One of perhaps the most catastrophic types of tractor-trailer accidents that can occur is an underride accident. It\’s the type of crash that involves a motorist\’s car getting stuck under the side or rear portion of a truck\’s trailer. While many trucks currently come equipped with side and rear bars to prevent these types of crashes from occurring, there are still many tractor-trailers that don\’t have them. A motorist who collides with a truck is at risk of suffering serious injuries.
A side underride type of accident often occurs at an intersection, perhaps when either a passenger car operator or a trucker runs a red light. A motorist\’s car can get stuck quite far under a trailer if it\’s traveling at a high rate of speed.
Injuries resulting from these types of crashes are often catastrophic. It\’s not uncommon for the roof of a low-profile passenger car to be sheared off in such collisions. If this happens, then the car\’s occupants may suffer severe head, neck or other life-threatening injuries.
Rear-end underride crashes often occur at intersections when motorists are preparing to stop at a red light. They can also happen if a trucker makes an unexpected stop while turning or when allowing traffic to pass.
These types of incidents can also result in debilitating injuries for the motorist. The wheels of the truck often stop a car from traveling too far under the truck though. Even still, the impact of such a crash can leave a car with front end damage, and a motorist seriously hurt.
Underride crashes, fortunately, don\’t happen all too frequently. They\’re often catastrophic when they do though. If you\’ve been injured in one of these crashes, then it\’s likely that you have amassed significant medical bills. An attorney in Goldsboro can advise you of different approaches that can be used to recover compensation in crash cases like this in North Carolina.