- March 17, 2022
- Tucker Law
- Truck Accident Lawsuits
The convenience of e-commerce and online shopping comes with changes, one of those being a massive increase in the number of United Parcel Service (UPS) delivery trucks moving through city streets and neighborhoods at all times of the day and evening. Being one of the major players among the big four carriers of goods, products and shipments, UPS trucks operate 100,000 strong nationwide, and are found in every state, region and town. And the more times they are on the road delivering an assortment of packages, they also increase the risk of getting into a vehicle accident with other drivers. When that happens, many assume it’s a matter of insurance companies working things out. However, UPS can be a challenge to work with at times, given a regular company strategy to limit claims and reduce damages.
While most expect that after getting into a car crash the UPS driver will exchange insurance information just like any other driver, that’s not the case. One would think this would be a normal practice with a massive fleet on the road. However, UPS takes an entirely different approach to addressing accident responsibility than what most drivers expect, and that surprise can catch people off guard, especially when they just want to get back to the way they were and have a restored vehicle.
Statistical Probability and Risk With UPS Trucks
Again, UPS has one of the largest fleets on the road, and they run daily. That means something near 119,000 drivers are covering over 3 million miles on the road annually. It’s not a matter of if but a matter of when a UPS truck will be in a vehicle accident with someone else, especially on city streets where things flow less smoothly than on the highway. In fact, historically, UPS had over 2,600 accidents in 2019, resulting in 948 injuries as well as 55 mortalities. In essence, every three hours, a UPS truck has gotten into an accident with someone, somewhere.
The Top Reasons UPS Trucks End Up In Accidents
In case after case, UPS trucks have shown that certain situations are repeatedly the reason for an accident with their trucks. Ideally, a company should be incorporating these issues into driver training to avoid them and run a smoother operation with prevention. However, the fact that these types of accident scenarios keep occurring continues to signal that the risk is present and still not fixed. Common and oftentimes preventable reasons include:
- Forgetting to set the vehicle in park and fixing the parking brake when stepping out to drop off a package
- Failing to yield to other traffic when entering a main roadway
- Trying to drive in reverse when missing an address
- Failure to be trained sufficiently at all as a driver for UPS
- Exhaustion and driver fatigue from too many hours on the road daily
- Faulty repairs, no maintenance performed at all or no safety check routines being applied before operating the vehicle.
Negligence
As can be seen above, a number of the common causes for UPS truck accidents are preventable, which means that in the legal world negligence could be a viable case against UPS when their truck and driver get into an accident. Technically, negligence is necessary before a party can win a lawsuit judgment for damages caused by accidental harm. Just having an accident alone is not enough; that’s usually addressed by insurance coverage instead. However, where serious injuries or property damage have occurred, beyond what can be addressed by an insurance policy, negligence then has to be proven to secure full recovery in court.
That, in essence, means a case needs to show the accident was the driver’s fault; that there was a duty of prevention that should have occurred; that the duty was not met, which in turn created the accident; and the suing party was hurt, sustaining medical or property damage losses.
A Large Company With Resources
UPS has been in its business for years and has plenty of resources to sustain a legal defense of its operations, far more than any individual can afford. In fact, the company can afford to have attorneys both on staff as well as on contract to provide legal defense when the need arises, which it does on a regular basis thanks to the driving issues that keep reoccurring. As a result, a typical individual expecting to get a prompt response to a claim for damages is going to run into a lot of frustration as well as delayed communication, that is until UPS has to respond legally in court.
When a victim chooses to have an expert accident attorney representing their interests, this forces large companies like UPS to have to respond legally to the complaint being made. They also have to produce information under request processes known as discovery, which can highlight evidence showing where UPS management and drivers were indeed negligent. This can be crucial in helping prove a case and ultimately securing the real recovery needed after a bad accident.
If You Were Hit by a UPS Truck, Contact an NYC Car Accident Lawyer
For those in the New York City and Long Island area, Tucker Lawyers PC, your New York car accident lawyer can help. Their legal experts are heavily experienced on dealing with companies like UPS, as well as with insurance providers. That kind of help becomes invaluable when it comes time to seek recovery from a bad accident at the hands of a UPS truck driver. Call us today at (516) 399-2364 and find out about how Tucker Lawyers PC can make a difference in your accident case with UPS.
Managing Attorney John. J. Tucker, Esq.
John has personally handled thousands of clients who were victims of another’s negligence and fights relentlessly for their rights. John enjoys bringing closure to a client’s matter so that the injured party can move forward with their life. His background enables him to evaluate complex liability related claims and bring resolution to claims in a record time frame. [ Attorney Bio ]