Getting to safety and calling law enforcement should be priorities immediately after your truck accident. Once you do this, you may also call a lawyer’s team, as they can provide specific advice about what you should do at the scene of your truck accident. Other steps you may want to take after your accident are:
- Gathering personal and insurance information for anyone involved in your accident, including a truck driver
- Gathering personal information from anyone who witnessed your accident
- Avoiding making any definitive statements to your insurance company until you speak with a lawyer’s team
- Receiving medical attention from first responders
A lawyer may have ample experience advising clients after truck accidents. By calling a lawyer’s team, you may have a great resource for defending your rights after an accident.
You May Be Wary of Insurance Companies After Your Accident
Some victims of a truck accident may call their insurance company just after their accident. While notifying your insurance company after a collision is something you will need to do, there are a few reasons why you may wait to contact them until after you speak with a lawyer’s team.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) explains that a truck driver’s insurance may provide you with certain coverage as a victim. However, making certain statements or failing to take certain actions could prevent you from recovering the amount of compensation that you deserve. Your lawyer may help you by:
- Explaining why insurance companies may not have your best interests in mind
- Explaining how insurance companies may try to reduce your insurance payout
- Dealing with insurance representatives on your behalf
- Helping you craft statements that you must make to insurance representatives
A lawyer may also tell you what you should do at the scene of your truck accident when it comes to insurance-related matters. They may tell you the information you should disclose to your insurance agent and what you should not.
Eventually, your lawyer may negotiate an insurance settlement on your behalf. If insurance companies are unwilling to provide the awards you deserve, your lawyer may complete a lawsuit instead.
Truck Drivers Are Responsible for Their Failures
Throughout the process of completing an insurance claim or lawsuit, your lawyer will become familiar with how a truck driver may have caused your accident. Keep in mind that truck drivers have a particularly great responsibility to drive cautiously. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) notes that trucks can outweigh other vehicles by 30 times.
As part of their training and work experience, truck drivers should know that:
- Trucks, because of their weight, take far longer to stop than other vehicle types do
- Trucks cannot take turns at the same speeds that lighter vehicles can
- Trucks are less agile than smaller vehicles
- Trucks come with risks, like falling freight, that passenger vehicles generally do not pose
- Truck drivers are subject to a lower threshold for intoxication, as FMCSA explains
With these known risks in mind, truck drivers must drive cautiously at all times. If a truck driver caused your accident, then they may have put you at risk by being intoxicated or on drugs, speeding, failing to secure their cargo, or making one or more dangerous driving acts. As part of your insurance claim or lawsuit, your lawyer will identify the ways in which a truck driver had put you at risk by causing your accident.
Non-Truck Drivers Who Could Be Liable for Your Collision
Whether you were injured or you lost a loved one because of a truck accident, parties aside from a truck driver could be liable for your losses. Some of the parties from whom your lawyer may seek compensation are:
- The direct employer of the at-fault truck driver
- The parent company of the truck driver’s employer
- A government that caused dangerous road conditions
- A mechanic, parts manufacturer, or vehicle manufacturer whose failures caused your collision or made the outcome of your collision worse
Your lawyer may name all liable parties as targets of your insurance claim or lawsuit.
Losses that May Be Covered Through a Lawsuit
Insurance claims may generally cover only property damage and the cost of your medical care. However, every policy is unique, and your lawyer will seek any additional coverage that you are entitled to. Lawsuits may have a broader range of covered losses.
If your lawyer completes a lawsuit, then the following losses could be covered:
- Past and future pain and suffering
- Past and future mental anguish
- The cost of medical treatment
- The cost of psychological counseling
- Damage to your vehicle
- Lost income and future loss of earning capacity
Losses caused by a wrongful death may also entitle you to coverage through a wrongful death lawsuit.
Call an Attorney at High Stakes Injury Law Today
Jack Bernstein and Scott Poisson have obtained hundreds of millions of dollars for their clients. Call us today at (702) 444-3228 to complete a free consultation with a lawyer on our team.