A LAVINGTON truck driver injured in an horrific fatal crash last year says his life will never be the same.
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Terry Hulm still has nightmares and requires regular medical treatment and medication after the incident on March 12, 2015.
The ex-Greenfreight worker had been driving to Corryong on the Murray Valley Highway on his second trip for the day.
Police confirmed he was overtaking a four-wheel-drive towing a caravan at Berringama when the caravan hit his vehicle, forcing it off the road.
The truck went back onto the road and was pushed into a culvert before running into trees, causing serious damage to Mr Hulm’s legs.
A couple in the four-wheel-drive did not appear to be seriously injured, but the driver died several days later.
Police said Mr Hulm was not at fault in the crash.
Mr Hulm said he had received only two tickets in a 35-year driving career that ended after the crash due to his injuries.
He handed in his truck licence this week.
“I will never do a full day of work again,” he said.
“I’m not working at all.
“I’ve got medical appointments every week - doctors, physiotherapists.
“I can't walk straight and I'm in lots of pain in my back, neck and knees.
“This accident has really knocked me over.
“It’s finished me.”
Mr Hulm wants people to stop tarnishing truck drivers and is frustrated by the perception of those in the industry.
The career has the highest number of workplace deaths in Australia each year.
A 2014 report by Safe Work Australia found about 80 people died each year in or around trucks from 2003 to 2012.
Safe Work Australia chair Ann Sherry at the time described the statistics as “worrying”
“Improving a business’s work health and safety is critical,” she said.
“It increases productivity and more Australians get home safely every day because of it.”
About 8450 serious injury compensation claims were made by workers in the industry in 2012, according to research compiled by LifeInsuranceFinder.com.au.
“A lot of people don’t see what people in cars do too, they just see the end result,” Mr Hulm said.
“We get a bad rap from everybody.
“This crash has affected my life and it has turned my partner’s life around too.”
He said the death of the man in the four-wheel-drive “weighs on my mind too”.
Mr Hulm hopes speaking about his experience will shed light on the industry.
The Transport Workers Union was twice contacted for comment but did not respond.