Practice Areas

	Vehicle Accidents
	Slip and Fall
	Social Security Disability Benefits

You are not likely to boast, “’Tis but a scratch!” after colliding with a large truck.

When the Large Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS) was completed in 2006, it provided a wealth of information on how and why truck crashes occur in Colorado and elsewhere. Several aspects of truck crashes were analyzed in great detail:

• Types of crashes: single truck, with other trucks and with passenger vehicles;
• Critical events: what type of vehicle action caused the accident;
• Critical reasons: what were the failures leading to the critical events;
• And associated factors, other failures that were present and may have led to the critical reason.

Of all the studied truck crashes, including single vehicle and truck-truck crashes, what were the three main "critical events" assigned to trucks?

• 1. Running out of the travel lane, either into another lane or off the road, for 32%;
• 2. Loss of control, either due to speeding, or to cargo shift, systems failure, bad road conditions or other reasons, for 29%;
• 3. Rear-ending another vehicle in the truck's lane for 22%.

This being said, the conclusion should not be that truck drivers are the ones causing most of the crashes. Passenger vehicle (cars, pick-up trucks, vans, SUVs) drivers are assigned the critical reason for 55% of all the truck-passenger vehicle accidents. This means that a non-truck vehicle caused more than half of these accidents and that the reason was:

• Either driver failure (in most cases), like driving under the influence, falling asleep, distraction, speeding, or other;
• Or vehicle failures like faulty brakes, or environmental conditions like poor visibility.

Whatever the cause, the conditions and the underlying reasons, truck crashes are unlikely to end with just a few scratches. As a car driver, don't even think of "being right" at an intersection or changing lanes. Let it go. Keep a healthy distance between you and the beast. And remember your big SUV is still no match for an 18-wheeler.

If you or someone you care for has been the victim of a truck accident due to the negligence or recklessness of someone else, call now Truck Accident Attorney Robert J. Anderson at 866 254 1274 (toll-free) or 719 473 3040 (local) or send us an e-mail for a free evaluation of your case.

Order now Attorney Robert J. Anderson's FREE book: Top Ten Mistakes That Can Destroy Your Personal Injury Claim, and make sure you counter the insurance company's maneuvers to deny or limit the just compensation you deserve.