You may have seen a large commercial truck tip over right in front of you. Or perhaps you have been in the line of cars stuck in traffic waiting for an overturned tractor-trailer to be removed from the road. In either event, you realized that trucks can tip over at any given moment and you or someone you love may be traveling near these giant vehicles when they overturn. This may make you start wondering:

What Causes a Truck to Overturn?

Improperly loaded cargo, bad tires, and tire blowouts are all factors that could cause a tractor-trailer to overturn. Sometimes truck drivers just run off the side of the road and overturn. Sadly, this happens far more often than people realize and the causes are often fatigued or distracted drivers. And even the most alert, skilled driver could have his semi truck tip over if he has to brake suddenly to try and avoid an accident or traffic ahead.

While there could be other reasons outside a trucker’s control, more often than not, trucks overturn due to truckers losing control of their vehicles. For example, if a trucker exits an off-ramp too fast, he can cause the truck to overturn and crash onto cars sharing the road with him.

Because overturned truck accidents in Florida sometimes involve other cars, serious injuries and fatalities can occur to innocent motorists as well as to the truck drivers. When a crash involves an overturned truck, many injuries can occur including:

  • Broken bones
  • Femur and tibia fractures
  • Herniated disc injuries
  • Collarbone and rotator cuff injuries
  • Head trauma
  • Traumatic brain injuries
  • Crush injuries
  • Spinal cord injuries
  • Paralysis
  • Death

If you suffer any of the above injuries occur following a truck crash caused by an overturned dump truck or 18-wheeler, you may have rights to pursue compensation for your medical bills, mental anguish, emotional pain and suffering, lost income from missed time at work, and more. If death occurred, family members may be entitled to compensation for loss of companionship, loss of services, funeral expenses, future lost wages, and more.

For help holding the responsible truck driver responsible for your injuries or losses, call an experienced Sarasota accident attorney at Mallard Perez for a free consultation. You can reach us at 888-409-3805 or online today. You can also fill out a form on this website to receive a free copy of our book, What You Need to Know After a Florida Auto, Truck or Bike Accident.

Damian Mallard, Esq.
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Board Certified Sarasota Personal Injury Attorney