Americans have come to rely heavily on the convenience of goods delivered right to our doorsteps, especially since the rise of online mega-retailers like Amazon. We love being able to tap our phones and find what we need waiting for us when we get home from a busy day; however, what the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describes in 2024 as a historic rise in delivery truck accidents directly results from home delivery shopping, which contributes to traffic congestion on highways and neighborhood streets.
There were 160,608 injuries and 5,936 fatalities from truck accident injuries in 2022.
What Causes Delivery Truck Accidents?
Delivery vans are large and heavy, presenting difficulties for drivers to maneuver efficiently through traffic. They require longer stopping times than passenger vehicles and have longer blind spots. Common causes of delivery truck accidents include the following:
- Distracted drivers using GPS navigation technology
- Fatigued drivers
- Speeding to meet unrealistic delivery schedules
- Unsafe lane changes
- Inadequate driver training
- Unbalanced loads
- Poor truck maintenance
- Driver error or negligence
- Unsafe passing to meet delivery schedules
- Aggressive driving
- Mechanical failure or defective parts
- Inexperienced drivers
- Driver impairment
One of the most common causes of delivery truck accidents is an overloaded vehicle which impacts the delivery truck’s balance and the driver’s ability to maintain control around curves.
Common Injuries in Delivery Truck Accidents
Because of the tall, narrow shape of delivery vans, they are more likely to tip or roll, even compared to a bus accident. Their heavy weights and large sizes pose a significant danger to vulnerable motorists in a collision. Common injuries in delivery truck accidents include:
- Broken bones
- Back injuries
- Neck injuries
- Shoulder injuries
- Knee injuries
- Traumatic brain injury
- Spinal cord injury
- Facial injury
- Thoracic injuries and internal organ damage
Injuries in delivery truck accidents more commonly occur to occupants of the other vehicles in a collision than to the driver of the delivery vehicle.
What Type of Negligence Can Occur?
It often takes an experienced truck accident lawyer to investigate the accident, determine the cause, and prove liability. In delivery truck accidents, the negligent actions that caused the crash are sometimes due to driver error, but other types of negligence can cause or contribute to an accident, including the following:
- Negligent hiring or training practices by the delivery service company
- Negligent truck maintenance
- The negligent actions of the manufacturer of a defective delivery truck part or equipment
- Negligence in improperly loading cargo
- Negligence behind the wheel such as setting a GPS while driving, eating while driving, texting, or other distracted driving behaviors
Less commonly, a negligent road maintenance agency or a third-party driver is at fault in a delivery truck accident.
How can a truck accident attorney help?
An experienced truck accident lawyer will carefully investigate the accident to determine the liable party and document clear evidence of their negligence to send in a demand package to the at-fault party’s insurance company. They’ll prepare for court while working toward the best possible settlement to keep the case from going to court.
By calling a truck accident lawyer in Cherry Hill, you can focus on recovering from your injury while we focus on your financial recovery.