Even with safety precautions in place, accidents involving semi trucks and vehicles often end in catastrophic injury or death, especially for the occupants of smaller passenger cars.
One such safety device is underride guards, which are placed at the rear of semi-trailers to prevent vehicles from sliding under the trailer during rear-end collisions.
In recent months, however, its effectiveness has been questioned. Research conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety early last year revealed that underride guards are prone to failure, even at relatively low speeds.
During the IIHS study, patterns were analyzed in approximately 1,000 crashes (from 2001 to 2003) involving heavy trucks and semi-trailers with and without underride protection. The findings showed that only 22 percent of the crashes did not involve override or the impact had a minor effect. But in 23 of the 28 cases in which someone was killed in a passenger vehicle, there was extensive slip damage due to sliding under the trailer.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, approximately 423 people in passenger vehicles are killed each year as a result of rear-end crashes of large trucks. Additionally, more than 5,000 passenger vehicle occupants are injured in these types of collisions.
Using this initial data, the IIHS conducted crash tests to determine the level of injuries at various speeds and which underride protection designs work best. Hyundai Translead, Wabash National Corp. and Vanguard National Trailer Corp. Trailers were tested using a 5-star safety-rated 2010 Chevrolet Malibu as the passenger vehicle.
In a rear-center impact at 35 mph, the Hyundai Translead trailer’s underride protection tipped forward, sheared off its mounting bolts and collapsed. The Wabash trailer withstood the impact and stayed in place, making it the strongest trailer of the three tested.
Evaluations with 50 percent and 30 percent overlaps were also performed to monitor the impact when passenger vehicles collide with only part of their front end. Again, at 35 mph, the Wabash trailer avoided a significant override at 50 percent impact, but leaned forward at 30 percent and allowed a significant override.
In general, the tests confirmed that even the strongest protectors are susceptible to nullification, especially when the point of impact is far from the center of the protector. It’s also worth noting that the test speed of 35 mph is probably lower than the typical pace for passenger vehicles on highways where most trucks travel.
NOTE: As mentioned above, accidents involving semi trucks often result in horrific injuries and unfortunately death. Therefore, a higher standard of insurance coverage is necessary to cover the increased risk faced by truck drivers.
This increased insurance, as well as the legal regulations surrounding semi-truck operation and ownership, can lead to higher settlements for accident victims. But a personal injury attorney is often needed to resolve the unique legal challenges associated with trucking accidents.
