Crashes involving commercial trucks are particularly hazardous because of the involved vehicles’ massive size and weight disparity. If you have suffered an injury in a truck accident, you should always speak with a personal injury attorney, skilled in truck accidents, to fight for your rights and recover the compensation you deserve.
If you have questions about a potential truck accident case, speak to a tractor-trailer accident attorney in your area today. They offer a free consultation and can lay out your legal options.
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Tractor-Trailer Accident Overview
Large commercial vehicles are essential to the US economy, and truck drivers are expected to drive with skill and caution to avoid accidents. Even a minor mistake can cause severe injury or death. When a truck driver is negligent in the operation of their vehicle, a severe truck crash can occur. A truck may weigh up to 80,000 pounds, and the impact on a 4,000-pound car is usually devastating and sometimes fatal.
Common types of truck accidents include:
Rollover Accident
A rollover truck accident may occur when the driver takes a turn too fast or aggressively. Also, if the truck’s center of gravity is too high or unbalanced, the truck can tip over. Any vehicle can roll over if driven negligently, but trucks are much bigger and heavier and have a higher risk of a rollover.
A recent Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) study determined that the most common cause of rollover truck crashes is truck drivers not reducing speed when navigating a curve. Steering errors and driver inattention were also reasons for many rollover accidents.
Jackknife Accidents
A jackknife truck crash occurs when the truck trailer swings from behind the cab and develops an acute angle related to the truck cab. Large commercial trucks are prone to jackknife accidents, which may happen if the trucker hits the brakes too hard, slides in bad weather, or turns too fast.
A jackknife accident is especially treacherous for other drivers because the trailer may block several lanes of traffic. If you are in a jackknife accident, you probably have severe injuries and property damage. You should speak to a tractor-trailer accident attorney to understand your legal options.
Head-On Crashes
Head-on truck crashes are uncommon but devastating when they happen. A tractor-trailer weighing 80,000 pounds hitting a car usually leads to severe injury and often death. Luckily, the FMCSA reports that only 3 percent of commercial truck crashes are head-on collisions, which often happen on rural, two-lane roads.
Rear-End Crashes
Rear-end truck crashes are quite common. The FMCSA states there are approximately 30,000 rear-end truck crashes annually in the US, about 25 percent of all tractor-trailer accidents. Most rear-end truck accidents happen when the truck rear-ends another vehicle, not when another car hits the truck.
Rear-end truck collisions typically happen when a truck driver fails to slow down in traffic. They may be distracted, intoxicated, or sleepy, leading them to slam into the back of another vehicle. Your truck accident attorney can review important evidence to determine if the driver was negligent and caused the rear-end accident. For example, they may obtain the trucker’s cell phone records to learn if they were texting when the accident happened.
Underride Crashes
An underride truck accident happens when a smaller vehicle slides under the body of a truck trailer. These accidents can occur in the rear or on the side of the truck trailer and may cause severe head and brain injuries. Some underride accidents result in decapitation.
Did you lose a loved one in an underride truck accident? You can be entitled to compensation in a wrongful death lawsuit. A truck accident attorney can review the legal process involved in a wrongful death claim.
T-Bone Crashes
T-bone truck accidents are one of the most terrifying you can imagine. A T-bone crash happens when one vehicle hits another at a 90-degree angle. T-bone accidents often occur when a vehicle runs a red light or stop sign and hits another vehicle proceeding through the intersection.
A T-bone accident is hazardous when a truck hits a smaller vehicle. The side of a car offers minimal protection in a serious accident. The massive force of the truck collision often triggers severe and fatal injuries. You should immediately retain a truck accident attorney if you suffered an injury by a truck in a T-bone crash.
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How To Know You Need A Truck Accident Lawyer
Most truck accidents cause severe injuries and property damage. Generally, you should consult a truck accident attorney if you are involved in a crash caused by a truck driver. Contact a truck crash attorney in your area if your accident falls into these categories:
You Didn’t Cause The Truck Accident
A successful truck accident lawsuit means that another party caused the accident and injured you. There are many potentially liable parties in truck crashes, such as the truck driver, their employer, the company that loaded the trailer, a maintenance company, or the vehicle manufacturer. Or another driver may have contributed to the accident.
A truck accident attorney can review your claim at no cost today to determine who may have been at fault. Bottom line: If another party injured you in a truck crash, you should have an attorney representing you.
You Have Severe Injuries
One of the biggest reasons to hire a truck accident lawyer after an accident is that you have severe injuries. A truck hitting a much smaller vehicle can lead to devastating injuries, such as traumatic brain injury, spinal cord damage, burns, broken bones, amputations, internal injuries, and death.
