18 Wheeler Truck Roll Over Accidents in Colorado Springs

18 Wheeler Truck Roll Over Accidents

Written by Jeremy D. Earle, JD

March 30, 2023

Best Truck Accident Attorneys in Denver

When you witness a massive car begin to roll over, it seems to be occurring slowly. You’re certain you’ll end up beneath the truck, yet you can’t seem to get away quickly enough.

In actuality, a massive truck may roll over in a matter of seconds, particularly if the driver was traveling too fast for the bend. And, especially in and around Denver, Colorado truck rollover accidents aren’t as uncommon as you would expect.

According to the IIHS, 679 individuals died in truck accidents last year, the most current statistics available. Rollover accidents claimed the lives of 319 people or 47 percent.

While many rollover accidents are unavoidable, you can improve your odds. Slow down until you are behind the car instead of next to it on the outside of the curve if a truck approaches a bend and seems to be traveling too fast. If you see a truck swerving on the road, pull over to the side and be ready to stop.

What Causes a Truck to Roll Over?

Rollovers almost always occur in a curve. Because a tractor-trailer, dump truck, or other tall car has a high center of gravity, the cargo may continue to lean into the curve as the driver straightens out. Even on a straightaway, a truck might be blown over by the wind.

In excellent driving circumstances, there are four basic reasons for truck rollovers:

Failure to slow down for bends. On-ramps and off-ramps are two of the most typical sites where this occurs. Despite the presence of speed limit signs on the ramps, the motorist often underestimates the speed at which he or she can safely negotiate the curve.

The motorist may be above or exceeding the speed limit. The speed at which the load causes the trailer to tip is affected by the kind of load and whether it is appropriately balanced in or on the trailer.

Failure to pay attention. If the driver is not paying attention to the road for any reason, he or she may take the curve too quickly or overestimate the severity of the bend. Texting, chatting on the phone, staring in the rearview mirror, or simply being distracted by another motorist who is not paying attention to what he or she is doing are all examples of distracted driving.

Failure to steer safely. If the driver isn’t paying attention and begins drifting toward the edge of the road or into another lane, then overcorrects, she risks rolling over, particularly at higher speeds. If the weight isn’t correctly balanced in or on the trailer, even a minor overcorrection might cause the trailer to tilt.

Failure to account for the weight of the load and how it is loaded. It is not always the driver’s fault. The driver cannot check a sealed cargo since they have no idea what they are carrying or how it will react in bends.

If a load is not sealed, it is the driver’s responsibility to verify that the loaders placed and balanced it correctly. The driver must ensure that the cargo is balanced and securely strapped down, whether it boxes in a van trailer, a huge piece of equipment on a lowboy, or multiple goods on a flatbed.

Trucks may also roll over for a variety of reasons.

In certain circumstances, the driver is not at blame, or is only partly at fault, in a truck rollover accident.

Climate Conditions

Even on a straightaway, and even if the driver slows down, the wind may blow a truck over when it’s windy. It may be difficult to blame the driver in this instance. However, if it’s windy and the driver doesn’t slow down, particularly in corners, the driver may be somewhat blame.

Icy and wet roads, as well as the sun glaring in a driver’s face, are examples of meteorological conditions that might cause a truck to flip over. The car might overturn if the sun covers the driver’s vision and he or she pulls out of his lane, then overcorrects.

Even if the driver is traveling slowly due to the weather, the trailer might slide on black ice, knocking the cargo loose and causing the trailer to overturn.

Excessive Swiftness

Rollovers may be caused by driving too fast for the circumstances, taking a curve too rapidly, or even changing lanes at a faster speed than is safe. It just takes the trailer to shift direction, particularly if the weight isn’t correctly balanced. The trailer continues to travel in the opposite direction while the cargo moves in the same direction—the load tips due to the high center of balance.

Excessive speed does not need a truck driver to be exceeding the speed limit. If the speed limit for trucks is 55 mph, but the driver is driving at 40 mph because it’s raining, all it takes for the trailer to slide on a slippery place on the road is for the trailer to slide.

Shifts in Cargo

Even if a driver thoroughly inspects the cargo, they may overlook a slack strap or feel the load is balanced when it is not. When the cargo changes, the trailer is forced to move in the opposite direction, causing the trailer to tilt.

Van trailers, dump trucks, flatbed trailers, and even lowboy trailers may all experience cargo changes. Trucking firms often use lowboy trailers to transport huge, oversized equipment such as boats, cranes, massive generators, and other machinery.

Because a lowboy sits near the ground, if these objects are off-balance, they are more likely to tumble off the trailer rather than tilt it. However, if the weight forces the trailer to roll out of control, the car may jackknife.

