Home » Practice Areas » Tractor-Trailer / Semi-Truck Defects
Every year, more than 5,000 people die in crashes involving large trucks; thousands more are seriously injured. These accidents are often preventable but occur because a product defect made the large truck unsafe and unfit to share the road with innocent motorists.
For more than three decades, victims of trucking accidents and their families have turned to Langdon & Emison to investigate their trucking accident case for a potential product defect. Our attorneys have deep experience handling cases involving the following tractor-trailer defects.
Underride crashes occur when a car collides with the rear or side of a tractor-trailer. Victims of crashes involving underride guards typically suffer catastrophic injuries to the head and upper torso, often resulting in death.
Underride guards are metal structures placed on the rear-end of commercial vehicles to prevent car bumpers from sliding underneath them during collisions; however, due to faulty designs, underride guards that comply with the minimum federal standards for strength and size often fail, even at low speeds and do not protect motorists as intended.
Case Example
Langdon & Emison obtained a significant settlement for the family of Anthony Spurgeon who was tragically killed when the vehicle he was driving collided with a tractor-trailer equipped with a defective underride guard. During the accident, the underride broke, allowing the car to go under the rear of the truck.
It is nearly impossible for drivers to avoid lurking dangers in the dark that they cannot see. At night, if a tractor-trailer is not properly illuminated, even the best drivers cannot see they are coming up on a tractor-trailer until it is too late.
When crashes occur for this reason, they are referred to as “conspicuity-related collisions,” which are especially deadly. Conspicuity refers to a driver’s ability to perceive, identify and appreciate a truck’s position and speed in the roadway, particularly at night. Conspicuity-related collisions occur because of trucking companies’ negligence, such as:
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