What Are the Common Causes of Truck Accidents?

Jackknifing. That scary-sounding word describes the V-shape that semi-trucks find themselves in as the result of a traumatic accident.  Commercial truck accidents can inspire fear in even the most seasoned drivers. To learn the common causes of truck accidents, keep reading.

Watch Out for That Truck

Commercial trucks, tractor-trailers, semi-trucks. Whatever you call them, they’re big and intimidating. When the worst happens and they get in an accident, here’s why.  A common cause of truck accidents is driver fatigue. Overworked truck drivers go long distances for long hours without much rest at all. 

That’s because truck company owners expect goods to be delivered to destinations quickly. Under the weight of the time pressure, truck drivers don’t sleep as well. They end up losing coordination, concentration, and sometimes complete control if they fall asleep at the wheel.  Another common cause of accidents is drug and alcohol use. Some truck drivers use non-medicinal drugs and alcohol on the job. While some drivers use them only at truck stops, others use them while driving.  In any case, substance use impairs their driving and can cause accidents. And it’s not just illegal drugs. Prescription drug use can impair judgment and coordination too.

More Causes of Truck Accidents

There are more causes of accidents.

One such cause is bad driver training. Operating an 80,000-pound 18-wheeler is no small task. Doing so skillfully and safely requires adequate training.  Truck drivers have to put in a certain number of training hours and meet specific requirements to be allowed on the road. Unfortunately, not all truck drivers meet these requirements.

Similarly, a poorly maintained truck can cause an accident. The law mandates that truck drivers ensure that their rigs are in top shape before taking them on the open road. But drivers don’t normally put in the time and money to properly maintain their trucks.  That’s because they’d rather use that time to make deliveries (and money). 

Like bad trucks and bad drivers, there are distracted drivers. Long drives breed boredom.

In various attempts to combat such boredom, drivers read or reply to texts, check their social media, or make phone calls. Even changing the radio station can cause an accident. All of these actions involve the driver taking their eyes off of the road for at least a fraction of a second.  Even that’s long enough to count as distracted driving, the results of which can be fatal.

A final, common cause of accidents is overtaking and speeding.

Under the aforementioned time pressures and job insecurity, drivers usually go over the speed limit. Doing so can force drivers of smaller vehicles off the road. It also reduces reaction time, leading to crashes.

Risky Trucking

Driving trucks can pay well compared to other professions requiring the same amount of education. Maybe that’s because of the long hours, undesirable schedule, constant travel, and – yes – because of the dangers unique to the job.  Truck accidents lurk underneath the many causes described above. Now you know why they happen, so you can hopefully avoid them.  For more guides to the causes of other things to be avoided in life, skip on over to the site’s Blog section.