Profits are a major driver of behavior for truck companies. This is not at all surprising; after all, truck companies are businesses.
However, it is important for truck companies to remember that the trucks that they use for their business operations do not operate in a vacuum, but rather out on the roads where the safety of many other individuals is in play. Given this fact, it is vital that truck companies not allow themselves to take actions in the pursuit of profit that would severely jeopardize traffic safety.
One area where trucking companies, sadly, sometimes severely compromise safety in order to try to boost profits is the load size of their vehicles.
There are federal rules regarding how much loaded big rig trucks can weigh. This makes sense, given that overloaded trucks can be very dangerous. Having too big of a load can increase the risk that a truck could: suffer a cargo spill, jackknife, rollover, suffer a mechanical failure or have its braking abilities compromised to the point where it will have difficulty stopping in time in response to events that happen out on the road. All of these things can lead to truck accidents.
Thus, one would hope that all truck companies would follow federal weight rules and never have their trucks carry too large of loads. However, bigger loads can mean more money for trucking companies, and thus some trucking companies may find themselves tempted to, despite the safety implications, overload a truck.
When a person is hurt in a truck accident, one thing that sometimes can prove challenging is figuring out what caused the accident. Determining whether an overloading of a truck or some other wrongful conduct by a trucking company occurred in relation to a truck accident can require very careful investigation.
Our firm can help truck accident victims with these sorts of investigations. We understand the resources and actions it takes to investigate truck accidents and we strive to give our truck accident clients a clear picture of the details of their accident, what their legal situation is and what options they have.