Irving Garbage Truck Accident Lawyer
Garbage truck accidents are often very serious. They can damage your vehicle and cause injury or even death. If you or someone you love has been involved in a car accident with a garbage truck, talk to a lawyer today.
Our Irving, TX garbage truck accident lawyers can assist you. We’ll determine how much compensation you may be owed. Then, we will fight to help you receive it.
Compensation from a garbage truck accident lawsuit can be used to cover medical bills and lost wages. It can also provide money to ease your pain and suffering.
Call our law office at (469) 998-4069. You can also reach out through our contact form. Consultations are 100% free, and there’s no obligation. Our Irving lawyers are ready to serve the northeast Texas community.
Don’t let a garbage truck accident turn your life upside-down. If we don’t help you win your garbage truck accident case, you won’t pay for our legal services.
Common Causes of Garbage Truck Accidents
Garbage trucks are a common sight on Irving residential streets as well as main thoroughfares. They usually follow the same daily route as they collect waste. Then, they transport this waste to municipal processing plants. Garbage trucks are essential for keeping our Texas communities clean.
Unfortunately, garbage truck accidents aren’t rare. Unlike normal car accidents, accidents involving a garbage truck tend to be severe. In 2018, there were 57 solid waste industry fatalities — 71% of these deaths occurred during waste collection.
There are several factors that cause garbage truck accidents, including:
Vehicle Size
Garbage trucks are very large, heavy vehicles. A full garbage truck can weigh up to 51,000 pounds. However, an empty garbage truck is almost just as massive, weighing around 33,000 pounds.
Due to this size, garbage trucks cause more damage than a normal car, SUV, or pickup truck. Even if the garbage truck isn’t traveling at high speed, it can inflict much greater impact force. A collision with a garbage truck traveling 15 mph will be much more severe than a collision with a normal car at the same speed.
Blindspots and Reduced Visibility
Like many large industrial vehicles, garbage trucks have significant blindspots. The driver usually cannot see directly in front of or behind the truck. They also have wide blindspots to the left and right of the vehicle. In general, if you can’t see the driver, the driver can’t see you.
Because of this reduced visibility, garbage trucks can cause accidents. They may collide with other motorists, bicyclists, pedestrians, or property. If you get into an accident with a garbage truck due to the driver’s blind spots, you may be eligible for compensation.
Additionally, the driver’s visibility may be impacted by the time of day. Often, garbage trucks operate very early in the morning. Other cars, pedestrians, and objects may be harder to see in the pre-dawn light because the driver’s eyes haven’t adjusted.
Bad Weather
Poor weather conditions can also cause garbage truck accidents. Rain, snow, or heavy fog may further reduce the truck driver’s visibility. Additionally, bad weather can create hazardous street surfaces. The garbage truck’s brakes may malfunction on wet or icy roads.
Like all large vehicles, garbage trucks require more stopping distance. If the garbage truck driver needs to stop, they must hit the brakes sooner than the driver of a normal car. In bad weather, it can be harder to judge stopping distance. This leads to accidents.
Dropped Cargo
Garbage trucks also cause accidents due to dropped cargo. If the truck’s load hasn’t been secured, waste items may fall into the road and hit other cars. It can also create unsafe driving conditions by causing other drivers to swerve to avoid fallen items.
Accidents caused by dropped cargo can be worse than other accidents with garbage trucks because other drivers may be involved. You may need to brake suddenly and risk being rear-ended, or lose visibility due to waste blocking your windshield.
In dropped cargo accidents, it’s important to have legal experts on your side. Our Irving garbage truck accident lawyers can help ensure that you’re not held liable for a dropped cargo accident.
Blocked Traffic
Blocked traffic is another common cause of garbage truck accidents. Garbage trucks drive slowly and make frequent stops when they’re collecting waste. On busy streets, this can disrupt the normal flow of traffic. It doesn’t help that many garbage trucks operate during morning rush hour.
When a garbage truck blocks traffic, other drivers can get impatient. They may drive around the garbage truck when it isn’t safe to pass, resulting in collisions and other accidents involving multiple drivers. Unsafe drivers may also cause accidents by being in the garbage truck driver’s blind spots.
Rolling Over
Garbage trucks are top-heavy. Their center of gravity is also affected by the loads of waste they collect. As a result, garbage trucks are more prone to rolling over than normal cars, SUVs, or pickup trucks.
If a garbage truck travels at high speeds or makes unsafe turns, it may topple over and lead to severe injuries or fatalities. Even if a garbage truck doesn’t land on your car, a crashed garbage truck can cause other drivers to collide into you as they swerve to avoid it.
Garbage Truck Accident Injuries
When you’re in an accident with a garbage truck, you and your passengers may incur certain injuries. These injuries can range in severity and may require long-term rehabilitation, such as physical therapy. An injury from a garbage truck accident may also impede your ability to work.
Common car accident injuries that involve garbage trucks include, but are not limited to:
- Head and neck injuries
- Cuts, contusions, and broken bones
- Internal bleeding
- Herniated disks and other spine injuries=
- Burns
- Psychological trauma such as PTSD
If you’ve been injured in a garbage truck accident, you may need compensation to cover your medical bills. You also deserve peace of mind. Contact our Irving garbage truck lawyers today for a free consultation. Call (469) 998-4069 now.
