[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]KSBY is reporting that a large semi truck rear-ended a passenger car early Monday morning.
The wreck happened near Bonita Elementary School. The photograph above shows that entire rear portion of the car, all the way up to the front seat compartment, was totally destroyed. The driver was reportedly rushed to the hospital. Thankfully, at least at this point, there is no word that a rear-seat passenger was present.
Commercial truck accidents nearly always result in fatalities or severe injuries, due primarily to the huge weight discrepancies between fully loaded trucks and passenger cars.
This wreck was reportedly a rear-end collision. Such collisions are usually the result of distracted driving or excessive speed, or a combination of the two. We do not yet know why this wreck occurred.
In California, the Basic Speed law requires drivers to drive at a speed that is safe for conditions. In fact, in civil cases a jury instruction explaining the Basic Speed Law is given to jurors to aid in their deliberations:
CACI 706.Basic Speed Law (Veh. Code, § 22350)
A person must drive at a reasonable speed. Whether a particular speed is reasonable depends on the circumstances such as traffic, weather, visibility, and road conditions. Drivers must not drive so fast that they create a danger to people or property.
It is yet to be determined if the truck had any collision avoidance features installed. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has long advocated for such systems to be installed on large commercial vehicles. Crash avoidance systems range from a simple auditory notice, all the way up to actual automatic breaking. Given the consequences of a rear-end collision involving a semi truck, any additional safety measures should be added at any cost.
Collision avoidance systems and video recorders are two of the NTSB’s top 10 most wanted improvements for 2017-2018.
Bendix Wingman Advanced is one popular system. Modern collision avoidance systems can alert drivers to hazards, slow a truck and even bring the vehicle to a stop in an emergency:
At Ernst Law Group, our attorneys focus on wrongful death and catastrophic injuries resulting from semi truck accidents in San Luis Obispo. Handling such a case is far more complicated than standard car vs. car rear-ender. Handling a trucking collision case requires lawyers with the training, knowledge, skill and resources to take on a big company and its insurance company.
The lawyers at Ernst Law Group are available for a no cost, no obligation consultation if you or a loved one has been injured in a truck collision. Contact us online or call us at (805) 431-2710 today.
