Personal injury accidents are all around menacing and traumatic events. Whether you’ve lived through a medical malpractice case, a car accident or a slip and fall incident, there’s no telling what the repercussions might be. The damage certainly varies from one case to the next. However, there is one personal injury accident in particular that is quite common and that just like the aforementioned accidents can be avoided through safety and precaution. Accidents involving trucks are not only more prominent than we would like to believe but they are also almost always fatal events. If you or someone you know has lived through a truck accident and has miraculously survived, we recommend that you reach out to a personal injury lawyer to discuss the circumstances surrounding the event and how you may be able to hold the party at fault accountable. What Does the Data Reveal About Truck Accidents? According to Consumer Notice, “in 2017, nearly 5,000 Americans were killed in accidents involving large trucks, and tens of thousands more were injured. Truck driver errors, such as speeding and distracted driving, were factors in almost a third of the crashes. A fully loaded semi can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, or 40 tons. The typical car, meanwhile, weighs in at about 3,000 to 4,000 pounds. And because trucks can’t slow down or stop as quickly as cars, trucks tend to hit cars at higher speeds and with greater impact, leaving the car occupants with devastating and often fatal injuries.” What are the Most Common Causes for Truck Accidents?As with any accident, particularly any vehicular accident, there are a series of factors that work in unison or separately to generate disaster. With truck accidents, the causes are similar to those behind car accidents, reckless driving, speeding, impairment (alcohol, drugs, etc), fatigue, distracted or unfocused driving, weather conditions, and road construction, among others. Yet when it comes to truck accidents, there are some truck-specific factors such as cargo overload. Truck drivers must be particularly mindful and diligent in their operation of such a heavy and impactful vehicle.

Truck accident on SR 20; image by WA State DoT, via Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, no changes.

After a Truck Accident, What Damages Could You Be Left with?Per Policy Advice, “injuries in a truck accident are often severe because of their enormous size and weight. Severe injuries may include broken bones, back and neck injuries, head trauma, internal bleeding, spinal cord damage, and whiplash injury. These injuries require immediate medical attention and sometimes even multiple surgeries, which can be too costly.” And even despite medical procedures, victims of truck accidents are often left permanently temporarily or permanently disabled and are forced to attend regular physical therapy sessions, which can often be quite costly. Whether you or someone you know has been recently involved in a truck accident, we recommend reaching out to a personal injury attorney in Omaha, Nebraska at Rensch & Rensch to help you obtain compensation for damages suffered.