More than 100,000 serious injuries are reported in the United States each year due to 18 wheeler accidents. Injuries including spinal cord damage, burns, traumatic brain injuries, amputations, and disfigurement.

Semi trucks can weigh up to 30 times more than a passenger car, posing serious risk to motorists especially when truck drivers are negligent.

Truck drivers are responsible for carrying billions of tons of products across the nation each year. However, driver negligence can have fatal consequences.

Some of the most common causes for 18 wheeler accidents are:

• Distracted driver (texting/phone calls)
• Excessive speed (trying to make driver deadlines)
• Impaired driving (alcohol/drugs)
• Driver fatigue
• Failure to follow state and federal regulations

Semi truck drivers are not the only ones responsible for 18 wheeler accidents. Studies of truck accidents show negligence can be found in trucking companies who employee drivers, and the manufacturers of truck parts.

Disregard for safety by trucking companies may appear in the form of unreasonable driver deadlines, inadequate inspections and overloaded trucks. Studies find that defective parts like brakes, tires and computer systems may also play a role in 18 wheeler accidents.

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), more than 30 percent of 18 wheeler accidents place responsibility on the truck driver with claims of speeding, distracted driving and failure to yield to other drivers. Truck crashes that are a result of poor weather conditions make up 14 percent of all truck accidents and nearly all 18 wheeler head-on fatal collisions are caused by semi trucks crossing the center traffic line.

Commercial truck drivers are required by law to limit the number of hours on the road yet are allowed to record their drive times in a written logbook. Studies from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) show that in recent years nearly 30 percent of semi truck drivers admitted to falsifying logbooks for various reasons by omitting hours from the record.

The IIHS reports that about one in 10 highway deaths involve a semi truck and the victim is almost always in the passenger vehicle. Thousands of deaths occur in the U.S. each year because of 18 wheeler accidents.

18 Wheeler Accident Lawsuits

Trucking companies are aware that if a commercial driver is found to be at fault for a 18 wheeler accident, they could face huge damages. Often, companies do their best to limit compensation to victims hoping to avoid the payout of millions of dollars that truck accident settlements can result in by offering a quick solution.

Many 18 wheeler accident victims are unaware of the total damages involved with the long-term suffering associated with a semi truck crash, including the high cost of medical bills, pain and suffering, loss of wages and vehicle damages.

Some accident victims choose to be guided by a professional semi truck accident attorney in order to recover expenses. If you’ve been injured in an 18 wheeler accident, a professional semi truck accident attorney may be able to get you compensation.