2 ways semi-truck crashes differ from other Missouri wrecks

On Behalf of | May 22, 2023 | Personal Injury

Car crashes in Missouri vary from minor fender-benders that only cause cosmetic damage to fatal collisions. Vehicles of all shapes and sizes can play a role in collisions of all degrees of severity. However, wrecks involving large semi-trucks are often among the worst collisions that occur.

In some ways, these collisions are similar to the crashes that occur between two passenger vehicles. There are two distinct manners in which collisions between passenger vehicles and semi-trucks tend to be much different than the average two-car crash.

The damage is usually far worse

Even at lower speeds, semi-trucks can potentially cause catastrophic damage to passenger vehicles. Their height and weight make them very dangerous to smaller vehicles. 18-wheelers can cause crashes that kill other people and leave very little evidence of the wreck on the semi-truck. At higher speeds, the potential for catastrophic damages increases, as does the risk of a commercial driver causing a crash that involves multiple other vehicles, like a jackknife incident.

The safety features of both the car and the semi-truck, like the rear underride guard, may not be enough to prevent all injuries. The possibility of severe injuries and vehicles that are no longer safe to drive will typically be higher after a crash involving a semi-truck and a passenger vehicle as opposed to a collision involving two four-wheeled vehicles.

The insurance is typically much better

Given how much damage they can do, commercial trucks that weigh at least 10,001 pounds or more have to carry large commercial insurance policies to comply with federal insurance rules. Most semi-trucks will have at least $750,000 of liability coverage, although some vehicles will carry more than that.

Thankfully, those higher levels of insurance coverage often translate to better protection for the people affected by the crash. Of course, where there is more coverage in play, the insurance company is likely to be much more aggressive about handling the claim and minimizing what it pays.

The average person may need help pursuing compensation because they need to focus on their medical recovery and don’t know the unique rules that apply to commercial vehicles. Handling the fallout of a commercial truck wreck often requires professional legal support because of how complex the claim will be and how much insurance coverage is in play.

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