A case with a severe truck accident injury can result in hundreds of thousands in medical bills in the first year. There can also be thousands in lost income and the potential of being unable to work again. How will you survive financially if you are permanently disabled and unable to work? Only a skilled truck accident lawyer will get the most possible money from the insurance company. The insurance adjuster for the trucking company will try to pay less than you deserve, so you should have an attorney fighting for your rights.
You Can’t Work
A severe truck accident can leave you with devastating injuries. You may be unable to work for months or years. Few people can survive financially and get the medical care they need if they can’t work. You should speak to a truck accident attorney if the accident leaves you unable to work.
Your truck accident lawyer can obtain compensation for your lost income. They can also get you money for your lost living ability. For example, if you have nerve damage in your legs from a truck accident, you may be permanently disabled and unable to work in your previous job. A personal injury attorney can work with employment and financial experts to estimate the income you should receive for being unable to work in the future.
The Insurance Company Denies Your Claim
Did the trucking insurance company deny your claim? This can happen if you attempt to settle your own case with the insurance company. It’s easy to assume that the trucker and employer are at fault for your injuries, but proving it with evidence isn’t always easy. You’ll need the experience of a truck accident attorney to handle the negotiations with a stingy insurance adjuster.
A truck accident lawyer must prove that the trucker or employer had a duty of care to avoid putting you and others in danger. They also must show that they breached their duty of care in the accident and injured you, leaving you with financial losses.
For example, the trucking company may need to more adequately train their driver who injured you in a rear-end accident. Or, the trucker may have been speeding and unable to slow down in time to avoid hitting you. A skilled tractor-trailer accident attorney will be needed to prove that the negligent party violated their duty of care and caused your accident.
Complex Legal Issues
Truck crash claims usually involve complicated legal issues far beyond most people’s knowledge and experience. Only an experienced personal injury attorney understands the complex factors involved in a truck accident claim.
For example, a typical truck accident lawsuit may deal with the following complex legal matters:
- Federal and state trucking rules
- Hours of service rules dictate how many hours a trucker can work in a row and a certain period
- Truck inspection and maintenance requirements
- Cargo securement and loading rules
- CDL requirements
Any violations of these state and federal rules can affect liability for the crash and how it is resolved. A truck accident attorney who knows trucking rules and regulations knows how to investigate the truck crash, pinpoint any rules that were broken, and use this information to construct a strong case.
You Are Permanently Disabled
Truck crashes are often devastating, and many injury victims have permanent injuries, such as brain trauma or spinal cord damage. The case value of these catastrophic injury cases is high, and only a seasoned truck crash attorney should handle your situation. Your future medical care and recovery are on the line, and you will need as much compensation as possible to have the best-case outcome.
How Much Is My Truck Crash Claim Worth?
Injury victims usually want to know what their claim is worth. How much you will receive in truck accident damages depends on many factors listed below. You should retain a truck accident attorney today to review your case. They can provide an approximate case value range if your claim qualifies for compensation:
Physical Injuries
Large trucks usually cause severe injuries. If you have a neck injury, brain injury, or spinal cord damage, your settlement offer from the liable company will be higher. Whether you have a minor or severe injury, your personal injury attorney will need proof from your medical team about your injury, diagnosis, and prognosis.
Medical Expenses
Past and future medical bills play a major role in the size of a truck accident settlement. Medical costs in a truck crash claim must be related to your accident injuries for the insurance company to pay them. You also can be entitled to future medical expenses if you have a severe injury, such as a traumatic brain injury. People with severe injuries may require years of medical care and therapy to reach maximum medical improvement (MMI).
Pain And Suffering
The more severe an injury, the more your pain and suffering may be. For example, shattered bones and nerve damage can be very painful and take years to heal. The pain and suffering from these injuries and treatments can be excruciating. You also will experience substantial mental and emotional trauma that should be paid for.
On the other hand, a minor back injury will involve much less pain and suffering, so your settlement will be lower.
Lost Earnings
A severe truck accident injury may cause you to lose a lot of income. You should receive compensation for any income you have lost. However, a long-term injury may also cause you to lose income in the future. This is where a truck accident attorney plays a critical role in increasing your compensation.
A truck accident lawyer will retain economic and occupational experts to show the amount of future lost income you have. The more serious an injury, the more future lost income can be at stake.
Speak To A Truck Accident Attorney Today
Being hit by a tractor-trailer is one of the worst things. You probably are in pain, stressed, and bewildered about the next steps. Don't underestimate the importance of hiring a truck accident lawyer. An attorney can be of immense assistance. They can review your case and help you receive compensation for your losses.
Speak to a personal injury lawyer today at no charge. You do not need to pay upfront legal fees for your attorney’s assistance. They are compensated at the end of your case if they obtain compensation for you.