Trucking Accident Attorney Blog

Illinois drivers on the Dan Ryan Expressway must have seen quite a mess after a recent crash involving two semi trucks and a car. A full-size semi truck was unable to slow down enough for traffic ahead of it, and rear-ended a flatbed semi in front of it. The collision pushed the flatbed tractor-trailer into a passenger car in front of it. One of the tractor-trailers caught fire. A woman and three men were hurt and taken to hospitals. Two were in serious to critical condition and two in good to fair condition. The good news is that none of the injuries were considered life-threatening and no one was burned by the truck fire. As a southern Illinois semi truck crash attorney, I have seen many cases where crash victims were not so lucky. In 2006, accidents involving large trucks killed 157 people in Illinois.

The full size semi truck's driver was cited for following too closely. It is especially disheartening to me, as a St. Louis tractor-trailer accident lawyer, to learn that this truck driver was driving so carelessly given the hefty responsibility that comes with operating a vehicle that can do massive damage. As I noted last week, crashes involving semi trucks that hit cars usually hurt the occupants of the car far more than the truck driver. All drivers should know that a safe following distance is necessary on the road, but truck drivers should be even more aware. It takes more time and distance to stop such a heavy and unwieldy vehicle. This is why truck drivers are required to undergo training and acquire special licenses to drive their vehicles. The greater danger posed by large trucks is also why there are more regulations that apply to them than to car drivers.

Even though their injuries are not life-threatening, the people who were hurt in this accident may have a long recovery from their injuries. They may lose income temporarily or even permanently if their injuries leave them unable to work. Even if they are able to work, they may still be financially hurt by the accident because of the high cost of medical care. Crash victims who have health insurance still have to come up with the money for co-pays, which can add up quickly over the course of numerous appointments and procedures. Those who do not have health insurance may face staggering medical costs. Since the police have already cited the truck driver for following too closely, I suspect that with the help of a Missouri big rig crash lawyer, the victims of this accident could hold that driver legally responsible for the accident and therefore for their injuries. In this way, the victims could recover costs for their medical treatments and procedures, lost wages, repair or replacement of their damaged vehicles, and compensation for pain and suffering. It's only fair that those responsible for hurting others make it right. It’s also the law in both Illinois and Missouri.

Continue reading "Four Injured When Two Big Rigs and One Car Crash on Illinois Expressway" »

The Belton Star-Herald recently published fifteen photos of a serious semi truck accident near Belton, Missouri. Miraculously, no one was killed in the chain-reaction crash involving several vehicles, but there were multiple injuries requiring the help of many emergency personnel, and the cars involved were mangled beyond repair.

As a Missouri big rig accident lawyer, I paid close attention to the description of how the accident occurred, offered by the news article that accompanied the photos. Crashes like this often happen for specific reasons, like distracted or fatigued driving. The article reports that the tractor-trailer's driver lost control of his vehicle in slowing traffic and swerved to try to avoid the cars in front of him. Instead, the semi hit the rear of a car in front of it, and initiated a chain reaction among several cars. The truck crossed the median into oncoming traffic, with its trailer dragging a small car along with it and smashing it into the guardrail.

Accidents like this often have much more dire consequences, and I am glad that everyone survived. One woman, Mindy Osborn of Peculiar, Missouri, was reported to have serious injuries, and was airlifted to a local hospital. One man, Adam Moennig, also of Peculiar, had moderate injuries and was taken to a hospital by ambulance. Another woman, Melissa McClay of Raymore, went to the hospital with minor injuries, and two men, Mark Vogt of Peculiar and Jose Valentin of Laredo, Texas, were not injured. The fact that Valentin, the driver of the tractor-trailer, was not injured underscores an important outcome that I encounter frequently in my work as a southern Illinois tractor-trailer crash attorney: when semi trucks crash into cars, those cars and their drivers bear far more serious injuries and damage than trucks do, because of their vast weight discrepancy. A loaded semi truck can weigh more than 22 times as much as the average car, so the force with which it slams into a car is far more devastating than an accident between two or more cars of similar weight.

Because 18-wheelers pose a greater hazard on the road than cars do, truck drivers have a responsibility to exercise especially great care. Although the Belton Star-Herald article doesn't provide a lot of detail, it does say that the driver lost control of his truck as he approached slowing traffic. This suggests that he might have been distracted by something inside the truck, or simply not paying close enough attention to notice traffic conditions ahead of him. Large, heavy trucks require extra time and distance to stop safely, so semi drivers have to pay close attention to traffic conditions in order to drive safely. Alternatively, perhaps his truck was not in adequate repair mechanically, making him unable to stop in time because he or the trucking company failed to maintain the truck. This is all speculation, but these are unfortunately common causes of serious big rig accidents.

