Posted on August 28, 2018
What happens when a truck tire blowout occurs?
A burst tire while driving at high speed can have tragic consequences. It is important to familiarize with ways to avoid the sudden burst and how to react when the unexpected happens.
A semi-trailer tire blowout can be dangerous regardless of the axis involved. When it happens to the front tire, the impact is felt as a strong jerk and a movement of the steering wheel towards the burst tire. A tire located at the back can be felt through the back of the seat. The rear of the vehicle will suddenly slip or begin to slide.
The bursting of a tire on a steering axle of a van, a camper, a bus or a truck with a semi-trailer always leads to the loss of control of the vehicle. A large tire profile accentuates the roll and the weight of the vehicle makes it turn to the side.
When this happens at high speed, the blow out can cause a serious accident. It is only by adopting a good position behind the steering wheel and holding it with both hands that one can maintain control of the vehicle after a tire burst.
Practice
It is advisable to practice safe driving techniques that allow you to know the reactions needed when the rear of the vehicle skids or the front behaves differently in turns. When a tire bursts. you must have good reflexes.
Keep calm – the majority of vehicles remain controllable even at high speed (especially if the automobile is equipped with low-profile tires). However, this only works if you do not make sudden movements with the steering wheel. Use your accelerator pedal in a delicate way – if you remove your foot quickly, the vehicle can skid.
Do not press your brake pedal, which is a common mistake because automatically the driver feels the need to stop the truck. Doing so only increases the force pulling our vehicle to the side. When you have restored control over your car, let it lose speed gradually: you can start braking when the speed is not higher than 25 to 30 miles per hour (mph) or (40-50 km/h).
After the bursting of a front tire, you can use the handbrake in a very delicate way (provided that it only acts on the rear wheels!) – this makes it possible to use the rear wheels to reduce the load acting on the front axle.
What happens when a semi-trailer tire blows out?:
Regain control
If you really cannot control your truck, accelerate even more strongly if your vehicle is not dynamic. The difficulty of this maneuver is to overcome mental resistance because, in every situation of danger, drivers have a natural tendency to attempt stopping the vehicle as soon as possible.
Acceleration balances lateral forces that act on the truck and reduces the effort required to control the steering wheel. The ideal solution is to accelerate immediately after the tire burst. After a phase of acceleration and stabilization, gradually release your accelerator pedal.
A steering wheel that reacts suddenly may be impossible to control with one hand even for a short time – at a significant speed, such a situation can make you lose control. A blister on the side of the tire may cause it to burst on the road.
There are several possible reasons for the bursting of a tire, but such a situation can happen especially with a misused or unusually used tire. The most common reasons for a tire burst include:
– Insufficient pressure (3/4 of the cases)
– Running over a hard or pointed object (eg a stone, a brick, a metal bar, a bottle)
– Overloading
– Air pressure that is higher than the parameters defined by the tire manufacturer,
– Excessive wear or aging of the tire
– A manufacturing defect of the tire (which appears most often during the first thousand miles of the use of the tire)
– A defect in the braking system that causes the wheel to overheat
Posted on August 21, 2018
Owner-Operator Truck Insurance
The insurance industry is one based on peace of mind. People get insurance for many reasons: health, home, automobile, and business. If something goes wrong, as it inevitably does, people need to know that their owner-operator truck insurance company has their back. Reliance Partners is an independent insurance agency that was formed in 2009. The Reliance team is made up of a number of individuals that wanted their insurance company to set the industry standard. Reliance caters to the insurance needs of many industries from transportation to logistics, hospitality to manufacturing. Reliance has several insurance plans with specialties like owner-operator truck insurance.
Reliance has their fingers on the pulse of the ever-changing insurance industry. They devote a lot of time and planning to adjust their coverage plans and pricing to suit the needs of individuals in the changing economy. When it comes to owner-operator truck insurance, their needs are unique, and Reliance can meet those needs in a number of ways. Two circumstances under the owner-operator truck insurance umbrella differentiate those needs: owner-operators leased to motor carriers or operating for themselves.
Owner-Operators Leased to Motor Carriers
If owner-operators are leased to motor carriers, most often, their coverage is from the company’s auto liability insurance. The owner-operator has to keep in mind that this coverage is enacted only when on the job during work hours. This type of insurance coverage is designed to cover third-party injuries/property damage if the motor carrier is held liable.
In this circumstance, the owner-operator should be sure to have other lines of coverage. These additional coverage lines are specified by the trucking company, like non-trucking liability and occupational accident, so that the owner-operator can purchase before leasing. A further coverage need would include a plan that covers physical damage to the trailer interchange or tractor damage.
Owner-Operators Who Operate Under Their Own Authority
When it comes to independent owner-operator truck insurance, a lot of planning and forethought should go into their necessary insurance coverage. As they are operating under their authority, things that go wrong, accidents or damage, will be their responsibility, regardless of the type of insurance coverage they have.
Independent owner-operators are mandated to have their auto-liability insurance coverage based on the stipulations of the FMCSA. For most types of business, $750,000 is the prescribed limit, but most often, the limit purchased freight brokers and shippers require that is one million dollars.
Owner-operators are also obligated to purchase insurance with coverage of physical damage, general liability, and cargo. There may or may not be additional rules and regulations regarding contracts, commodities, or state laws. What this means is that owner-operators have to be diligent in researching exactly what is required of them by law, when it comes to insurance coverage, as regulations can vary from state to state.
Owner-operators who are under their authority are advised to have their long-term goals in mind when considering their insurance needs for the present and future. Projected growth should be considered as well as the types of operation their trucking company will be undertaking. Plans should also include the areas in which they plan to operate to ensure that potential insurance coverage will cover all pertinent areas.
New-Venture Trucking Companies
Going out on your own in the business world is always a risk. New-venture trucking companies are no exception to the unpredictability of business ownership. While some insurance companies avoid new-trucking ventures due to the lack of experience and amount of guidance that is required, Reliance Partners looks at new-venture independent owner-operators as a chance to do what they do best: help people get into the markets of success and peace of mind through full insurance coverage.
Whether or not you are just starting out or planning to soon, Reliance Partners knows just what you need and how to help you get it. They feature programs explicitly designed with new trucking companies in mind. The Reliance team will not only help new-venture trucking companies find the insurance coverage they are best suited for, but they will also help owner-operators determine how best to start up and see the best market to operate within.
The insurance industry is an ever-changing organism. Independent insurance agencies like Reliance Partners follow the trends and changes within the industry so they can better serve the needs of their individual and business clients. When it comes to owner-operator truck insurance, the primary distinction is whether or not the owner-operator is leased to a motor carrier or independently operating under their authority. In either scenario, Reliance Partners have set the industry standard when it comes to establishing a client rapport to help a variety of people across a range of industries get the coverage to meet their personal and business needs.
