Types of Cargo Load Issues that Lead to Truck Accidents
Truck accidents occur when those responsible for loading and securing cargo on a truck are negligent. The truck driver has daily cargo inspection requirements when transporting a load. If some or all of a truck’s cargo breaks free during transit, the cargo shift can abruptly transfer weight within the truck and cause a driver to lose control and crash.
If a truck is improperly loaded or overloaded and a significant amount of cargo shifts during transit, the truck may experience a:
- Rollover accident—Tractor-trailers and other large trucks already have a high center of gravity compared to passenger vehicles. That makes them less stable than other vehicles. A shift in cargo may cause a truck to turn over onto its side. A cargo shift can cause a rollover fairly easily. In addition to damaging the truck, a rollover accident damages anything the truck lands on and usually results in spilled cargo.
- Jackknife accident—A jackknifing tractor-trailer sweeping out of control across a highway can slam into other vehicles and injure their occupants, as well as hitting pedestrians, bicyclists or anything else in its path.
Improperly secured cargo can also lead to:
- Cargo spills—Materials carried by the truck may break free and fall out of the truck. Cargo may strike another vehicle as it falls and cause an accident that results in injury or death. Spilled cargo in a roadway can lead to accidents as drivers swerve to avoid the hazard. In heavy traffic, a cargo spill can lead to a multi-car accident.
- Hazardous Material (HazMat) spills—Spills may involve explosives, flammable liquids and solids, toxic or radioactive material or other potentially harmful materials that spill from a tanker or cargo truck. Hazardous materials regularly shipped by truck across Wisconsin can harm people and property. HazMat cleanup is expensive specialty work. Environmental damage from a HazMat spill can be widespread and long-lasting, particularly if bodies of water or the water table are polluted.
Who is Responsible for Securing a Load on a Truck?
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires that motor carriers use cargo securement devices to prevent transported materials from shifting on or within trucks or falling from commercial motor vehicles, including tractor trailers, flatbeds, tankers and other cargo trucks.
Federal rules for securing a load on a truck are lengthy. Trucking companies and truck drivers are required to understand cargo loading requirements and follow them. Violations may lead to fines and, if violations cause truck accidents and injuries, criminal charges and/or civil lawsuits.
According to FMCSA regulations, Section § 392.9, “It is the responsibility of the motor carrier and the driver to ensure that any cargo aboard a vehicle is properly loaded and secured.”
The FMCSA has also adopted requirements and issued securement instructions for specific types of cargo, such as:
- Automobiles, light trucks and vans
- Concrete pipe
- Dressed lumber and similar building products
- Flattened or crushed vehicles
- Hazardous materials
- Heavy vehicles, equipment and machinery
- Shipping containers (with cargo within them)
- Large boulders
- Logs
- Metal coils
- Paper rolls
- Roll-on, roll-off and hook-lift containers.
The laws of the State of Wisconsin include limits on the size and weight of trucks with cargo, including radiological materials, and when and where they may be transported.
Because all parties involved in the transport of cargo via large, commercial trucks are responsible for ensuring cargo is secured, the trucker, truck owner, third-party cargo handlers and possibly the cargo’s owners may be held responsible for a truck accident caused by a cargo shift or cargo spill.
What To Do After A Truck Cargo Accident
Due to the size and weight of commercial trucks and their cargo, many truck accidents involve catastrophic injuries. Determining who is liable for a truck accident can be complicated because of the multiple parties potentially responsible. Because of the cost of “big rig” tractor-trailer accidents, trucking companies and truck drivers are required to carry higher amounts of liability insurance than automobile drivers. To avoid common mistakes, make sure to follow this truck accident checklist for Milwaukee.
If you have been seriously injured in a truck accident, it is not unlikely that you have already heard from lawyers representing the motor carrier that owns the truck or the carrier’s insurance company. They will be looking to control one portion of their expensive losses by offering you a quick settlement.
But the insurance settlement offer you receive quickly after a serious accident is based on what the company has paid out in the past. It is a calculated, low-ball amount that is meant to impress but that will not address your full losses.
You should not sign anything or agree to a settlement offer after suffering serious injury in a truck accident without first speaking to an experienced truck accident attorney. The experienced and aggressive truck accident lawyers of the Gruber Law Offices can help you obtain the compensation you deserve.
Our Milwaukee Truck Accident Investigation Team
As your attorneys, the Gruber Law Office will investigate the circumstances of the truck accident you were injured in to determine its cause and the party or parties who should be required to compensate you. We will calculate your total costs and losses throughout your recovery to ensure we ultimately demand all of the compensation you are due.
Our investigation will gather and examine:
- Police reports
- Witness statements
- Evidence from the crash scene
- Information about the condition of the truck and other vehicle(s) in the wreck
- Data from the truck’s “black box” event data recorder
- The trucker’s activity logs, which by law must show his or her time behind the wheel and mandated rest periods
- Cargo records kept by the motor carrier as well as any third-party cargo handlers or the cargo’s owners
- Other trucking company records, such as truck use and maintenance records, statements from company employees, policy and procedure manuals, etc.
It is best to begin an investigation as soon as possible after a truck accident so we can issue a “spoliation letter” to demand that evidence be preserved and turned over to us before it is destroyed or lost. In some cases, we may retain an accident reconstruction specialist to conduct a forensic analysis and interpretation of data collected after a wreck.
Once we have determined what happened to cause the crash and who is responsible, we can contact the insurance companies to begin negotiating a proper settlement for you. In a truck accident caused by improperly loaded cargo, there may be claims against multiple parties. If fair settlement offers are not forthcoming within a reasonable period of time, we can file lawsuits that demand proper compensation for you.
At Gruber Law Offices, one call does it all. We work diligently to develop solid cases against every party that should be held liable in a truck accident, and then negotiate aggressively to maximize the compensation that we recover for clients like you.