Flatbeds and van trailers have a higher risk of rolling over, particularly if the weights are unbalanced. Depending on how uneven the load is and how heavy it is, even the tiniest steering wheel adjustment might lead a driver to lose control.

Mechanical Issues

This motorist may or may not share blame for the accident. If a driver had seen the problem during an inspection, he or she might have been held responsible for the accident. If not, the accident might be blamed on the car mechanic, the transportation business, and others.

After a Truck Rollover Accident, What Should You Do?

Do it slowly if you are aware of a truck rollover accident and believe it is safe to get away from the car without inflicting more injury.

Make contact with the initial responders.

Check on the other people who were involved in the accident.

Get the driver’s name, address, phone number, insurance information, and CDL information.

Ask any witnesses for their contact information.

Photograph the scene of the accident. Take pictures of any damaged property, such as fences, roads, and signs. Take photographs of any skid marks you or the car may have left. Finally, if you can do so without harming yourself, snap images from various angles.

Seek medical help, even if your injuries appear to be minor. Some injuries may not show up for many hours or even a day or two.

Notify your insurance carrier that you were involved in an accident. Only your name, policy number, date and location of the accident, and your attorney’s contact information should be given to the insurance agent.

If you haven’t already, contact a truck accident lawyer.

Injuries You Might Get in a Rollover Truck Accident

Depending on various circumstances, such as speed, what you’re driving, the sort of weight the truck is transporting, and more, the injuries you can get in a truck rollover accident might vary from minor scrapes to death. Bumps, bruises, cuts, and scratches are examples of injuries.

Sprains and strains are common injuries.

Muscle pulls and tears, as well as other soft tissue injuries.

Burns, such as road rash and chemical burns from gas, oil, or chemicals carried by truck.

Fractures, both simple and complex.

Injuries to the face and eyes.

Injuries to the head, neck, and shoulders.

Concussions and penetrating brain injuries are examples of traumatic brain injuries.

Injuries to the back and spinal cord.

Amputation, whether you lost a limb in an accident or the doctor had to amputate it because he couldn’t save it or you got gangrene due to accident damage.

Injuries to the internal organs

Infections and other secondary injuries. Any open wound might get infected, whether sustained in the accident or after surgery to heal accident damage.

Accident injuries that aggravate or cause injuries. If you have diabetes, an immunodeficiency, or are using drugs that suppress your white cell count, for example, injuries may take longer to heal or may result in further injury.

You might be able to seek damages for the extra harm if diabetes created neuropathy in your left knee and the accident caused damage to your leg, causing you to walk improperly and overextend the knee due to the neuropathy.

Psychological injuries, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to the traumatic nature of the accident, as well as depression and anxiety, whether due to memories of the accident or the slowness with which you are recovering or because your doctor told you that your injuries would result in long-term or permanent disabilities. You may be eligible for reimbursement for cognitive and other psychological therapy.

Physical injuries may also need physical and/or occupational therapy to aid in your rehabilitation or educate you on how to live with long-term or permanent disability.

Damages Recoveries After a Rollover Accident with a Truck

After a truck is overturned, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries in the form of damages. You might be eligible for compensation if a loved one died in a truck rollover accident.

Economic Losses

To make you whole again, the court awards economic damages.

Past and future medical costs, including expenses for physical, occupational, cognitive, and psychological therapy, are examples of economic damages.

Lost income in the past and future, including partial lost wages if you return to work but are forced to accept a lower-paying job owing to long-term or permanent disability. You may be able to recover damages for the loss of family income if you have lost a loved one.

Replacing or repairing a personal property that has been destroyed or damaged.

Costs of burial, funeral, and/or cremation.

Damages that aren’t monetary

The court orders Non-economic damages in the same way that economic damages are to make you whole again.

Non-economic damages are those that have no monetary worth, such as pain and suffering, as well as emotional anguish for people who have been injured in a truck rollover accident.

Anxiety for individuals who have lost a loved one in a truck rollover accident.

Decreased quality of life.

Loss of companionship if you are unable to participate in family trips, activities, and events.

You’ll lose your consortium if you can’t have a physical connection with your husband.

The inability to utilize a physical member, such as a foot or hand.

Loss of a biological function, such as your ability to see or regulate your bladder.

Inconvenience if you have to pay someone to perform your regular duties like grocery shopping, lawn care, and house upkeep and repair.

Amputation, whether it occurred during or after the accident because the doctor was unable to salvage a partly severed limb or because you developed gangrene as a result of an accident injury infection.

Disfigurement and/or scarring that is extreme.

Regardless matter how quickly or slowly you heal, maintain a log of your progress. Your testimony may influence the amount you get if you require future medical bills and/or lost pay. Keeping a record of how you’re feeling, indicators of progress and setbacks, and your overall well-being may help you recall details about your rehabilitation if you ever have to testify about it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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