People choose to drive pickup trucks for many different reasons. Some individuals like the rugged aesthetic, while others may work blue-collar jobs that require that they haul materials and tools to remove worksites five days a week. Others may have hobbies that are more easily enjoyed when their hauling capacity is significant.
Whether someone has a pickup truck for personal or professional reasons, their large vehicle makes them a bigger threat to pedestrians who are traveling near them on the road. Researchers have discovered that pickup trucks and other large vehicles like SUVs are more likely to cause serious injury to pedestrians and cyclists. These are some of the factors that influence the increased risk a pickup truck poses for pedestrians.
Visibility issues
A pickup truck is a taller vehicle than a standard sedan, which means it offers a different view of oncoming traffic. Being higher off the road makes it easier for motorists in pickups to overlook pedestrians, especially smaller people like children. The longer someone has driven a pickup or SUV, the more likely they are to be complacent about the visibility limitations of their vehicle and to fail to properly monitor their surroundings for the safety of nearby pedestrians.
A lack of perceived danger
The brain evaluates incoming visual data based on the amount of threat it poses. For those in large vehicles, pedestrians are not really a safety concern. If they do not make an effort to intentionally watch for pedestrians, they could look right at someone and never actually recognize that they are nearby. While inattentional blindness is a concern in any vehicle, it is a more pressing concern in vehicles where drivers may be overconfident about their personal safety.
Despite the enhanced risk that larger vehicles pose to pedestrians and also those in smaller vehicles, Insurance rules do not require higher coverage levels for these bigger and potentially riskier modes of transportation. Pedestrians, therefore, need to be especially cautious for their own safety when encountering pickup trucks and other large vehicles in traffic.
Pursuing a personal injury lawsuit in addition to an insurance claim may be necessary after a pedestrian crash because of the extensive medical expenses and lost wages that could likely result from such an incident.