Rules to Help Prevent a Moving Truck Accident

You’ve already made three trips to the new house on Jefferson, and it’s only 11:30 am. You never realize how much stuff you accumulate over the years—until you have to move it. You haven’t eaten since 6:00 am, and you’re starting to get irritable. Therefore, since you have to pass Rockville Pike anyway, you decide to stop at McDonald’s before loading up the fourth trip.

You figure a quick a run through the drive-thru won’t take too long and you can be back on the road in no time, with no one being the wiser. Unfortunately, as you approached the speaker, you completely forgot about the truck’s clearance.

Suddenly, you hear a loud “Crack” and feel the entire truck shake, as you slam into the low clearance marker. The quick food stop—has now become an embarrassing ordeal.

How could you have forgotten about the clearance? What other safety issues have you been forgetting?

Moving Truck Safety Tips

Moving can be an extremely stressful period in anyone’s life. The excitement and anxiety you feel about the change, the frustrations of packing, and the rush to get it all done—may not only affect you physically but it can also impair your judgment. Moving items from point A to point B may seem like a simple concept, but if you misjudge or disregard certain safety protocols while driving or packing a moving truck, you may suffer more than just a longer moving day.

Moving trucks, vans, and trailers should all have safety guidelines posted either in, or on the vehicle itself, or you should have to read and sign a contract that outlines these rules before you’re able to rent a moving vehicle. These rules and safety tips include:

• Never allow passengers, pets or animals to ride in the cargo area. Not only is this illegal, but you run the risk of your passengers becoming injured by falling cargo, asphyxiation, or violent impact collisions due to lack of restraints.
• Be aware of your clearance. Most moving trucks are much taller than normal vehicles and simple tasks, such as going through a drive-thru or under driveway arches, can become dangerously complex.
• Don’t transport hazardous, or flammable materials. Protection and restraints are extremely limited in the cargo area and even small bumps could result in shifts or trembles in the cargo area—causing rips, breaks, or leaks.
• Don’t speed. When driving a large vehicle, it’s easy to feel invincible and lose track of your speed. However, the size of your truck demands the responsibility to actually reduce your speed to prevent rollovers and jerky stops.
• Don’t overload the truck. Most moving trucks have a suggested weight limit to prevent possible stopping and force issues, but overloading can also cause problems closing and latching the back or cargo shifts.

Take some of the worry and stress out of moving, while keeping the roads safe, by making sure you follow the rules to help prevent a potential accident.  

Need more information about moving truck safety or moving truck accident claims? Feel free to browse our site to see how our vast experience and knowledge can help you get the information, answers and peace of mind you deserve.