Some of the things that can cause dangerous trucking accidents are things which are not visible to the other drivers who are sharing the roads with tractor trailers. One such danger is overloaded or overweight trucks. Weight is an important consideration for truck drivers, and it plays a big role in safely transporting cargo from one place to another. There are Federal and state weight limits which apply to the trucks themselves. There are also weight limits which apply to certain roads and bridges, because not all roadways are designed to support heavy loads. When truck drivers load their trucks with too much weight, or when they haul heavy loads over roads and bridges that could be damaged by heavy trucks, there is a risk that an accident could occur.
Unfortunately, overweight trucks can be found on roads all across America. Last October, a West Virginia man drove an overweight truck over a historic bridge in Greene County. The weight of the truck exceeded both the weight limit for the road leading to the bridge and the weight limit for the bridge itself. The weight of the truck damaged the bridge, and it partially collapsed. In Ohio, law enforcement officers report that when they set up safety checkpoints for trucks, they never know what they will find. Trucks with bulging tires often alert officers at the safety checkpoints to the possibility of an excessive load, and scales at the checkpoints enable the officers to know right then and there whether the trucks are in fact overloaded. Some of the overweight trucks that officers discover at safety checkpoints are carrying thousands of pounds more than they should be.
Any load that weighs more than a truck is designed to carry increases accident risk because the excessive weight increases the truck’s stopping distance. Overweight trucks also increase the risk of trucking accidents involving mechanical defects because the excess weight places a great deal of stress on the mechanical components of the truck, including brakes and tires. Trucks are harder to handle when they are overloaded; they are harder to steer and more likely to tip over than trucks which are loaded properly.
Truck drivers are responsible for checking their trucks to ensure that they are loaded properly, and that the load is not too heavy. Unfortunately, not all drivers take the time to do so. In some situations, trailers are loaded before the driver picks them up, and the driver is expected to simply hitch up the trailer and move along. Some drivers may even be under pressure from their employers to pack as much freight onto their trucks as they can, in order to increase the company’s profits.
Giddens Law Firm, P.A.: Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorneys
Overweight trucks are an unseen danger on American highways. Trucks that are carrying loads which are too heavy are at greater risk of being involved in an accident. If you have experienced an injury or loss because of an overloaded tractor trailer or any other type of commercial vehicle, qualified Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorneys can help you to recover financially from your loss or injury. To learn more about how the Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorneys at the Giddens Law Firm, P.A. can help you, please call (601) 355-2022, to arrange a consultation with us.