Overloaded and Overweight Truck Accidents

Virginia, Washington, D.C., & Maryland

Overloaded trucks can be a very serious threat to you and others on the road. A heavier truck has more momentum, making it more likely to cause serious injury during an accident. In an accident with a smaller vehicle, a truck’s mass can overwhelm all the safety features designed to protect the vehicle’s occupants. Although trucks are designed to steer and brake with the higher weight, an overloaded truck may exceed the ability of the brakes to stop or the wheels to steer. Overloading can affect a truck’s center of gravity, increasing the likelihood of rollover or jackknife accidents. It can also increase the risk of equipment failure that can cause truck accidents.

Truck weight and the law

Federal and state regulations have specific standards for many aspects of truck weight. These regulations control:

• The weight of the truck
• How much weight a truck can carry
• The maximum combined weight of truck and cargo
• Distribution of weight on truck axles
• Routes trucks can take based on their weight, distribution, and type of cargo

Ideally, weigh stations are supposed to monitor truck traffic to ensure it is following these regulations. Weigh stations are set up along highways, generally at state lines and other intervals, creating checkpoints where commercial vehicles are weighed and inspected. These stations check weight, but also look for illegal or falsely reported cargo, ensure a truck is properly maintained and has necessary safety equipment, and monitor compliance with Hours of Service laws. When an overweight truck is discovered, it may not be prevented from returning to the road. In some cases, a driver is simply issued a ticket and sent on his way. In other cases, a driver may not even be cited. Others may be detained until an overweight permit is issued.

Why overloaded trucks can cause accidents

Overloaded trucks can cause accidents in ways which may not seem obvious, including:

• Overloading may lead to tire failure
• Overloaded trucks travel slowly uphill, and may pose a hazard to vehicles approaching from the rear, especially on blind corners
• Going downhill, overloaded trucks may travel too fast
• During downhill travel, added weight can cause brakes to overheat and fail
• Overloaded trucks require longer stopping distance
• Overloaded trucks have a higher center of gravity making them more likely to roll over
• Overloaded trucks put more weight on the back wheels and shift it from the front, making it difficult to steer
• Overloaded trailers may be more likely to swing out during maneuvers

When truck accidents occur with an overloaded truck, they are more likely to lead to serious injuries or fatalities.

Who is responsible for overloaded trucks?

As with truck maintenance, truck drivers are responsible for inspecting cargo to ensure that it is not overweight, is evenly distributed, and is properly secured. The only exception to this rule is when the load is sealed before the driver takes responsibility and inspection is prohibited.

However, others may also share responsibility for overweight cargo that contributes to serious truck accidents, including:

• Trucking companies
• Truck loading companies
• Cargo owners
• Government entities (such as weigh station officials allowing an overweight truck to continue travel)

The truck accident attorneys of Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata, & Siegel, P.C. are committed to tracking down those responsible for your accident. If you or a loved one has been injured in a tractor-trailer truck accident in Virginia, Maryland or Washington DC, we will fight to obtain justice for you – the victim. To learn how we can help you, please contact us today to schedule a free consultation.