Commercial trucks like semi-trucks, delivery trucks and big rigs are huge, heavy and slow to maneuver. This means that they are less able to get out of the way of a car crash. And, when they do get into an accident with a smaller car, the aftermath is often devastating. Ultimately, car and truck drivers alike will want to do whatever they can to avoid the common causes of truck accidents, which will be discussed below.
What are the Most Common Causes of Texas Truck Accidents?
Truck drivers spend a lot of time on the road — all day in fact — and this makes them very experienced drivers and very capable of avoiding accidents. This may be why truck accidents are often caused by the smaller vehicles that they collide with.
Common Ways that Car Drivers Cause Texas Truck Accidents
Some of the most common ways that car drivers cause truck accidents are:
- Changing lanes too fast
- Driving in the truck driver’s blind spot
- Making a turn in front of an oncoming truck
- Merging or pulling into traffic too quickly and cutting a truck off
- Not giving a truck adequate space when it is changing lanes
- Driving between two big rigs
- Leaving an abandoned or broken down vehicle in the middle of the road.
Common Ways That Truck Drivers Cause Texas Truck Accidents
Common ways that truck drivers cause truck accidents are:
- Bad training that doesn’t teach safety concerns, defensive driving and other safety techniques
- Drowsy driving due to working too long without a break
- Schedules that encourage drivers to speed rather than drive the speed limit.
Regardless how the truck accident happened, victims of the crash who suffer serious injury — and family members of persons killed in the incident — may want to investigate whether they can pursue personal injury or wrongful death claims related to the incident. A successfully navigated civil lawsuit of this type could be a way for victims to recover financial compensation related to their injuries and/or the loss of their loved one. For more information, speak with a Houston attorney experienced in truck accident cases.