Unsecured Truck Loads Pose a Danger to Drivers

The nation’s roadways are filled with large commercial trucks hauling necessary goods into and out of communities, including throughout Missouri’s busy urban meccas and rural routes. Fully loaded, semi-tractor trailer trucks outweigh standard passenger vehicles by as much as 74,000 pounds, placing motorists at a significant disadvantage in a collision. In 2022 alone, there were 5,837 fatal accidents involving commercial trucks. There are many reasons truck accidents occur, including driver error, trucking company negligence, and defective truck parts. What many motorists don’t know is that some deadly accidents involving large commercial trucks result directly from unsecured cargo. Recovering compensation may be challenging without the expertise of a St. Louis truck accident attorney.

What Makes an Unsecured Truck Load Dangerous?

The words “unsecured truck load accident” may cause you to envision spilled cargo or logs flying off the back of a logging truck. While these types of accidents do sometimes occur, more often the cause of the unsecured load accident isn’t immediately identifiable at the scene because the cause of the accident happens inside the closed trailer. Professional freight loaders and trucking companies understand the critical importance of carrying a secured, well-balanced load. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has stringent requirements to regulate the way cargo is secured to prevent shifting and rolling during transport. When a load isn’t properly balanced or becomes unbalanced due to improper securement or the failure of load-securing devices, the sudden shift in weight and balance may cause an accident.

What Types of Truck Accidents Result From Unsecured Cargo?

When a truck’s load isn’t properly secured, cargo may suddenly slide forward as a driver brakes to a stop or drives downhill. This sudden forward shift in weight may push the truck’s cab abruptly forward, sliding the truck into an intersection, into a vehicle immediately in front of the truck, or cause the sudden loss of braking ability or steering control. Sideways shifts may cause the truck’s trailer to fishtail, or slide to the side and out of alignment with the truck. Common types of truck accidents caused by unsecured loads include the following:

• Rear-end collisions
• Jackknife accidents (when the truck crashes in the shape of a partially opened jackknife due to the trailer coming out of alignment with the tractor)
• Tip-over or rollover accidents
• Multi-car pileups on major highways
• Head-on collisions
• T-bone accidents
• Sideswipe accidents

Accidents between large commercial trucks and smaller family vehicles most commonly cause injuries to those in the smaller vehicles.

Liability for Unsecured Truck Load Accidents In Missouri

After an accident involving an unsecured truckload, it often takes an experienced attorney to investigate to determine the accident’s cause and the party that bears liability. In this type of truck accident, the trucking company or a separate freight loading company could be liable for an injury victim’s damages like medical expenses, lost income, and compensation for pain and suffering. In other cases, the manufacturer of a defective part could bear liability. Product manufacturers are held under strict liability to produce safe, reliable products, including devices intended to secure cargo.

How Can a Missouri Truck Accident Attorney Help?

Trucking companies, freight loading companies, and large manufacturers could be individually liable after an accident caused by an unsecured truck load or unbalanced load, or they could each share a portion of liability under Missouri’s pure comparative negligence laws. Call the St. Louis injury attorneys from Miller & Hine so we can investigate all aspects of your accident, document evidence of liability, and make the most compelling claim possible for the maximum compensation available to you.