Last year, a tractor-trailer flipped over on a Massachusetts highway, spilling over 10,000 gallons of gasoline, making it one of Massachusetts's costliest hazardous materials spills in the last decade. That incident sparked an investigation from CBS News that contained alarming statistics, including that "over the last 10 years, the number of big rig accidents involving hazardous materials has jumped two and a half times, an increase of 155%." Since there are over two million hazmat shipments daily in the U.S., drivers need to know about hazmat and hazardous [...]
How serious are accidents involving big rig trucks? The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) sets the minimum amount of liability insurance that a trucker must carry is between $750,000 and $5,000,000 (depending on what's being transported). An accident claim can generate a remedy for the victims in that range of amounts and possibly even more if you factor in punitive damages. Understanding the difference between a truck accident settlement and a verdict could impact the final compensation number. The Verdict A verdict is the conclusion of a [...]
As you approach any work zone, traffic naturally seems to slow down. That is how it should go. Unfortunately, many motorists and truck drivers tend to ignore the warnings, which can lead to some serious collisions. How often do truck accidents happen in work zones? According to the National Workzone Safety Information Clearinghouse, there were a total of 96,000 work zone crashes in 2022. Of that number, 282 fatalities were caused by commercial vehicle crashes. Common Causes for Truck Accidents in Work Zones Work zones can involve projects [...]
In the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word "semi" is defined as "partial or incomplete." It seems odd that there would be anything "semi" about a truck that weighs up to 80,000 pounds and can be over 70 feet long. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, there were over 2.7 million registered tractor-trailers in our country in 2020, a number which has likely increased since then. So, why is it called a semi-truck? It's the Trailer In the northeast, folks call a semi-truck a tractor-trailer. In the south, they are [...]
According to reports by the National Safety Council (NSC), more than 117,000 trucks are involved in crashes resulting in injuries each year. Another 6,000 crashes result in one or more fatalities. Truck accidents can result in devastating consequences, causing injuries, fatalities, and significant property damage. In the aftermath of such incidents, gathering evidence is crucial for determining liability and seeking compensation for victims. Eyewitness testimony plays a vital role in truck accident claims, providing firsthand accounts of the events leading up to the collision. Let’s take a closer [...]
The federal government passed a national seat belt law in 1968. Once passed, it required all auto manufacturers to make those safety devices standard in every new car. That didn’t mean drivers and passengers had to use the belts; it just had to be installed on new vehicles. Washington adopted its mandatory law in 2002. Today, collision avoidance technology (CAT) might be the new “seatbelt.” President Biden’s Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, has proposed a law to make collision avoidance technology mandatory on all new cars. According to NBC [...]
When someone has a commercial driver's license, they have the proper training and skills to handle these large vehicles. But do you really need it to drive an automobile that’s considered to be a commercial one? We’ll address the question, “Can you drive a commercial vehicle without a CDL?” Countless trucking accidents occur on the roads every day, many of them caused by unlicensed drivers. At Trucking Injury Law Group, we have long been on the frontlines, aiding innocent victims and their families who’ve suffered unnecessary harm because [...]
Safety is the most important concern of the commercial trucking industry, where large vehicles navigate busy highways and urban streets alongside smaller passenger vehicles. With the potential for devastating accidents and severe consequences, integrating advanced safety technologies becomes crucial. Among these truck technologies, forward-collision warning (FCW) systems stand out as a promising tool to prevent collisions and protect both truck drivers and other road users. Let’s explore how forward-collision warning technology is making commercial trucks safer on the road. The Basics of Forward-Collision Warning Systems Forward-collision warning systems [...]
Truckers are no different from other motorists in that they may suffer from a wide variety of medical conditions that perhaps, unbeknownst to them, can affect their ability to safely operate a vehicle. Sometimes drivers don't even know that they have a certain diagnosis until they cause a crash, injuring themselves or hurting others in the process. While it's understandable that someone may have a health condition and be unaware of it or experience a medical emergency, this is far more potentially dangerous if a trucker loses consciousness [...]
Most of us have heard the warning that speed kills. It's not just a catchy saying. It's the truth. Car drivers often fear sharing the road with truckers. While they do so for many reasons, one big one is because they've seen the destruction that can occur when large trucks and passenger cars collide -- especially if one or both vehicles are traveling at a high rate of speed. Concerns about these crashes are one of the reasons why motorists often inquire, "Do all tractor-trailers have speed governors?" [...]
