Common Factors in Tow Truck Accidents and How To Avoid Them

If you have ever been involved in an accident that causes severe damage to your vehicle, you might have looked upon a tow truck as a source of enormous relief. A tow truck diligently transports your car away from the accident site to the nearest service station without you incurring any further damages.

However, when a tow truck itself is involved in an accident, the damage incurred is of a very serious nature. Apparently, the weight of a tow truck is a lot more compared to most of the passenger vehicles. The latter adds to the load of the vehicle a tow truck is transporting. Hence, the results of such an accident are pretty detrimental.

Tow trucks, like other heavy transport vehicles, take longer to adjust their speed, whether they're speeding up or trying to come to a complete stop. Tow trucks also have large blind spots and need more room to manoeuvre small vehicles. All these factors add to the risks of tow truck accidents.

Apart from these, many factors can play a significant role in causing dangerous tow truck accidents. However, little vigilance and adequate preventive measures can help you avoid these disastrous roadside accident encounters.

The following article enlists top factors that can cause tow truck accidents.

Driver’s Fatigue

Canadian roads witness numerous accidents every year, which you may be well aware of. However, did you know that a driver’s fatigue is one of the most prominent contributors to these accidents? The situation is even scarier when a truck is involved.

Only a tow truck driver understands how dangerous it is to drive with significant blind spots in the dark and crowded hours. However, due to the nature of their work, they often begin feeling tired on the road while driving. However, the increased demand for towing services and the long working hours often force drivers to continue driving even when feeling drowsy.

However, a fatigued driver is at the risk of experiencing the following problems;

• Disorientation

• Tunnel vision

• Lazy reflexes

• Slower response time.

These situations can lead the drivers to unknowingly indulge in dangerous manoeuvres on the road. A fatigued driver can fail to obey the traffic rules unintentionally. Moreover, if the driver is drowsy, they may try to speed up to get off the road quickly. Additionally, a tired driver may not be able to adequately comprehend the danger of a blind spot and may fail to act promptly in a problematic situation.

All these factors increase the risk of accidents and are often the culprit behind the horrifying tow truck accidents.

Speeding

The sheer weight and size of the tow truck make it a technically tricky vehicle to control and drive. Speeding such vehicles can be very destructive. That is, driving tow trucks at high speed means you are in less control and may miscalculate the time you need to stop the vehicle, thus increasing the chances of collisions. These collisions can turn deadly if the tow truck is loaded and collides with a passenger-filled vehicle.

Most of the reliable towing companies monitor and use speed trackers to keep a check on their driver’s driving habits while others don’t. Likewise, if a driver is adequately trained and understands the driving circumstances, speeding up a tow truck will always be the last resort in their point of action.

Severe Weather

The next and almost uncontrollable factor that induces tow truck accidents is severe weather conditions. Heavy rain, snow, and hail storms make every type of driving difficult. Difficulty in driving heavy travelling vehicles like tow trucks increases the risk of an accident.

Undeniably, rain and snow make the roads slippery and the chances of trucks skidding off and drivers losing control increases significantly. Moreover, fog and excessive cold particles in the air make it difficult to see the road clearly, making it challenging for drivers to control and manage blind spots properly.

The only way to combat all these problems posed by bad weather conditions is to drive extra cautiously and, if possible, halt the services on unsafe and dangerous routes in such conditions, especially in the dark.

Road Construction

Drivers that come across tricky road construction sites may try to cross the area from the road shoulder or median. These areas never have enough space for a bulky tow truck to pass, causing them to turn over, flip, or collide with another vehicle on the site.

Cargo Overloading

Trucks carrying extra loads are more prone to accidents and cause road obstructions than trucks loaded with optimised weights. These overloaded trucks can flip and swerve every time they take a turn or change lanes.

Hence, it is vital to load the cargo according to the bearing capacity of the truck and tie it properly. This makes towing services an even trickier and more technical job that only experts can handle.

Conclusion

Like other roadside accidents, tow truck accidents also occur because of both exogenous and endogenous driving factors. Most accidents occur due to driver’s negligence including exceeding the allowed driving hours, speeding and overlooking the traffic rules. However, factors like weather and road conditions, time of the day, and traffic flow also induce some tow truck accidents. As a result, being vigilant and obeying traffic rules is the only way to avoid most of the potential tow truck accidents.

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