When people are seriously injured in tractor-trailer accidents through no fault of their own, it is important that they consult a St. Louis semi truck accident lawyer right away. Drivers seriously injured by semi trucks are likely to run up huge bills in their medical treatment, possibly beyond the maximum coverage provided by their health insurance plans if they have them. They can also lose income if they are out of work while they are recovering from their injuries. Other expenses pile up after a serious accident too, like replacement of the car that was wrecked. All trucking companies know this, because accidents are a routine part of their work. Some of the most unscrupulous companies do their best to limit their financial payouts by pressuring accident victims to sign a waiver or take an inadequately small settlement, which eliminates their right to later sue for a fair settlement.

Continue reading "Out of Control Missouri Semi Truck Causes Chain Reaction Crash " »

As a Missouri big rig accident attorney, I was interested to see that in February, the National Transportation Safety Board released its updated "Most Wanted List" of needed improvements to the nation's transportation systems. It named the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration as being unacceptably slow in its response to regulating tractor-trailer drivers and carriers on several important safety issues. The agency's slowness to respond to these issues allows motor carriers to employ semi drivers who are medically unfit or otherwise unqualified for the job, and put unsafe vehicles on the road, opening the possibility of terrible accidents that could cost innocent people their lives.

The NTSB is calling for the FMCSA to crack down on motor carriers that hire unqualified drivers and use vehicles with mechanical problems, by preventing these carriers from operating at all. In addition, the NTSB wants electronic onboard data recorders (EOBR) in trucks to help reconstruct accidents when they occur and to gather accurate data about drivers' hours of service, or how long drivers spend on the road. Truck drivers are subject to hours-of-service regulations to ensure that they are not driving while fatigued and thus prone to making mistakes and causing accidents. But according to The Trucker, the FMCSA is considering a rule that requires EOBRs only for two-year periods for carriers that historically have not complied with regulations or have had high accident rates. NTSB Chair Deborah Hersman said that making the EOBR requirement punitive would not make the roads significantly safer, since it would track the hours of service compliance for just 930 of 700,000 carriers -- 0.13%.

The NTSB would prefer that every truck carry an EOBR, so hours of service can be tracked and problems corrected before they lead to a serious accident. As a southern Illinois tractor trailer accident lawyer, I strongly agree. Our system currently relies on truckers to be honest about their hours, but evidence from trucking accident trials shows that many are not. Driving while fatigued is emerging as a serious distracted-driving issue for all drivers, not just truckers -- but it’s a particularly serious issue for truck drivers under pressure to avoid financial penalties for late deliveries. By tracking hours-of-service violations for all carriers, regulators can take unsafe carriers off the road before they can cause devastating accidents. The NTSB is right to push for tighter controls on factors that could cause such accidents.

Continue reading "NTSB Faults Trucking Regulator for Slow Response to Important Safety Issues" »

The severe winter weather we've experienced here in Missouri has caused some dangerous road conditions. As a Missouri trucking accident attorney, this story about deaths on the road in our neighboring state of Kansas reminds me of the need for truck drivers to be especially careful during winter storms. Over one late February weekend, a couple lost their lives in a road accident involving semi trucks and icy roads. Kenneth and Diane Brown died after their car skidded on an icy bridge and was struck by a tractor-trailer in Marion County, Kansas, outside Kansas City.

It’s not clear whether this accident could have been avoided if the trucker had been driving slowly and safely for the road conditions, and allowing a safe following distance. But even most trucking companies would agree that missing a deadline due to cautious driving or pulling over in dangerous conditions is better than loss of life on the roads, especially with the dangerous weather we've experienced in Missouri this winter. We don't know whether the Browns were going too fast for the road conditions when their car skidded, but drivers of 18-wheelers have a greater responsibility to watch out for others on the road. Tractor-trailers cause much more damage to cars and their passengers than the other way around because semis weigh up to 22 times as much as cars. Trucking companies have an obligation to hire safe and experienced drivers, but they sometimes choose to overlook drivers' prior traffic citations, or even license suspensions, in favor of moving cargo as cheaply as possible.

Continue reading "Tractor Trailer Kills Kansas Couple Whose Car Skids on Icy Bridge" »