Causes of Truck Accidents in the United States

 Posted on September 21, 2018 in Personal Injury

Any car crash is a complicated event - it can be difficult to determine the cause of any accident and contributing factors to any crash. When it comes to crashes involving trucks, the consequences can be dire. Because of the large size of these vehicles, truck accidents are deadly and survivors can experience more severe injuries than accidents involving other vehicles. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has conducted a study in an effort to determine the causes of serious crashes involving large trucks, which are defined as any truck with a gross weight of over 10,000 pounds.

Crash Causation Variables

In the study, three key variables were used to determine what caused truck crashes: critical events, critical reasons, and associated factors.

Critical Event: This is the action or event that made a collision unavoidable. Three major types of critical events were assigned to trucks:

• Running out of the travel lane - 32 percent of trucks received this critical event;
• Loss of vehicle control due to a variety of reasons - 29 percent of trucks were assigned this event; and
• Rear ending another vehicle in the truck’s travel lane - 22 percent of trucks were assigned this event.

Critical Reason: This is the immediate reason for the critical event, which can be defined as a driver error, vehicle failure or environmental condition. Critical reasons come in four categories:

• Non-performance (12 percent of crashes): The driver fell asleep or was physically impaired;
• Recognition (28 percent of crashes): The driver was inattentive, distracted or failed to observe the situation;
• Decision (38 percent of crashes): The driver was driving too fast for conditions, misjudged the speed of other vehicles or did not have enough distance between the vehicle in front of him; and
• Performance (nine percent of crashes): The driver panicked, overcompensated or had poor control of the vehicle.

Associated Factors: These are the person, the vehicle and the environmental conditions at the time of the accident. These are simple stated if they were present or not - they are not necessarily related to the reason for the crash. Examples of associated factors include:

• Brake problems;
• Heavy traffic or congestion;
• Speeding;
• Roadway problems;
• Drug use; and
• Fatigue.

Have You or a Loved One Been Involved in a Truck Accident?

If you have been injured in a truck accident, you are probably suffering from serious injuries. In order to claim much-needed compensation, you need to contact a skilled Bloomingdale truck accident injury attorney. By getting in touch with the Law Offices of David W. Clark, P.C. you can have peace of mind knowing you are being represented by a compassionate lawyer with more than 20 years of experience in the personal injury field. Call the office at 630-665-5678 to set up a consultation.

Source:

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety/research-and-analysis/large-truck-crash-causation-study-analysis-brief