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Phoenix Truck Underride Accident Attorneys

More than 30 years of experience holding truck drivers and companies accountable for personal injuries and deaths

An underride crash involves a small car sliding underneath the body of a truck between the wheels of the truck. The occupants of the car are likely to suffer fatalities, catastrophic injuries, or permanent injuries. Most underride accidents are preventable if the truck manufacturer or owner installs safety guards. At Plattner Verderame, P.C., we file wrongful death claims and personal injury claims when truck underride accidents are preventable. Call our Phoenix truck underride lawyers for strong advocacy now.

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What parts of a truck can cause underride accidents in Phoenix?

According to a Frontline report, cars can slide under the rear, the side, or the front of a truck. The US Department of Transportation requires that tractor-trailers have underride guards in the rear of the trailer – but not on the side or the front of the trailer. The smaller the car and the taller the truck, the more likely it is that an underride accident will occur. Other types of trucks (other than trailers) that can cause underride accidents in Phoenix include semis, rigs, dump trucks, and delivery trucks.

How do truck underride accidents happen in Phoenix?

Some of the types of accidents that can cause a truck underride accident include head-on collisions, broadside collisions, and rear-end collisions. Some of the causes of truck underride accidents are:

  • A driver of a truck stops suddenly
  • Rain, fog, and other weather conditions make it hard for a car to stop
  • Trucks don’t have lights that work, and other features that help make them more visible at night
  • Truck drivers cause accidents due to speeding, drugs, alcohol, distraction, fatigue, failure to handle blind spots, improper wide turns, and other causes.
  • A car tailgates behind a truck
  • Improper merging accidents

Our Phoenix truck accident lawyers file claims against all responsible parties. The defendants may include:

  • A truck driver for their negligence
  • The trucking company that employs the truck driver for vicarious (direct) liability due to the negligence of their employee, and for failing to install rear underride guards
  • The owner of the truck for failing to ensure their truck has rear guards
  • A truck manufacturer for defects in the design or construction of their rear underride guards

Rear underride guards help prevent cars from sliding underneath a truck and reduce injury severity. Reflective tape and lighting, not the guards themselves, alert other drivers to the presence of the truck.

What types of injuries do underride accidents cause?

The injuries from underride crashes are often quite severe because the smaller cars are usually crushed. Common underride accident injuries include:

Airbags may fail to deploy in underride accidents because the crash sensors often miss low-position impacts beneath the vehicle’s crumple zones. Seatbelts also provide little protection when a truck underride accident happens.

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How common are truck underride accidents?

An NHTSA study (analyzed by Frontline and ProPublica) found that there were more than 400 deaths in America in 2021 due to truck underride accidents. It’s likely that many underride accidents are attributed to other causes, which means that the death totals are probably much higher. The underreporting is due to various causes, including:

  • Different states have different reporting requirements, depending on the percentage of the car’s hood that is damaged.
  • Police departments may not have enough information to determine if the accident is an underride crash. Many police officers, according to FRONTLINE, do not have enough training or resources to accurately determine if an accident was an underride crash.

What are the requirements for rear safety guards in the US?

US law requires that trailers and semitrailers with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or more, and that were manufactured on or after January 26, 1998, “must be equipped with a rear impact guard that meets the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 223 (49 CFR 571.223),” and FMVSS No. 224 (49 CFR 571.224).

The placement, width, and height of the guards need to ensure that a car cannot slide under the trailer/semitrailer. The specific measurement requirements are as follows:

  • Impact guard width. The outermost surfaces of the horizontal member of the guard must extend to within 100 mm (4 inches) of the side extremities of the vehicle. The outermost surface of the horizontal member shall not extend beyond the side extremity of the vehicle.

  • Guard height. The vertical distance between the bottom edge of the horizontal member of the guard and the ground shall not exceed 560 mm (22 inches) at any point across the full width of the member. Guards with rounded corners may curve upward within 255 mm (10 inches) of the longitudinal vertical planes that are tangent to the side extremities of the vehicle.

  • Guard rear surface. At any height 560 mm (22 inches) or more above the ground, the rearmost surface of the horizontal member of the guard must be within 305 mm (12 inches) of the rear extremity of the vehicle. This paragraph shall not be construed to prohibit the rear surface of the guard from extending beyond the rear extremity of the vehicle. Guards with rounded corners may curve forward within 255 mm (10 inches) of the side extremity.

There are also cross-sectional vertical height requirements and certification and labeling requirements.

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Do you have a Phoenix truck underride accident lawyer near me?

Yes. Our attorneys meet clients at our Phoenix office located at 316 E Flower St.

We also consult with injury victims and families by phone, and through Zoom, FaceTime, and other online video platforms. If you cannot travel due to your injuries, we can make arrangements to meet with you away from our offices.

We understand how upset you are. Our team is here to answer your questions and prepare you for each phase of the claims process.

Get help from our Phoenix truck underride accident lawyers today

At Plattner Verderame, our personal injury and wrongful death lawyers have more than 30 years of experience advocating for truck accident victims. Our Phoenix and Tempe truck accident lawyers represent drivers, passengers, and families when truck underride accidents happen. Our partners are certified by the Arizona State Bar as Specialists in Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation.

If you were injured or a loved one died in a truck underride accident, please call us or contact us today to schedule a free consultation. We represent truck accident victims and families on a contingency fee basis.