Caution is Required While Driving Near Trucks

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July 03, 2018
Edward Smith

Caution is Required While Driving Near Trucks

Caution is Required While Driving Near Trucks

I’m Ed Smith, a Stockton Personal Injury Lawyer. Many different factors play a role in driving, and changes in these factors make it challenging. The weather conditions, the density of traffic, and time of day change regularly, making it possible for a car accident to happen at any time. When someone is driving near a truck, there are some dangers that people need to keep in mind:

  • Blind Spot:  Trucks’ blind spots are larger than the average vehicle due to the size of their cab and trailer. This means that trucks aren’t always able to see the cars that are driving in their vicinity. One rule to remember is that if you can’t see the truck’s mirrors, the truck driver cannot see you.
  • Lack of a Rear View Mirror: While trucks have side view mirrors, they lack a rear view mirror. The size of the trailer prevents the truck driver from looking out of the back of their cab. This means that truck drivers can’t really see if someone is tailgating them, making it prudent for other drivers to give trucks a wide berth while stopping.
  • Large Turning Radius: Trucks also require a larger turning radius to make a right or a left-handed turn. This is because the trailer is going to take a straight-line path from the start of the turn to the end of the turn. This means that the trailer has the potential to take anything within this turning radius with it, including other cars, leading to a severe truck accident. If a truck is making a turn, be sure to stay out of its turning radius.

These are only a few of the reasons why it is crucial to give trucks plenty of space while driving down the road. Furthermore, it is critical to pass with care. Failure to do so can lead to numerous traumatic injuries.

Severe Injuries can Develop

Because of the size of trucks, the injuries sustained in truck accidents have the potential to be catastrophic. Some examples of injuries include:

  • Neurological Damage: Traumatic brain injuries can happen if someone is involved in a rollover accident while driving near a truck. Someone could be side-swiped by a truck, causing the significantly smaller car to roll over. This means that someone’s skull can collide with the roof and side of the vehicle, leading to brain damage.
  • Bone Fractures: Bone fractures, such as femur fractures and hip fractures, can occur when someone is involved in an accident involving a truck. This comes from damage to the front of the vehicle that could potentially pin someone’s legs and hips inside of the metal frame of the car.
  • Penetrating Trauma: In an accident involving a truck, the windows and windshield of the car could shatter, sending shards of glass flying throughout the vehicle. This could impale the people inside, leading to penetrating damage that could hurt the organs, including the stomach and small bowel.

A Full Investigation

Due to the sheer scope of accidents involving trucks, it is essential to talk to an experienced Stockton personal injury lawyer who can investigate a crash to the fullest extent possible. Truck accidents have the potential to cause not only a massive amount of property damage but also numerous serious injuries to the people involved as well. It is vital for anyone who has been injured in a truck accident to contact an injury lawyer to learn more about the options available to them.

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I’m Ed Smith, a Stockton Personal Injury Lawyer. Driving near trucks can be both intimidating and dangerous, requiring extreme care. If you or a loved one has been involved in an accident while driving near a truck, call me at (209) 227-1931 or (800) 404-5400.

I”m a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum.

I encourage all of you to take a look at what we have accomplished with our verdicts and settlements.

See what our clients are saying about us on Avvo, Yelp, and Google.

Image Source: The truck image from the top of this page has been shown here under the 3.0 version of the CC License and is stored in its original form on Wikimedia Commons

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