In this Alabama News Network segment, host Ellis Eskew discusses the dangers of 18-wheeler accidents with Attorney Mike White from Floyd Hunter Personal Injury Attorneys. They delve into the severe risks posed by these massive trucks, such as their significant weight and extensive blind spots, and provide crucial tips for staying safe around big trucks when driving.
Alabama News Network host, Eskew:
Well, welcome back. Mike White with Floyd Hunter Personal Injury Attorneys joins us now, and we’re talking 18-wheeler accidents and how we can have some safety issues with those. And thank you so much for being here today. We are talking about 18-wheelers, and those are so scary to be on the road and be next to one and then to get in a wreck with one–it is extremely dangerous.
Attorney Mike White:
They really are dangerous, and almost 4,200 people a year die in accidents involving 18-wheel trucks in America as of 2017 (the last year we have, you know, numbers for).
Ellis:
Yeah, and so, what do we need to remember when we’re on the road and we’re passing them or they’re around us? What can we do?
Attorney Mike White:
A couple of things that make 18-wheel trucks vastly more dangerous than cars to drive around: one, their weight. They tend to weigh, fully loaded, as much as 30 times as much as a car. So when they collide, the car’s going to lose. The truck–you know, almost all deaths in 18-wheel truck accidents–97% percent–are people in cars and not people in the truck. So, big heavy vehicles, they can’t stop. Takes them 20 to 30 times as long in distance often, if they’re heavily loaded, to stop. And they also have a lot of blind spots that cars don’t have, so that’s the big problem.
Ellis:
Right, and following too closely. I know that they can’t always see you when you’re right behind them, and then getting in front of them, they don’t really have time to slow down if you’re gonna go slower.
Attorney Mike White:
The first thing I would tell people that I’ve seen in so many accident cases, both defending cases and prosecuting them, is don’t change lanes in front of an 18-wheel truck. I mean unless you have a lot of room, give them room. Know they can’t stop, know that in a small car, you might be coming straight out of a blind spot in front of them. Give them more room, and you know, when you see those signs that say “If you can’t see my mirror, I can’t see you,” that’s the truth. Stay out of their blind spots if you can. If you’re gonna pass one, pass them, don’t just drive along beside them.
Ellis:
Right, and you say that these are a lot of your cases that you do.
Attorney Mike White:
I’ve had quite a lot of cases involving 18-wheel trucks. I have one that we’ll try on April 1st involving a death, where an 18-wheel truck on the interstate just rear-ended somebody and wrecked them. And if it had been two cars, it probably would have been a moderate accident. But because the truck was fully loaded, it’s twice as big as–5 times bigger than the vehicle my clients were in, it turns into a death.
Ellis:
Right, and I’m sure it’s hard with those cases because you don’t know, you know, who’s at fault really. Because they can’t help, you know, some of the things that they do and you may be in a situation.
Attorney Mike White:
One thing that comes up a lot in cases is driver fatigue. It’s easier for bigger companies to discover the information about how much drivers have been driving because they typically have electronic books, so they can’t–not that they would fake it, but I’ve certainly had cases where people faked their books and their hours driving. But what happens a lot is just one-off drivers that own their own truck and lease to other people. They don’t have electronic methods of keeping track, they just write it in a book. And I’ve had cases in the last couple of years where a guy totally faked his books. I know he did because we were able to prove it with his phone records and other things, and he almost killed my client. And, you know, there are just a lot of very significant cases.
Ellis:
Right, and there’s your information on the screen if people want to get in touch with you and find out more about this. Very important information. And we certainly appreciate you being here.
Attorney Mike White:
Thanks for having me.
Male Voiceover:
The opinions expressed in the preceding segment are for general information purposes only. No representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers.