An automobile accident is always a potential disaster. This is especially true when one of the vehicles involved is a tractor-trailer, also known as a “semi” or “18-wheeler.” Whereas the average car weighs between 2,500 and 4,000 pounds, a fully-loaded tractor-trailer can weigh as much as 80,000 lbs – over twenty times as massive! This means that for a given rate of acceleration, a fully-loaded tractor-trailer hits with over twenty times the force of a normal car.
The potential for death, injury, and property damage resulting from an accident is much greater when a tractor-trailer is involved. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the fatal crash rate for large trucks is 1.48 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled – more than 27 percent greater than the rate for all vehicles on the roads. In 2017, 4,761 people were killed in accidents involving large trucks — about 73% of whom were occupants of other vehicles — and many thousands more were injured.
Because of the nature of tractor-trailer accidents, it is important to hire an attorney well-versed in the intricacies of the law as it relates to tractor-trailers. At Kessler, DiGiovanni & Jesuele, we have handled tractor-trailer accidents for more than 40 years.
For a free consultation, please contact us at (908) 232-2040 or vj@kdjlawoffice.com, or visit our firm’s website at kdjlawoffice.com.