passengers in the same car as the driver.
The at-fault driver might be able to get some compensation for his or her injuries if they have medpay or personal injury protection coverage on their policy. These pay out for some damages in a crash regardless of who’s at fault.
Do I need an Attorney?
If you are involved in a crash where there were injuries and damage involving a commercial semi-truck, you should definitely talk to an attorney. Determining negligence can be complicated especially if there are more than one other vehicle involved. You should at least speak to an attorney who can give you unbiased advice regarding your unique circumstances.
You need to talk to a Truck Accident Lawyer today to go over your case and find out how best to get the compensation you deserve for your injuries. Don’t talk to a cookie-cutter one size fits all firm, but get help form a firm that has a track record of helping those injured in truck accidents. Talk to the attorneys at Pearce Law Firm, P.C. at (215) 557-6868 or text at 215 880 6164, and start getting someone in your corner. You can also contact us online by clicking here.