Hit by a big truck? Call Everett Day, a Houston truck accident lawyer
Because of Texas’ extensive highway system, the state leads the country in the number of big truck accidents and the number of deaths resulting from them. These are catastrophic, traumatizing accidents that can change your life in an instant. As an experienced truck accident lawyer, Everett Day wants to help you understand your legal rights as an accident victim.
No matter how safe you are as a driver, you can still be a victim of a truck accident. Why? Because many truck drivers push themselves or get pushed to the limit by their employers. This leads to bad behavior, bad habits, and bad decision-making that can have bad results for innocent drivers on Houston’s roads.
If you have been injured in a collision with a big truck, you need to call local truck accident lawyer Everett Day.
Big truck accidents happen too frequently
A truck accident is alternatively known as a commercial truck accident or a heavy truck accident. Regardless of the name, it is still an incident that happens too frequently on our roads. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there were over 30,000 truck accidents that occurred on Texas roads, causing thousands of injuries, and over 600 deaths.
These large trucks, commercial trucks, tractor trailers (“18-wheelers”), large equipment trucks, and similar trucks are vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 10,000 pounds or more. These vehicles are hard to control with poor visibility. You have to hope, as an innocent motorist, that the drivers of these behemoths have proper training and are following protocol.
A Houston truck accident lawyer explains what leads to big truck accidents.
There are various reasons why truck accidents occur, but it generally boils down to six distinct causes:
Speeding
As mentioned above, heavy truck drivers are often pushed to the limit. Because of how they are paid, they may resort to unsafe habits such as speeding to meet essential deadlines. Unfortunately, that puts others in harm’s way as truck drivers end up driving well over the posted speed limit with disastrous (and tragically, sometimes fatal) results.
Overloaded
More weight means more mass. And more mass means the large truck becomes harder to control. Excessive payloads destabilize the truck, making it harder to drive safely. Altogether, overloaded trucks lead to much more severe collisions.
Maintenance
Heavy trucks experience a lot of wear and tear. Brakes, wheels, engines, you name it. These trucks require extensive, proper maintenance. As with any machine or motor vehicle, proper maintenance prevents breakdowns and failures. If a truck experiences a mechanical failure at highway speeds, even the most experienced and safe truck driver could lose control and cause a crash.
Fatigue
Compensation for truck driving is notorious for being harmful. This results in drivers pushing themselves to the limit, illegally staying on roads longer than they should (service hour violations). The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration stipulates that long haul truckers can only drive up to 11 hours at a time. Unfortunately, these rules are breached, repeatedly. Drivers end up being drowsy behind the wheel, compromising their ability to be alert and attentive. This simply leads to disastrous results.
Inexperience
Trucking companies are notorious for high turnover and other labor-related issues. These companies cannot keep experienced truck drivers on the road. Often, they resort to hiring less-than-qualified candidates just to get routes filled; many times, these new drivers are poorly trained. Combine this reality with the aforementioned toxic compensation structures, and you have a perfect storm of conditions that can lead to horrific outcomes on the road.
Negligence
Let’s face it: some truck drivers are just careless and reckless. Some truck drivers have the mentality that their size makes them royalty on the road, believing that other drivers should simply yield to them just because of their size. Unfortunately, not every motorist can and the results can be tragic.
Regardless of the cause, Houston truck accident lawyer Everett Day is ready to fight on your behalf to hold irresponsible drivers and companies liable.
Houston truck accident lawyer Everett Day explains who can be held liable in truck accidents
Compared to personal auto insurance, commercial transport vehicles typically have heftier insurance coverage. This changes the nature of the claim. Houston truck accident lawyer Everett Day will work hard to hold all liable parties responsible for the accident. Some of these liable parties include:
- The truck drivers themselves
- The truck owner, who can either be the truck driver or the company employing the truck driver. Companies that own the truck are still responsible for ensuring that the driver of the truck is qualified, both legally and professionally, to operate the truck.
- The trucking company
- Cargo companies that load products on the trailer and fail to properly secure the loads
- Manufacturers that may have designed, developed, and installed malfunctioning or defective parts that directly led to the accident.
If you have been injured, it is time to call of Houston’s leading truck accident lawyers
If you have sustained injuries in a recent truck accident, or if you tragically lost a loved one as a result of a truck accident, do not pursue a claim on your own. Trucking companies and their insurers will be ruthless in trying to deny you compensation and you need to hire a truck accident lawyer that is ready to fight back.
Houston truck accident lawyer Everett Day is an aggressive, results-driven personal injury attorney that will handle your case with compassion and dedication. He and his staff will be laser-focused on protecting your interest, getting a fair settlement, and helping you on the path to recovery.
Give Everett Day & Associates a call today at 713-640-5875 or send us an email for a free consultation about your case.
