Driving alongside a large 18-wheeler truck on the highway can be a nerve-wracking experience. You not only realize that you’re driving alongside a truck of sheer weight and magnitude, you realize that an accident with a semi truck would prove disastrous. A smaller passenger vehicle would simply stand no chance, and any injuries sustained would surely be serious in nature–if not life-threatening.
The weight, size, and amount of force semi trucks are comprised of make them a considerably more dangerous vehicle to navigate around and cause feelings of uneasiness. However, there are tips drivers can abide by to avoid accidents with a semi truck. Here are some crucial tips to follow:
- Trucks have much in common with sails in the sense that although both are larger vessels and can be easily swayed by the wind. So, in the case of high winds, it is best to avoid driving right next to a semi truck and if you must do it, try not to stay in that particular spot for too long.
- Give the semi truck a lot of room, more so than you would give an average sized vehicle such as a car or SUV. Because semi trucks are so much larger, they require more space in order to safely operate. Maintaining a safe distance behind a semi truck and not crowding a semi truck can prove helpful to the other driver’s safety. Maintaining space around a semi truck also decreases the chance of damage or injury due to a semi’s tire blowing out or other factors that can occur to semi trucks.
- Semi trucks, due to their large size, also tend to have more blind spots than an average, small vehicle. More blind spots means that there are certain points around the truck that the driver of the semi is unable to see cars around them. Making it a point to know where these blind spots are and not tailgating a semi truck or driving in a blind spot is an excellent way to avoid a possible collision.
- Semi trucks make wide turns and it is a well-known fact that in doing so, it creates blind spots and also increases the risk of getting hit by the semi while they are turning. Therefore, attempting to squeeze by a semi while they are turning is not advised and should be avoided in order to avoid collisions.
- Reporting dangerous semi truck driving can not only save you and your family’s lives, but prevent other accidents or injuries in the future. Most trucking companies have numbers which are listed on the back of the semi truck to report how the driver is driving. Careless, negligent, and reckless driving should ALWAYS be reported for not only your safety, but the truck driver’s safety as well.
For more helpful tips or to discuss a recent truck accident you were involved in, don’t hesitate to reach out to Daryl T. Dixon Law today. A skilled and knowledgeable Paducah, KY truck accident lawyer like Daryl T. Dixon can help you get the compensation you need to get back on your feet again. Don’t delay. Your time to file a claim may be running out.
