An accident involving any vehicle can lead to catastrophic injuries, but serious trucking accidents carry more severe risks. The weight of a typical 18-wheeler loaded with cargo is around 80,000 pounds. When traveling at a high rate of speed, this means that a truck can leave major damage in its wake in the form of destroyed property and injured individuals.

Many of the serious trucking accidents in San Diego and around California today are completely preventable. This is because, much like regular vehicle accidents, are most often caused by operator error. When this happens, people who have sustained injuries may need to pursue a legal claim. One of the challenges with serious trucking accidents is that they can be more complicated in terms of liability. There are multiple different parties who may share liability in a trucking accident. The first step in a legal claim of this nature is to investigate who may have liability in the accident.

While there are many other factors that can lead to a serious trucking accident, these are the ten most common reasons that an 18 wheeler will be involved in a crash. If you have recently been involved in an accident where you suspect that one or more of these elements was in play, you need to be checked for medical conditions and injuries post-accident. Remember that many serious trucking accidents can lead to injuries that are not always easily noticed at the scene of the crash.

Here are the 10 most common reasons for a trucking accident in no particular order:

  1. Fatigue
  2. Distraction
  3. Driving under the influence
  4. Car in truck’s blind spot
  5. Speeding
  6. Not properly checking lanes before moving lanes or merging
  7. Failing to adjust for weather conditions
  8. Improper experience or training
  9. Equipment malfunction
  10. Inability to control the vehicle

Any person who is injured when a truck driver loses control or is not paying attention may have grounds for a personal injury claim.