More Info on Trucking Accidents in Brooklyn

Trucks, and truck drivers, are an essential part of our economy. Every day an endless stream of goods and materials travel our highways by truck. From 18-wheeled tractor-trailers to local delivery box trucks, we all share the road with these large, heavy vehicles and the professionals who earn their living driving them.

Most of the time, everyone gets where they’re going safely. Statistics show that truck drivers are generally more careful on the road than passenger car drivers are. However, when a commercial truck collides with a passenger vehicle, the results are often far more devastating than in a normal car crash.

Truck Accidents, Defined

Many Americans own a light truck—a pickup or SUV. These trucks are still considered passenger vehicles and are often a person’s “daily driver.” That’s not the sort of truck being referred to.

Commercial trucks fall into two weight categories. Heavy trucks are the largest vehicles allowed on public roads. The most common are freight trucks, often referred to as:

• 18-wheelers
• Big rigs
• Semi-trucks
• Tractor-trailers

Cement trucks, fire trucks, and buses are also heavy commercial trucks.

Medium trucks, often used to deliver goods locally, fall between heavy commercial trucks and passenger SUV’s in size. The box truck is probably the most familiar of these vehicles on Brooklyn streets.

More Weight, More Danger

A fully loaded “big rig” can weigh 25 times more than the average car. Even a box truck or other local delivery vehicle weighs thousands of pounds more than a car. When car and truck collide, the car—and its occupants—lose. Every time.

What’s more, the truck’s cargo may represent its own danger in a crash. If flammable or hazardous materials are released after a trucking accident, the secondary hazards can cause or add to injuries sustained by the crash victims. Heavy cargo, such as logs or vehicles, that break free in a crash can fall or be thrown, crushing whatever is in their path.

Truck Driver Error

Driver error is the most common cause of trucking accidents. We all make mistakes on the job; and it’s an unfortunate fact that truck driver mistakes can cost lives or cause injuries to other drivers. A recent study by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) found that driver error led to 88 percent of truck crashes.

Factors such as speeding, fatigue, distractions, and use of prescription or over-the-counter drugs can all contribute to driver error. These factors are all preventable. Strict federal regulations are in place to limit driving hours so truck drivers have adequate rest between shifts, yet some companies and owner-operators exceed those guidelines.

Driving any vehicle while fatigued, distracted, or medicated is dangerous. Truck drivers who ignore these factors put lives at risk. These operators should be held accountable for damages they cause in the case of an accident.

Poor Truck Maintenance

Trucks are designed to operate for millions of miles—with proper maintenance. Poor maintenance can lead to a crash. Some common maintenance problems that lead to trucking accidents include:

• Overly worn tires
• Poorly adjusted brakes
• Improper load distribution
• Poorly secured loads
• Improper trailer attachment
• Burned-out or malfunctioning lights

In cases of poor maintenance leading to a crash, the owner of the truck, not necessarily the driver, is the negligent party.

Faulty Equipment

Equipment malfunctions cause a number of heavy truck accidents each year. Some faulty equipment is due to wear and poor maintenance, other times a manufacturing mistake is to blame.

For example, worn tires get poor traction, and can blow out unexpectedly. If a tire with little wear blows out, that indicates a manufacturing defect. In the first example, the truck’s owner may be to blame if there’s a crash, while the tire manufacturer is liable in the second.

Who’s at Fault?

That brings us to the question of who is to blame for your crash. If you’re injured in a Brooklyn trucking accident, whose negligence led to your crash? Injuries sustained in a truck-car accident are often severe enough to exceed the limit of your no-fault insurance payment. This means you may have to file a lawsuit to collect full compensation.

Determining who was negligent in a trucking accident is not as straightforward as in most crashes. The trucking industry has some complex relationships and many variables. Some drivers are self-employed; others work for a trucking company. Some trucks are owned by the company, others are leased. An experienced personal injury lawyer, with a background of trucking industry knowledge, can get accurate information from the right sources.

Getting help from a Brooklyn truck accident attorney with experience in the industry is your best bet for finding answers. Trucking accidents are especially complex. While it’s often the driver who is at fault in a trucking accident; employers, insurers, contractors, manufacturers, and repair facilities may also be obligated to provide compensation for your injuries.

If you’ve been injured after an accident involving any type of truck, call the Law Offices of Kuharski, Levitz and Giovinazzo today at 718-448-1600.