by "sm70- why not Duesenberg?" (sm70-whynotduesenberg)
Published 10/28/2017 at 13:18
by "sm70- why not Duesenberg?" (sm70-whynotduesenberg)
Published 10/28/2017 at 13:18
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STARS: 3
My dad is a specialty commercial insurance agent, and deals with a wide variety of companies, including many trucking companies or companies that run heavy trucks as part of their business. I worked as an intern there over the summer. On my last day of work, we received news that an old man in a pickup truck had run a stop sign in front of his client’s over-the-road semi and been killed. This week, another client had a truck involved in a fatal accident. The 20 year-old driver of a fully loaded cement mixer made a sharp turn and tipped the truck onto a car waiting at the light. Both young men in the car were killed instantly . Now, I do not want to rush to any conclusions, nor do my dad or his partner who is the actual agent of record for this account. However, it would certainly seem that speed played some factor in this crash. Clearly whatever occurred, it was an honest and tragic error. However, without wishing to be accused of age discrimination, I do believe that having a 20 year old behind the wheel of a fully loaded cement mixer is a bad idea. In Nebraska, you only need to be 18 for a local (non-interstate) CDL, so this guy was driving the truck legally. However, I personally think this is a case of “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.” In my mind, driving this specific type of incredibly large and unusually top-heavy vehicle should be a job for more experienced drivers. But that’s just, like, my opinion.
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"ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com" (ita97)
10/28/2017 at 14:10, STARS: 3
Some family friends of mine own a trucking company in Nebraska. For insurance purposes, the don’t employ drivers who are under the age of 25 or without two years of previous OTR experience.
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
10/28/2017 at 15:49, STARS: 2
It’s good to see this story being treated the way it is. Too often, crashes like this are reported in a distant manner, mentioning only that a large truck was “involved” in an “accident”. There are very serious lessons to be learned here, and I like that they interviewed a driving instructor to talk more about it.
"AMGtech - now with more recalls!" (amgtech)
10/28/2017 at 15:53, STARS: 3
My grandpa was killed by a 19-20 year old driving a semi back in 06. Kid was going too fast and didn’t even have a current CDL. We later found out that trucking company had been cited numerous times for employing drivers with no CDL’s and having improper insurance and maybe a few other things. I can definitely get behind what you’re saying here.
"sm70- why not Duesenberg?" (sm70-whynotduesenberg)
10/28/2017 at 16:38, STARS: 0
Out of curiosity, if you’re comfortable saying, which one? We write a surprising percentage of them.
"sm70- why not Duesenberg?" (sm70-whynotduesenberg)
10/28/2017 at 16:39, STARS: 1
Yeah it wasn’t just a blurb as part of a traffic report.
"gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee" (gogmorgo)
10/28/2017 at 16:52, STARS: 0
There’s special sections in the class-3 manual for cement mixers. The very heavy spinning drum apparently makes for some unusual handing characteristics.
But also the commercial license tests are the same no matter who they’re administered to. Just because someone is older doesn’t mean they’re more experienced (or competent) drivers. My older sister, for example, got her license two and a half years before I did, but then when it was my turn as the learner in the family she didn’t drive as much. She never owned a car, and I doubt has driven anything for several years now. Meanwhile my younger brother (only a year between us) hates driving so when he got his license that was it for him, and since my parents weren’t the biggest fans of driving if they could avoid it as well so I became the primary driver in the family. By the time I was 20 I had driven over 50,000km with no incidents, despite my somewhat reckless approach at times. My 23-year-old sister was still breaking mirrors off in parking lots every other time she drove, which was pretty rare.
Just because someone’s only 20 doesn’t mean they can’t have tons of experience. Lots of the kids I grew up with (and I imagine this’ll apply to Nebraska as well) had been driving large pieces of farming equipment since they were old enough to see over the steering wheel. All manner of trucks, all the way up to 100,000lb b-trains. You didn’t even need more than a class-5 to drive one of those legally on public roads if it was registered as a farm truck. That 20-year-old could have legally had four years experience driving much bigger vehicles than a cement mixer. Whatever company put him in the driver’s seat wouldn’t have done it if they didn’t trust him.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
10/28/2017 at 17:08, STARS: 2
It is a very rare 20 year old who is mature and experienced enough for a readymix truck. I am surprised that an insurance company is willing to insure someone that young driving one. I nearly got a job driving a tow truck back in college, but the company’s insurance company wouldn’t cover me, since I wasn’t 22.
"SpeedSix" (speedsix)
10/28/2017 at 18:58, STARS: 1
That’s fucked up.
I’m surprised that there was anyone willing to insure a 20-year-old on a concrete truck. I understand that age isn’t an automatic indicator (20 myself), but I rightfully understand why commercial driving usually requires someone above 21, 22, or even 25 depending on the job.
I hope, for the sake of the victims, that the company didn’t merely hire a 20-year-old because they were cheap to pay, and hopefully, they weren’t breaking their own insurance policy stipulations - the story would be much more tragic.
"SpeedSix" (speedsix)
10/28/2017 at 19:00, STARS: 0
Whatever company put him in the driver’s seat wouldn’t have done it if they didn’t trust him.
I sure hope that the company didn’t hire him because he would be cheaper to pay than a more experienced driver, and I hope, for the sake of the victims, that the company wasn’t bending (i.e. breaking) any of their own insurance stipulations. That would all make the story much worse.