The safety concerns associated with big commercial trucks are different than those that come from smaller vehicles. Big trucks take longer to speed up and stop. They perform awkward maneuvers and wide turns.
Commercial trucks can also cause unique kinds of crashes that often don’t occur with other vehicles. Most people know about jackknife crashes, which are when the cab and trailer of a semi-truck travel in different directions.
Fewer people know about underride and override crashes, even though these collisions can completely destroy vehicles and cause life-altering or fatal injuries to their occupants. Understanding how they occur and how trucking companies could prevent them can help you take action after a serious wreck.
How underride and override crashes occur
Underride collisions occur to the rear or sides of a commercial vehicle. A passenger vehicle might strike the back of the trailer or go under the trailer between the axles. The results are often devastating or fatal for the people in the smaller vehicle. These crashes are common enough that lawmakers have started to look into stricter rules about the safety guards that help prevent them. Unfortunately, at this time, underride collisions can and do occur in part because many commercial vehicles don’t have adequate rear underride guards or any side underride guards at all.
Override collisions occur when a commercial truck strikes the back of a passenger vehicle and then goes up and over part of the passenger vehicle. Learning about commercial vehicle crashes will make it easier for you to seek the compensation you need if you or a loved one is involved in one.
