Poor Working Conditions Truck Drivers Experience Put Innocent Motor Vehicle Operators at Risk of Buford Truck Accidents
Truck accidents are more common than you might realize. Once every 16 minutes an innocent truck accident victim in Georgia and throughout the country is either killed or suffers life-altering injuries. Recent statistics show that nearly 430,000 large trucks are a party to motor vehicle crashes throughout the United States, including Georgia. Other startling statistics involving truck accidents include:
- Over 5,000 annual fatalities
- Over 131,000 people are hurt annually
- Over 4,700 innocent passenger vehicle operators and passengers were involved
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, nearly all (98%) of all truck accident deaths are from the passenger vehicle occupants.
Some poor working conditions that trucks drivers are given to work with include defects of various parts of their truck including:
- Steering wheel malfunctioning
- Engine and transmission defects
- Slow or unresponsive brakes
- Tires with poor or no treads
If you have suffered damages including physical and emotional injuries that requiring medical treatment, please call Shane Smith Law at (770) 487-8999 to have your Gwinnett County truck accident circumstances evaluated. Take advantage of your free consultation with a Georgia truck accident attorney that will be able to see if your circumstances necessitate a personal injury claim. The sooner you call, the sooner you will know your legal rights.
In addition to mechanical poor working conditions, truckers themselves are exposed to and forced to endure poor working conditions. A large number of trucks are paid by the number of miles they drive or by the number of loads they deliver. This easily enables truck drivers to “burn the midnight oil” and sacrifice sleep and rest periods in favor of earning a bigger paycheck. Truck drivers are also under poor working conditions because they are not physically fit. A recent study found that nearly 9 out of 10 drivers (86%) are either overweight or obese. This poor health leads to strokes, heart attacks and diabetic shock which lead to Georgia truck accidents.
Shockingly, a 2007 study from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration determined that more than 1 in 10 of all truck accidents was from unhealthy truck drivers. Poor health resulted in drivers suffer serious acute health problems and causing innocent passenger vehicle occupants to suffer serious injuries and fatalities.
If you have been a victim at the hands of a negligent truck driver and have suffered injuries and damages from this Georgia truck accident, speaking with a Gwinnett County truck accident attorney at Shane Smith Law will inform you of your legal rights. Call (980) 246-2656 to schedule your free legal consultation today!