A man was hospitalized when his Corvette crashed into the back of a box truck near Getty Center Drive on the San Diego (405) Freeway. The Corvette had to be pulled out from beneath the truck by the Los Angeles Fire Department.
The top of the vehicle was completely crushed, but luckily the accident victim was reportedly conscious throughout the whole ordeal and was transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
After viewing photographs of the accident, it is a wonder that the driver was not more seriously injured or even killed in the underride truck accident. The risks of passenger vehicles sliding underneath large trucks in rear-end accidents was recently addressed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to strengthen its underride guard standards for semi trucks and other large vehicles.
Currently, some large trucks, such as dump trucks, are not even required to have underride guards.
While IIHS stated that most modern semitrailers have guards that do an adequate job of preventing potentially catastrophic underride, in tests the institute performed in 2010 and 2011, the guards manufactured to meet minimum NHTSA standard for underride protection did a poor job of preventing it.
IIHS pointed out that Canada has a much more stringent underride standard for guard strength and size, and that vehicles that had guards meeting those standards did a much better job of preventing underrides.
While IIHS stated the Canadian standard is not perfect, it is a good start towards strengthening overall guard standards. IIHS’s chief research officer stated on the institute’s website, “While we’re counting on NHTSA to come up with a more effective regulation, we hope that in the meantime trailer buyers take note of our findings and insist on stronger guards.”
Have you or a loved one been injured in a crash with a truck? Contact the Law Office of Reneé J. Nordstrand. You may be entitled to compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and other damages. If you believe you have a case, call our Santa Barbara office at (805) 962-2022 or our Encino office at (818) 981-3530 for a free consultation. We can also be reached online.