Unsafe loads a leading cause of Georgia trucking accidents
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has specific cargo securement rules aimed at helping to prevent unsafe loads from causing Georgia trucking accidents and semi accidents nationwide.
Our Atlanta semi accident lawyers frequently address the danger a semi's weight poses to other motorists on the road. A fully-loaded tractor-trailer weighs 80,000 pounds -- about 20 times the weight of a passenger vehicle. And a semi typically takes three times longer to stop.
What we spend less time talking about are the loads. Each type of load carries its own risk. Liquid loads can be challenging, because of the effects of sloshing, and because of the hazardous materials such cargo may contain. Open loads, dump trucks and flatbeds all contain their own unique risks. Frequently a truck may be carrying more than one load, and the handling characteristics will change after offloading. Delivery of a load at the rear of a trailer may also destabilize a load left aboard, or a trucker may fail to properly secure the remaining load before departing for a subsequent destination.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration requires that loads be capable of withstanding significant forces applied from different directions: deceleration in the forward direction; acceleration in the rearward direction; and acceleration in the lateral direction.
The federal safety agency also has specific requirements and rules for securing loads, including:
-Use of securement devices
-The proper use of tiedowns
-The use of unmarked tiedowns
-The use of unmarked and unrated anchor points
-Cargo placement and restraint
-Minimum numbers of tiedowns
-Commodity specific securement requirements
The securement of specialty commodities is a frequent cause of trucking accidents. These can include logs, metal coils, paper rolls, concrete pipes, intermodal containers, automobiles, heavy equipment, scrap metal, roll-on containers and large rocks.
Improper loads frequently lead to serious or fatal accidents. And the loads themselves can cause havoc on the highway when they break loose and become tumbling projectiles. Truckers and trucking companies have an obligation to the safety of motorists to ensure that these loads are properly secured. A motorist who is seriously injured in an accident caused by an unsafe load should be properly compensated.
If you are involved in a Georgia trucking accident, contact the Atlanta truck accident lawyers at Finch McCranie LLP for a free and confidential appointment to discuss your rights. Call (800) 228-9159 or at (404) 658-9070 or contact us through this website.
