Kentucky Injury Law News
Like any other drivers here in Kentucky, truck drivers get distracted, fatigued and even impaired, but they still drive. When accidents occur, it is to these factors that you may attribute the crash.
This isn’t always the case, though. Truck drivers can do everything right behind the wheel and still cause you injury. They and others are responsible for the proper securing of their loads. If one has not properly secured a load, it can shift or even fall off the truck. In either case, you could suffer injuries because of the carelessness and negligence of someone else.
Securing a load is a top priority for everyone
Driving an 18-wheeler is about more than its size and weight. It’s about making sure that the load the truck carries won’t shift or fall off during transport. Federal regulations outline how to secure loads in every kind of trailer, and even the tractor. The goal is to make sure that the load will not move if the truck driver stops suddenly or turns.
If you have ever seen trucks stopped at weigh stations, you may have seen someone walking around the tractor-trailer or looking inside the trailer. One of the things the inspector looks for is whether the load is secure. Tie-downs are particularly important. The load should have enough of them to keep it from moving. Moreover, the tie-downs should not show signs of significant wear such as frays and tears.
Inspectors not only check to make sure that the tie-downs are secure, but also whether they can support the weight of the cargo. Those who load the truck should also place those tie-downs in the right spots. Then there is the fact that the tie-downs must hold a certain number of pounds, and the total number of tie-downs must equal at least half of the weight of the cargo.
That’s a lot to keep track of
When you load up your passenger vehicle, you can only fit so much in it, so you may not even worry about whether items move around in your trunk or back seat, but it’s vastly different for a big rig. Understanding this, anytime you share the roadways with tractor-trailers, you may wonder whether those responsible for loading the truck made sure to properly secure the load, especially now that you understand the importance of doing so.
As you can see, making sure that a load is secure is a crucial part of every truck driver’s trip, and it requires a significant amount of attention to detail. When determining the factors that led to the truck crash that caused your injuries, finding out whether the load was secure should be on the list.