How Safe Is Auto Transport?
Posted By admin on October 3, 2011
You’ve probably seen an auto transport vehicle cruising along the highway carrying a load of vehicles. If you haven’t seen a tractor-trailer in real life, chances are you have seen one in an action movie. One of the things that come into people’s minds when they see such trucks is, “Are those things safe?”
And it is not hard to realize why they ask that question. Seeing multi-level trailers with a full load of vehicles, some of which are tilted in a seemingly strange way, have made a lot of people wonder if those cars wouldn’t roll down or maybe fall off the side. Just how secure are those straps?
You would be glad to know that even though some accidents have occurred among auto shipping vehicles, the number of mishaps is still pretty low. In addition, most of the accidents that happened were caused by human error; the equipment did not cause the problem. Thus, the auto transport industry is still considered to be generally safe.
Even other vehicles used in auto transport are safe, such as trains or autoracks and auto carrier ships. There are, however, a few tragedies that have happened at sea, such as the sinking of the auto carrier Tricolor in 2002. It collided with a container ship, causing it to go down the water along with 2,000 cars.
The MV Hyundai No. 105 also sank in 2004 after it collided with an oil tanker. It brought down with it more than 4,000 vehicles. Aside from tragedies at sea, accidents have also happened to trains or autoracks carrying cars and other vehicles, but these have been rare.
The number of accidents involving auto shippers are fewer compared to the figures for other cargo-bearing vehicles. In 2005, accidents involving large trucks numbered 4,932, and only 31 of these involved auto shipping vehicles. That’s merely 0.6% occurrence of fatal accidents for the entire auto shipping industry.
There have been cases of cars falling off the truck and causing injuries, but not during transit. Such incidents can happen while the cars are being loaded onto the trailer. However, once they are loaded and secured, they will not fall off the moving truck because they are held in place by ultra strong straps.
Some auto shippers put tarps along the sides of the trailer so that the vehicles on the lower level will not be exposed to debris. To protect the vehicles, auto shippers may cover them with a plastic wrap. For people who do not want their car to be exposed to the elements, companies may offer the option of shipping the vehicle in a closed trailer.
One proof that auto shipping is safe is the fact that most cars are delivered to the owners or the car dealers without damage. In fact, two car manufacturer giants, Toyota and Ford, claim that the vehicles they ship to car dealers are consistently 99.7 to 99.8% free of damage. Considering the size of the goods that need to be shipped, the trucks that are used, and the difficult process of loading, transporting, and unloading, that is a very good number.
Because of tight competition, auto shippers are continually driven to give the best service to their clients. Aside from keeping the vehicles damage free, they also strive to deliver them on time. These things help car transport companies establish a good reputation in the industry.
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