In 2022, Here Are Interesting Truck Accident Statistics You Should Be Aware Of:
To remain competitive in today’s consumer-driven economy, manufacturers and organizations must minimize delivery times and provide their customers with speed and convenience. The trucking business has reaped the benefits of this competitive necessity and has firmly established itself as the most efficient and dependable mode of goods transportation in the United States. Trucking is responsible for the majority of overland freight in the United States, with an estimated value of close to $800 billion.
Truck collisions are particularly dangerous since they are enormous and generally carry a lot of weight. As a result, they can cause catastrophic injuries.
The following are some of the elements that contribute to truck accidents:
- Trucks with poor braking capability take 20-40 percent longer to stop.
- Truck driver exhaustion
- The truck’s weight
This article will provide you with an overview of the most important truck accident statistics for the year 2022.
Each year, over 130,000 people are injured in truck accidents.
The number of truck accidents that occur each year is influenced by a number of factors, including rising consumer demand, economic pressures, driver distraction, and others. Truck accidents frequently result in many severe injuries to the drivers, passengers, and other people involved due to their tremendous size and weight. Approximately 130,000 people are harmed in similar accidents each year.
The following are some of the most prevalent injuries:
- Neck and back
- Bone fractures
- Damage to the spinal cord
- Whiplash
- Bleeding from within
- Trauma to the head
Victims of such injuries almost always require rapid medical attention, and some will require numerous surgeries.
Each year, over 4000 people are killed in truck accidents.
This is one of the most important truck accident statistics. Truck accidents kill over 4,000 people each year, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). The total number of deaths in 2019 was 4,119. In comparison to 2009, the number of truck accident fatalities has increased by 31%.
Passenger cars account for 97 percent of vehicle occupant deaths in two-vehicle accidents involving a passenger car and a truck.
While not all car-truck collisions are the truck’s responsibility, the automobile nearly invariably suffers more damage in a collision between a car and a truck. Trucks, also known as “motor vehicle juggernauts,” can be extremely dangerous when out of control. They are substantially larger and weigh up to 20-30 times more than passenger vehicles, with much more ground clearance.
The simplest way to put this into context is to review data from truck and passenger car incidents. In 2019, passenger car occupants were responsible for 67 percent of truck-related fatalities. When only two vehicles are involved in a collision, however, passenger vehicle occupants account for 97 percent of vehicle occupant deaths. Data from previous years shows a comparable percentage.
While the number of car accidents has decreased, the number of 18-wheeler accidents has increased. Over the last few decades, motor vehicle accidents have been a major source of concern. The number of motor vehicle accidents has been decreasing as a result of many initiatives and greater awareness of the importance of safe driving. Freight vehicles, on the other hand, have shown to be an outlier in this trend, since accidents have been on the rise.
This trend is especially noticeable in larger trucks weighing between 10,000 and 14,000 pounds. There has been a 5.8% increase in the fatality rate among tractor-trailers weighing more than 26,000 pounds. This is one of the most important truck accident statistics.
Major Highways account for more than half of all truck accidents.
The road network in the United States is made up of many types of roads. Major roads, freeways, and interstates are examples. It’s reasonable to say that no matter which route you’re on, you’ll see a truck sooner or later. Though a popular belief is that truck accidents are evenly dispersed throughout different types of roadways, this is not the case.
In 2019, main roads were responsible for 2,158 of the 4,119 deaths, accounting for 52 percent of the total. The remaining deaths were split between interstates, freeways, and smaller roads, accounting for 32% and 15% of all deaths, respectively.
Between the hours of 6 a.m. and 3 p.m., 48 percent of large truck accident deaths occur.
As past studies have shown, truck accidents have the greatest impact on passengers in passenger vehicles. This is why, when there is a lot of passenger vehicle traffic, the number of truck accident deaths is substantially higher.
On Saturdays and Sundays in 2019, seventeen percent of truck-related fatalities occur. Furthermore, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 3 p.m., 48 percent of fatal truck crashes occur. In comparison, just 30% of deadly car accidents happen within that time period.
Other Interesting Truck Accident Statistics:
Illegal substance abuse is responsible for only 0.4 percent of truck accidents.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) undertook the Large Truck Causation Study to better understand the underlying causes of truck accidents. Contrary to popular belief, illegal substance misuse and alcohol were only responsible for 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent of all crashes, respectively.
Mechanical faults, weariness, and novel tour routes were found to be the leading causes of accidents in the study. Aggressive driving is responsible for another 5% of truck accidents.
64 percent of fatalities involving large trucks occur in collisions with other large trucks or buses.
One of the most important truck accident statistics for 2022: In the year 2019, 306 heavy truck occupants were killed in collisions. Only 110 people, or 36% of the total, died in accidents involving a single heavy vehicle. The remaining 196, or 64 percent, died in collisions involving many heavy trucks. This shows that accidents involving numerous trucks are more deadly for truck occupants, which is one of the reasons trucking can be a risky career.
Rollover accidents claim the lives of 47 percent of truck occupants.
Rollovers are the most deadly sort of accident for truck occupants when compared to other types of collisions. In 2019, 319 of the 679 truck occupants who died were killed in accidents in which their cars rolled over. This is responsible for 47% of all deaths. This percentage is greater than the 39 percent and 38 percent, respectively, of SUV and pickup occupants killed in rollover accidents.
In 48 percent of truck driver fatalities, seat belt use was observed.
Seatbelt use is one of the most effective ways to lower the risk of serious injury or death in the case of a collision. However, depending on the severity of the hit, passengers may suffer fatal injuries. In 2019, 48 percent of all truck drivers killed in accidents were wearing seatbelts. Though it’s true that 23 percent of fatally wounded truck drivers did not wear a seatbelt, that’s still a significant number.
To help reduce the chance of a fatal crash, seatbelt use should be supported by responsible driving, good vehicle maintenance, and other measures.
Head-on collisions account for 29% of fatalities in passenger vehicles.
Passengers in passenger vehicles, aside from pedestrians and bicycles, are unquestionably the most vulnerable on the road. Head-on crashes killed 29 percent of passenger vehicle occupants in two-vehicle accidents involving a truck and a passenger vehicle. The death rate in collisions when passenger vehicles rear-ended the truck or were side-struck was 24 percent and 13 percent, respectively. This is one of the most important truck accident statistics.
To Stop, Loaded-Tractor Trailers Require Up to 40% More Space
One of the difficulties of driving a large truck is that the vehicles are more prone to collisions, but you have less time to respond. Because of the size and weight of trucks, this is the case. When compared to passenger vehicles, laden tractor-trailers require 40% more space to come to a stop. As a result, drivers must maintain a high level of concentration at all times, as they have less time to respond.
When compared to single-unit trucks, tractor-trailer trucks cause 46 percent more fatalities.
A vehicle’s weight and size have a big impact on its maneuverability and stability. This is why trucks are more likely to be involved in collisions than passenger vehicles. This fact holds true for trucks of various sizes. In 2018, tractor-trailer trucks were responsible for 46 percent more fatalities than single-unit trucks.
After a Large Truck Accident, What Happens Next?
Learning from those interesting truck accident statistics, accidents involving heavy vehicles are almost always fatal. Victims are either critically injured or killed, and property damage can be substantial. If you survive such an encounter, you may sustain permanent disabilities or endure other types of losses. Taking legal action is one of the most effective strategies to reduce these losses.
At The Office of Dakota C. Low, we have a team of attorneys that have decades of expertise with trucking accidents. Contact us today for a free consultation on how to best handle your case. Contact Dakota Low today for a free case review and consultation at 405.601.8899 or use our contact form.
