Heavy trucks make up less than 10 percent of traffic on U.S. roads, but they make up a disproportionate percentage of serious vehicle collisions. A primary reason for this is the size and weight of the truck compared with any passenger vehicle. When the two get into an accident, it’s significantly more likely for severe injuries and even fatalities to occur to people in the car or pickup truck. A truck accident attorney in Houston helps injured people and the families of individuals who were killed because of a highway accident between a truck and a passenger vehicle.
Nearly 5,000 fatalities happen in the United States each year because of these types of accidents. It has been evident for a long time that a lack of stringent reporting of hours on the road is responsible for driver fatigue and erratic behavior. Recent federal laws require electronic tracking of mileage in commercial trucks by the end of December 2017, which should reduce accident rates among these vehicles. Laws already mandate how many hours professional drivers can be on the road without time off, but without electronic monitoring, many ignore those regulations. Trucking companies and drivers alike make more money when trucks are on the road, picking up loads and delivering them. Drivers can fabricate entries for the logbooks later on to fit the regulations.
Even when the fatigue factor is decreased, heavy trucks still create higher risks on the highway. A Truck Accident Attorney in Houston is familiar with other causes of these collisions. Inclement weather is a common factor in truck accidents. Drivers feel pressure from their employers to keep traveling even when roads are slippery and visibility is poor. That can lead to jackknifing, sliding off the highway and running into other vehicles. Snow and icy roads are particularly hazardous. Truck drivers may become aggravated as passenger vehicles slow down, leading the trucker to travel too fast for conditions in attempts to pass cars and pickup trucks. An organization such as Ramsey Law Firm helps injured clients and families of people killed in heavy truck accidents obtain financial compensation to help them move forward.
