Truck Rollover Accident Attorneys
Rollover Crashes & Roof Crush Accidents
A rollover of a heavy truck can take a serious toll on both a person's health and financial standing. In fact, according to a study by the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, over 100 truck rollover accidents result in wrongful death or incapacitating injuries for victims every year. Truck rollovers are defined by a truck turning onto the side or the top of the vehicle. It is often seen in cases where a car and truck are about to hit head on, when both swerve quickly. Instead, the truck is thrust onto its side and possibly rolls several times before stopping. The force of a rollover is great and many drivers are catastrophically injury when involved in such a truck accident. Furthermore, when another vehicle becomes involved, their damage is often catastrophic.
Abogados de accidentes de camiones en Houston
What Are Contributing Factors to Large Truck Rollover Crashes?
Recent statistics show that 15,000 commercial trucks experience rollover every single year, averaging to about 1 rollover for every million miles of truck travel. Due to the size and weight of large trucks, it is no surprise that these accidents are often associated with catastrophic injuries and even fatalities; for example, consider the fact that while only 4% of all trucking accidents involve rollover, more than 12% of all fatal truck accidents resulted from it. In The Large Truck Crash Causation Study performed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, it was found that there are several contributing factors to these accidents, which include the following:
- High speed on curved roadways
- The cargo that the truck was carrying
- Poor brake condition / defective brakes
- Inattentive or distracted drivers
- Fatigued drivers who dozed / fell asleep
How Vehicle Stability Can Cause Truck Rollover Accidents
Driver behavior, however, is not the only cause of rollovers. In fact, in the 1980s, it became increasingly clear that rollover accidents were becoming more and more of a problem. In that same decade, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced that there were certain vehicles with a higher chance of rollovers than others; namely, it was found that utility vehicles had a five times greater chance of rolling over than a passenger car. The reason for this higher risk was not the drivers, but the stability of the vehicles themselves.
In 1970, the National Highway Safety Bureau, introduced the roll stability standard, which required vehicles to undergo a test where it would perform to rollovers between 30 and 60 mph with both windows open. To pass, both test dummies must have remained in the vehicle. Despite manufacturer outcry that they could not be expected to design a restraint system for all scenarios, the NHTSA issued a final rule in 1971 that all passenger cars, light trucks, and multipurpose passenger vehicles would be required to comply with this new requirement.
Contact Our Truck Accident Attorneys to Fight for Fair Compensation
If your loved one has been injured in an accident caused by a truck rollover, call as soon as possible. While many crashes are caused by accident, some are caused due to the negligence of a truck driver. With these accidents, the driver, or their insurance company, should be held liable. At Arnold & Itkin, we can provide you with a free consultation to determine if your injuries and the property damage are compensable. If so, we can move forward with filing a claim on your behalf with the truck driver's insurance company. Many insurance companies are known to be shy on their claims and will not give you the correct amount that they own you up front. It takes the skills and resources of an experienced attorney to get your point across and to get the settlement that you deserve.
Contact Arnold & Itkin today to begin your fight for justice!