Trucking-related accidents can be fatal to those people traveling in passenger cars who are unlucky enough to be involved in a crash with these heavy-weight motor vehicles. But as Baltimore auto injury lawyers, the legal staff at y firm knows that other commercial truck drivers are just as at risk as many other drivers of car, truck and motorcycles caught in a collision with a semi tractor-trailer, tank truck, municipal bus, or box truck. This is why we always advise caution when passing or driving near large commercial vehicles, especially at higher speeds on the expressway.
It’s a common problem that trucking accidents are frequently caused by driver fatigue. In fact, drowsiness on the part of truckers is one of the primary contributing factors linked to commercial trucking accidents. As motorists, we tend all to rely on the fact that truck drivers are professionals, and as such they are required by law to follow various state and federal safety regulations specifically written to protect the rest of us. Sadly, not every trucker or trucking company obeys the laws laid out for them.
Thousands of innocent people, mostly drivers and passengers in private automobiles, sport utility vehicles and minivans are hurt in collisions caused in full or in part by the driver of a tractor-trailer or commercial delivery vehicle. Whether the negligent trucker is operating a car hauler, tanker truck, flatbed tractor-trailer, commercial dump truck, box trucks or any of the numerous other commercial motor vehicles plying our state’s highways and city streets, the potential for personal injury is high.
Drivers and occupants of passenger cars involved in a crash with a large truck can sustain mild to severe injuries, depending on the circumstances of the collision. Cuts and laceration, broken arms and legs, internal organ damage and traumatic brain injuries are just a few of the possible consequences of a traffic accident with a big rig on Maryland’s expressways. It’s a given that injuries sustained in trucking-related accidents will more than not be more severe and potentially more life-threatening than those associated with car-to-car wrecks or other types of collisions.
From the standpoint of a personal injury lawyer, a trucking accident should not be treated exactly the same as a typical passenger car collision. For starters, here in Maryland commercial drivers are, by law, held to higher standards than the driver of a sedan or family minivan. Any injury attorney who handles this kind of trucking accident case must be familiar with Maryland’s commercial vehicle laws, as well as those federal standards. Any violation of these state and federal requirements can open the door to a liability suit against the driver or his employer.
One area that is always considered is whether or not the trucker was adhering to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations regarding hours of service. While the rules governing the number of hours a driver may be one the road each day, some commercial trucking firms offer their drivers financial incentives to deliver their ahead of schedule. Should such a policy prove to be a causal factor in a trucking-related accident case, both the company as well as the driver could be held accountable for any injuries resulting from the wreck.
A while back, on a Thursday morning, a box truck crash along a stretch of Rte 50 smacked of drowsy driving on the part of one of the truck drivers involved, however there was no specific cause given by police at the time of the article. Based on reports, the 19-year-old driver of a refrigerated box truck told police he was approaching the intersection at Rte 50 and Rte 322 when he noticed that a second box truck would not be able to stop in time. To avoid a collision the man reportedly drove off to the side of the road in the hope of getting out of the way of the other approaching vehicle.
Despite the attempt, the second truck hit the rear corner of the first one, crushing the cab of the second vehicle and trapping that driver in the vehicle. Once fire department and Talbot County EMS personnel arrived on the scene, they were able to remove the trapped driver. The man was rushed to Easton Airport, after which he was transferred to a waiting medevac chopper as flown to University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. According to the news article at the time, the victim was listed in stable condition that afternoon.
Box truck crash closes Rt. 50, StarDem.com, August 10, 2012