Trucking accidents can occur on just about any Illinois public way, involving anything from a fender bender with a delivery truck on a local Chicago road to a crash with an 18-wheeler on an interstate highway. Typically, the trend is the larger the truck, the more severe the injury.

Over the last ten years, large vehicle trucking accidents have increased by about ten percent. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), in the last year as many as 5,000 individuals died and 130,000 were injured in crashes involving a large truck. In addition to the personal injuries there is also a higher degree of property damage when a large truck is involved.

In Illinois, there were more than 6,000 crashes involving large trucks in 2006. Over 2,000 crashes involved injuries and 150 crashes involved fatalities.

For the past 30 years Kreisman Law Offices has been handling truck accident claims in Chicago and Illinois. A truck accident is typically more expensive and complicated than an automobile crash case. You need an attorney like Robert Kreisman on your side who understands the unique aspects of truck accident claims and who knows how to recover the most for his clients.

Truck accident cases differ from a car crash claims primarily because of the unique circumstances arising from these types of crashes. For example, tractor-trailers oftentimes can "jack-knife" so that the two parts of the vehicle are at a 90o angle. The tendency for a truck to jack-knife may occur because of front brake issues. Many truck accidents are caused by brake malfunction. The brakes, like all equipment on a truck, must be regularly maintained and inspected.

Truck roll-overs are one of the most common causes of fatalities in trucking accidents. These can occur because of driver error, truck malfunction, low inflation of the tires, brake failure and highway conditions. Driving a commercial truck is a job and the driver is a paid professional. Additional factors and regulations come into play in trucking crashes that don't exist in car accidents.

In order to drive a commercial vehicle in Illinois, the driver must be tested and qualified for a commercial driver's license. Furthermore, in order to drive most trucks in Illinois, the driver must also pass a physical examination required by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. If any of these rules and regulations are not followed they can play a part in the investigation and prosecution of a trucking accident.

If you or a loved one has been affected by a trucking accident, you may have a personal injury claim. Please call Chicago Injury Lawyer Robert Kreisman 24 hours a day at (312) 346-0045 or toll free (800) 583-8002 for a free and immediate consultation, or fill out our contact form online.