Top 4 Causes of Commercial Truck Accidents in Will County

 Posted on September 15, 2022 in Personal Injury

If you have been involved in a commercial truck accident, you know just how bad these crashes can be. Semi-trucks are enormous vehicles capable of causing extreme destruction in an instant. The responsibility truck drivers have to drive safely is extremely important. Truck driving is a job that requires careful attention at all times, because a single mistake can cause serious harm to others or even lead to fatalities.

Often, commercial truck accidents because a driver has either broken a law that was meant to prevent trucking accidents or driven in a careless manner. On other occasions, it was the trucking company that is to blame for failing to maintain its fleet in a safe condition. One of the things your attorney will need to do is try to get to the bottom of what caused your accident through careful investigation. 

Most Common Reasons for Truck Crashes

There are a few very common mistakes drivers and trucking agencies make that put everyone on the roads in danger. These common mistakes include: 

• Cell phone use - For a truck driver, taking their eyes off the road even for the brief moment it takes to send a text message can be risky. A large truck can drift out of its lane in that time, or the driver could fail to notice traffic braking ahead of him and rear-end someone. Truck drivers may also use their phones to locate a convenient place to stop for a break. 
• Hours of service violations - There are strict federal regulations pertaining to how long a truck driver can keep going without stopping, and how long he must stop to rest. Fatigue can impact a truck driver’s ability to keep his attention on the road where it belongs, and can also affect his reaction time. 
• Poor preventative maintenance - If certain components on a commercial truck fail, the driver is likely to crash. Tire blowouts are extremely dangerous even on a small personal vehicle, but can be devastating if it happens to a semi-truck. The driver is likely to immediately lose control. Steering and brake failures are just as dangerous.
• Intoxicated driving - People operating any type of heavy machinery must be completely sober. Even a few beers can impair a truck driver enough to result in an accident. Stimulants, while keeping the driver alert, can impair judgment and cause more aggressive driving. 

If you have been injured by a commercial truck, you may be entitled to compensation. 

Call a Will County Truck Accident Lawyer 

McNamara Phelan McSteen, LLC represents victims of negligent truck drivers or trucking companies. Our skilled Joliet truck accident attorneys will fight for you to recover the highest possible amount of compensation. Call 815-727-0100 for a free consultation. 

Source:

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/hours-of-service