Truckers have one of the most grueling and dangerous jobs across all industries—from days or weeks away from home, long driving hours, and intense physical and mental demands. So it’s not surprising that trucking injuries make up a huge percentage of workers’ compensation claims nationwide. Occupational accidents involving truckers take various forms, causing an array of injuries that can negatively affect an injured truck driver’s life. The following are the most common Florida trucker injuries drivers should be aware of:
Injuries from Falls
Aside from driving, you may have to climb onto elevated areas on the truck, use stairs and ladders, or deliver packages to upper floors in construction sites, warehouses, and buildings. You could slip and fall on stairs, ladders, unsecured openings, and even when entering and exiting your truck. Possible injuries can include broken bones, sprains, head trauma, and brain injuries, among others.
Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSIs)
Also known as
repetitive trauma or strain injuries, these result from the repeated positioning or motions that you perform while working. These can also include overuse syndromes, repetitive motion disorders, and cumulative trauma disorders. RSIs typically affect soft tissues, including nerves, muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Common RSIs that truckers can develop include:
- Bursitis
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Trigger finger
- Tendinitis
- Tennis elbow or epicondylitis
- Ganglion cysts
- Tenosynovitis
You might feel pain, tingling, numbness, weakness, and other sensations where you have a repetitive stress injury. Driving can lead to such injuries depending on how many hours you drive, how much rest you get, how you drive, and your posture while driving.
Struck Against or By Objects Injuries
Truck drivers know that opening cargo containers, lifting hitched trailers, and attaching trailers come with moving components or objects, such as winch bars, lift gates, pallet jacks, cartons, or boxes. Many drivers can get hurt while doing these tasks when they get struck against or by these things or loose cargo.
Musculoskeletal Injuries
Musculoskeletal injuries to the back, neck, and limbs can result from unloading and loading containers, cartons, boxes, bins, or tanks from trucks. They can also result from using loaders and dollies and while working on tires. In general, these are caused by overexertion, such as lifting heavy objects, but can also develop due to less strenuous movements, like climbing in and out of the truck. In addition, musculoskeletal injuries are common among truckers because of the truck cab’s design, which can significantly impact your posture. Because the truck is your workspace, how you sit while driving for hours on end, how the mirrors are positioned, and how your body is positioned relative to the transmission, steering wheel, and other controls can have an impact on your musculoskeletal system.
Injuries from Truck Crashes
Truck crashes are among the most common causes of injuries for truckers. While truck crashes can be devastating when smaller vehicles are involved, truckers also get injured and killed in such accidents. In 2021 alone, 1008 truck occupants died in truck collisions, and many more were seriously injured. Injuries that truckers can suffer in collisions include fractured or crushed bones, traumatic brain injuries, facial and head injuries, severe lacerations and bruising, whiplash, internal organ damage, spinal cord injuries, burns, etc.
Seek Legal Guidance From a Seasoned Florida Workers’ Compensation Attorney Now
At
Rosenthal, Levy, Simon & Sosa, our Florida workers’ compensation attorneys have the skills, experience, and resources you need to secure the workers’ compensation benefits you deserve to recover. To learn how you can pursue compensation to cover all your work-related injuries and related losses, set up a free case evaluation with our Florida workers’ compensation attorney by dialing 561-478-2500 or reaching us
online.