By Kari Guthix
Commercial trucks are big and carry heavy loads as they transport merchandise across the country. Their weight limits them to particular speeds on the roads. It also makes them more susceptible to road accidents than smaller vehicles.
Here are some of the reasons why commercial trucks cause accidents.
Inadequately Trained Drivers
A commercial truck driver should undergo special training to be able to handle the big vehicles on the road. Even though you’re a qualified driver and have driven smaller cars in the past, you’d still need to go through the special training to become a truck driver.
Unfortunately, some employers hire drivers without adequate truck driving skills and allow them to drive vehicles across the country. These drivers don’t have the skills to manage different situations on the road and are more likely to cause accidents.
If you’re an employer, only source the best-trained drivers. You can ask for referrals from other employers, and demand to see certification for truck driving every time you hire a new driver. You can also require your drivers to refresh their truck driving skills to stay updated with the traffic requirements. This way, you’ll be reducing the number of inadequately trained truck drivers on the roads.
Speeding Due To Unrealistic Schedules
Every truck has a time limit within which they’re supposed to deliver merchandise to maintain profitability for the company. The truck drivers are required to work within those timeframes and ensure that the employers are making profits.
Unfortunately, sometimes companies have unrealistic expectations, causing the drivers to exceed speed limits to achieve the set targets. A speeding truck is very dangerous to other road users because it can easily lose control. Most of the accidents caused by trucks are because the drivers flaunted traffic laws.
The trucks carry heavy loads which makes them unstable on the road. If you drive such a truck above the recommended speed limit, you can easily cause an accident. As a truck driver, you should only aim to drive within the recommended speed limits.
System Compensation Models
Most companies use automated systems to compensate their employees for work done. As such, truck drivers get better commissions when they get more work done for the company. Under such systems, truck drivers may overspeed to get more work done. Unfortunately, this has been the cause of many truck accidents as drivers rush for the buck.
The best way to avoid this problem is to have standard compensation for truckers. This way, nobody will be
Obstruction by Other Road Users
Trucks move relatively slower than other vehicles on the road. As such, other motorists on the road prefer to overtake the trucks instead of driving behind them. Unfortunately, some drivers overtake carelessly, leaving the track drivers with no control of their vehicles.
Overtaking trucks has been listed as one of the most common causes of road accidents. Vehicles also flaunt the distance parameters set by traffic departments. If you find yourself in a truck accident, you should have a commercial truck accident attorney to represent you. The attorney will help you with the case and in claiming benefits from your insurer.
