Accident on 80Common Causes of Truck Accidents: Tire Blowouts
Though collisions with large trucks are less common than accidents with other passenger vehicles, the mortality rate increases dramatically. This is because the sheer size and weight difference between a standard car and a standard commercial truck weighing in at about 20 times the weight of a car. This, inevitably, makes all the difference in the outcome. What can further exacerbate the situation is a tire blowout on a large commercial truck, like an 18-wheeler. When something goes wrong with a vehicle that is that big, and is moving that fast, it can have absolutely devastating consequences.
You say, “oh, but that does not happen very often.” Well, how often do you see 18-wheelers pulled over on the side of the road fixing a tire? Drive on the interstate for a little while and you’re bound to see one pulled over. Better yet, drive on the interstate and look at all the pieces of tire you see littering the sides of the highway: many of those full strips you see came from big rigs unraveling a full tire while driving down the highway. The truth is, it happens, and when it happens, it can be a very dangerous and difficult situation for any driver to handle.
In fact, one of the leading causes of truck accidents are tire blowouts. A blowout may cause a driver to lose control of the vehicle and become a hazard to the highway.
