Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyers: What is an underride accident?

Mann Wyatt Tanksley Injury Attorneys | December 9, 2019 | Truck Accidents

Because of its location on I-70, a major interstate highway that spans most of the United States, the Kansas City area has a constant flow of large commercial vehicles. That makes collisions between passenger vehicles and large trucks inevitable. While any collision between a passenger vehicle and and large commercial vehicle can cause grave damage, one type of accident is particularly devastating: an underride accident.

Underride accidents occur when the driver of a semi truck and trailer abruptly changes lanes and a passenger vehicle is caught underneath the trailer. According to government statistics, more than 200 people die from underride accidents every year. Many believe that number to underreport the actual number of deaths caused by underride accidents. While attempts have been made to add safety features on the sides of semi trailers to prevent or reduce the likelihood of an underride crash, no laws or regulations exist to mandate installation of these devices. So underride accidents continue to produce some of the most grievous injuries of any vehicle collision.

“We see very serious injuries from underride accidents,” said Scott Mann, personal injury lawyer at Mann Wyatt Tanksley Injury Attorneys. “Often in these accidents, the passenger vehicle attempts to slow down and gets caught up in the rear axle of the semi trailer.”

Mann explains that in the worst types of these accidents, the trailer will go all the way over the passenger vehicle and sheer the top off.

Contact a Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer Immediately

Personal injuries can come with a litany of physical, mental, and emotional issues. If you’ve sustained a personal injury as the result of a collision with a large commercial truck in the Kansas City area, call the attorneys at Mann Wyatt Tanksley Injury Attorneys today. With more than 75 years of combined litigation experience, they will fight to get you the compensation you deserve for the aftermath of your personal injury, including: