Utah big-rig crashes often spawn outsized consequences

It doesn’t take a detailed explanation to understand why roadway accidents involving large trucks often yield catastrophic results, does it?

It’s both obvious and readily confirmed through mere observation of those vehicles.

For starters, commercial haulers are flat-out big. An in-depth analysis of large-truck injury and fatality facts authored by the national Insurance Institute of Highway Safety underscores their sheer dimensions. The IIHS notes that trucks “often weigh 20-30 times as much as passenger cars.”

Moreover, their drivers sit high and operate in traffic with off-the-ground clearance that is far greater than that of passenger cars.

It tragically turns out to be the case many times each year that those smaller vehicles actually get trapped and pinned beneath trucks in so-called “underriding” accidents. Understandably, those can spawn devastating consequences for crash victims and, often, their loved ones.

Big trucks: accident catalysts in myriad, wide-ranging ways

The above narrative duly underscores that commercial trucks like tractor-trailers, semi-trucks and other assorted 18-wheel big rigs are massively tall, heavy and wide.

They are also cumbersome, which ups accident risks for drivers and passengers traveling in close proximity. Trucks hardly stop on a dime. And they are comparatively unstable when forced to make pronounced lateral movements.

There are other reasons too – many of them – why big trucks are often centrally involved in major crashes on Utah roadways and other thoroughfares nationally. Here are a select few:

• Vehicle instability tied to improper loading
• High-pressure industry scheduling that leads to long behind-the-wheel hours for fatigued professional drivers
• Confirmed industry substance abuse challenges linked with alcohol and drugs
• Irregular and deficient vehicle repair/maintenance

How a proven legal team can help a truck crash victim

A key threshold point concerning advocacy in the wake of an accident involving a big truck is that vetted legal experience can literally pay off for a crash victim and reliant family members.

The reasons why are multiple. For starters, truck accident cases are often governed by complex federal rules and regulations, which makes federal-law acumen central to effective legal representation. Seasoned truck accident attorneys are also well versed in conducting crash investigations and fully establishing negligence and accountability that is often diffuse and broad-based.

A meaningful legal remedy can help a crash victim and loved ones secure maximum compensation that is relevant to both current and future needs.