Semi rollover accidents are among the most dangerous. Poor training, the ongoing supply chain shortages, a nationwide truck driver shortage, the Internet economy, and even fraud, are all putting Ohioans at greater risk, whether traveling the Interstate or the highways and byways of Southern Ohio.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently approved a plan to let teenagers drive interstate tractor trailers as part of a series of stopgap measures to ease the shortage of nearly 100,000 truckers and improve supply chain issues prompted by the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile in Texas, a Department of Public Safety’s employee has been accused of accepting thousands of dollars in bribes to issue more than 200 commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) to over-the-road drivers who had not completed the proper training or passed the exams.
These are critical safety issues because the primary cause of tractor-trailer rollovers is inexperience. Experienced Chillicothe trucking accident attorneys know these can result in very serious, often fatal, injuries to innocent motorists forced to share the road with dangerous or inexperienced truck drivers.
Tractor-Trailer Rollover Accidents
These preventable accidents are caused most often by driver inattention, overly aggressive steering, curb-tripping, and unsafe loading. The best measures of prevention are experience and better education and training. Over 78% of tractor-trailer rollovers are caused by driver error.
Turning too quickly or allowing one side of a trailer to rise or drop suddenly can both cause a rollover, primarily due to an error on the part of the driver. Truck driver error is cited in the vast majority of cases. Speed is cited in nearly half of rollover accidents involving large commercial vehicles.
Common scenarios for truck rollovers include:
Speeding: When a driver exceeds the speed limit, a number of rollover risk factors are created. Curves in the road may not be negotiated safely. Loads can shift faster, creating a weight imbalance. And stopping takes longer, which creates substantial risk when approaching stopped or slowing traffic.
Inattention: Drowsy driving, long hours behind the wheel (road hypnosis), and driver distraction can all create the risk of rollovers, either because of oversteering, failure to negotiate turns, or failure to perceive stopped or slowing traffic ahead.
Curb Tripping: This has become an increasing risk factor as the Internet delivery economy has put more warehouses in close proximity to neighborhoods and more large delivery vehicles on residential streets. When a truck’s wheels strike a curb, even small imbalances can lead to large shifts of loads that result in a rollover.
Weather: Bad weather, including flooding, ice and snow, and fog or rain, can increase the risk of a rollover occurring. However, typically it is poor driving decisions that are primarily to blame, not road conditions. Truckers are not absolved from their responsibility to drive safely just because weather conditions are less than ideal.
Shifting loads: Unsafe loads can result in a tipping hazard. When loads shift during transport, a weight imbalance can be created that makes it more likely a trailer will tip, particularly when one of the above factors occurs.
Oversteering/Understeering: When a driver overcorrects, turns suddenly, or fails to turn, roadway departure and/or tipping can occur.
Truck Rollover Injury Claims
Experienced Chillicothe truck accident attorneys know these are the most dangerous types of accidents for truck drivers. But motorists also face severe risks when a tipping truck lands on a passenger vehicle or suddenly blocks the road ahead.
These are complex claims often involving a truck driver, the truck owner or leasing company, a freight dispatcher, and the owner of the freight, as well as all of the associated insurance companies. Determining all causes of an accident is critical to building a case for damages. A thorough review of all factors in causation, as well as all current and future damages, must be completed if victims are to win the just compensation to which they are entitled.
Call Chillicothe Injury Lawyer Mike Warren at 740-774-4357 today at Buckeye Legal for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your rights.
