In the past two years, the amount of automobile fatalities in the United States has decreased slightly. While this statistics is encouraging, the sad truth is that truck accident fatalities have increased a significant amount. While there were about 3,000 truck accident deaths in the year 2009, there were about 5,000 in the year 2010. This increase in truck accidents is not coincidental; it is because more and more drivers are being pressured to continue their trek even when they are exhausted. Statistic compiled by the United States Department of Transportation Commercial Motor Vehicle and Driver Fatigue and Alertness Study prove that truck accidents can be prevented if law enforcement, commercial drivers, and trucking companies take proper care and work hard to reduce the amount of exhausted and unhealthy drivers out on the road.

Commercial vehicles are often very large, which means that there is a higher possibility that an accident could lead to severe injury or death. According to statistics gathered by the USDOT, commercial vehicle crashes are seven times more likely to result in a fatality. In fact, it costs about $48 billion every year in damages from death, injury, or property damage because of commercial vehicle truck accidents. Many of these accidents are because of a driver error. In fact, 87% of all commercial truck accidents are due to a driver error, such as distraction, fatigue, or another issue.

About 65% of all truckers admit that there have been times that they were extremely fatigued when driving or were disoriented in a way that jeopardized their safety or the safety of those around them. As well, these drivers admit that they feel drowsy while driving regularly. This can be just as dangerous as being intoxicated. According to Drowsy Driving, about 100,000 police-reported crashes per year are the direct result of a driver fatigue situation. About 1,550 people per year die because of a drowsy driver, and about 71,000 people are injured this way. Adults that are between the ages of 18 and 29 are more likely to drive while drowsy, and make up about 71% of all drowsy driving cases. Men are more like than woman to drive drowsy and are almost twice as likely as woman to fall asleep behind the wheel.

48% of all truck drivers admit that at some point they have fallen asleep behind the wheel. Interestingly enough, about 55% of all trucking accidents happen during the nighttime. Only about 25% of all drivers are on the road at night, but this does not change the fact that the majority of truck accidents happen during this time. This is partially because some exhausted drivers will decide to continue their route rather than sleep even when they are exhausted. It may also be partially because of the fact that it is harder to see small cars on unlit roads in the dark of night, and a distracted truck driver can often facilitate an accident this way. Because trucks are so large, even drifting into a nearby lane can become a serious issue.

Another interesting statistic about truck drivers is the fact that their BMI can often dictate whether or not they will be involved in an accident. Recent statistics show that obese truck drivers have a 43% to 55% higher chance of getting in an accident within their first two years out on the road than those with a regular BMI. While drivers are mostly to blame for truck accidents, vehicle defects account for about 10% of the collisions. As well, 3% of all accidents are because of an environmental factor such as weather, fog, or wind. If you need more information about truck accidents or if you believe that you have a truck accident claim and want assistance in your case then you need to contact a local car accident attorney today.