The Most Dangerous Scenario for Motorcyclists

As May is Motorcyclist Awareness Month, I wanted to talk about one of the most dangerous accident scenarios we have seen in a number of our most serious motorcyclist injury cases. A high number of significant accidents have occurred when you have a semi or tractor trailer truck, turning left at an intersection, and failing to see, recognize, or appreciate an oncoming motorcycle that has the right of way.

These accidents occur for a number of reasons, but a common theme in all is that the truck driver simply fails to see and appreciate the motorcyclist, and initiates a left-hand turn when they should not.

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The Federal Regulations that govern the drivers of these trucks, specifically MCSR 383.110; 383.111; 383.113, and 383.115, also cover these rules and directions.

Furthermore, the Florida CDL Handbook, which educates drivers on the standards to operate a commercial vehicle, state that truck drivers have to:

1. Check traffic in all directions.
2. Slow down smoothly and not coast.
3. Come to a smooth stop.
4. Come to a complete stop behind the stop line.

See Florida CDL Handbook at Section 13.1.1, Turns.

Pursuant to the same, a truck driver:

1. Should not let the vehicle roll.
2. Keep both hands on the steering wheel during the turn.
3. Not allow his vehicle to move into oncoming traffic.

What we have found in our cases is that a number of these accidents begin with the lack of a complete, smooth stop by the truck driver. In other words, as the driver approaches the light or intersection, they perceive a lack of traffic in the opposite direction. So, instead of completely stopping the truck, they simply slow speed, continue rolling, and begin initiating the turn.

The problem with this is that the size of these trucks makes it so that it will take longer for the truck to complete the full turn than, say, a normal-size car or vehicle. Thus, greater lookout time is needed before initiating the turn.

Furthermore, and again, due to their massive size and weight, it takes longer to initiate the brakes on these trucks. Thus, even if the truck driver sees and responds to another vehicle coming from the opposite side of traffic, there would likely not be enough time for the driver to fully engage the truck’s braking system and avoid the accident.

Thus, coming to a full stop, and making sure the opposite lane of traffic is completely clear, is extremely important before the truck driver begins his left-hand turn.

For motorcyclists, it is important to be aware that large trucks making these turns often fail to perceive motorcyclists in this situation. Thus, take extra caution when approaching any intersection and look far in advance of that intersection.

It is also important to not speed through and around such intersections. Studies have shown that it takes almost up to two full seconds to see, perceive, and react to an obstacle in your right-of-way. Limiting speed and staying around the speed limit will allow the motorcyclist greater time to react and take evasive action in the event of a right-of-way violation at an intersection.

Again, treat all intersections like potential hazards and approach with caution.

Many times, we find that the motorcyclist is obeying all traffic laws and traveling at a reasonable speed. The common defense in these cases, though, is to blame the motorcyclist and say they were speeding.

These rules are all simple, common-sense measures that we should all employ when operating a vehicle on our roads. However, simple, little inadvertent errors often lead to tragic results.

All of us drivers, whether on motorcycles, cars, or semi-trucks, must remember that we all share the roads, equally, and together. And our collective safety requires all of us to pay attention, follow the rules of the road, and to look out for one another.

Large, commercial tractor trailers have special rules and regulations due to their massive size and weight, and the risk they pose to smaller vehicles. The risk of injury is much greater in a crash with vehicles of this size, and the injuries in such accidents are often severe to catastrophic.

As I mentioned above, we have handled a number of these cases. In any case involving a semi-truck or tractor trailer, it is imperative to hire an attorney as soon as possible.

These trucks contain certain video equipment and data recording systems. Often, these systems record the accident and the driver’s actions in the cab leading up to the accident. These two pieces of evidence are crucial in order to prove what the truck driver saw, what they should have seen, and the actions they took before the accident.

When we are retained in a case like this, our first moves are always to draft evidence preservation letters to the trucking company, the police agency, and insurance companies involved, to preserve this crucial evidence, and that we can obtain the same.

Other digital evidence is also important. Driver logs and vehicle maintenance records are critical to showing if the trucking company complied with or potentially violated any industry rules and regulations. A preservation request should also be made for the truck driver’s cell phone from the date of the accident.

Another important thing to know about these types of cases is that the larger trucking companies often have their lawyers on retainer, and they will have the lawyer on the accident scene that day, within an hour or two of the accident, to start to prepare their defense. It is not uncommon that these lawyers are dispatched to the accident scene within minutes of such an accident.

Therefore, it is imperative that if you or a loved one is in an accident with one of these trucks that you retain counsel as soon as possible. No matter how fast we act, the trucking company’s lawyers are always ahead of us. Experienced counsel in these cases knows what evidence to ask for and the steps to make sure the trucking company’s lawyers turn over the same.

The left-hand turn at an intersection is one of the most common accident scenarios we see. I hope that sharing some of what we have learned in our years handling these cases helps to prevent some of these accidents from occurring in the first place.

If, unfortunately, a loved one is involved in this type of accident, our firm has a team that has developed a playbook for this exact scenario. We know exactly the evidence we need, and what driver actions we are looking for. This allows us to target the same very quickly, and move to secure the necessary evidence to prove such a case.