Information Center
Home » Truck Accident » Page 6
Truck accident investigations are crucial, just as critical as an investigation involving a car accident. Things are a little different in the case of a truck accident investigation because truckers are required by law to maintain a log book and they may drive only a certain number of hours a day.
In the case of an accident, an attorney needs to establish if the log was true and accurate, or the driver kept a double set of log books, with one showing his or her actual hours and one showing the hours he or she was supposed to drive. The logbook should show the hours the trucker had logged at the time of the accident. Any violations of existing legal standards may result in additional liability for the trucker and/or trucking company.
Logbook violations and other information, such as a black box, may be difficult to access if the accident is not investigated immediately.
If you cannot call a trucking accident attorney yourself due to injuries, have someone call for you. It is imperative you hire a lawyer as soon as possible after an accident in order to preserve evidence at the scene.
Typically, your lawyer will wish to ensure that evidence is not destroyed. As such, he or she will arrive at the accident scene as soon as possible to examine scuffs, skid marks, evidence of braking and other available information. An accident reconstructionist will document the visual evidence and take pictures.
Many people do not realize that trucking companies are legally within their rights to destroy documents within days of an accident if an attorney does not send them a demand letter to not alter or destroy any evidence.
Do not deal with any insurance companies directly at any point in the process. Only deal with your attorney. He or she will take care of the insurance aspects of the accident. Trucking accidents involve complex, multi-jurisdictional issues, and your attorney will also be best prepared to handle these.
Numerous parties may be named as being responsible for the trucking accident. However, the main culpability generally rests with the person who was negligent in their duty of care at the time of the accident and if that same individual and/or others were at fault for the collision.
In the vast majority of trucking accidents, the trucker/operator is at fault for the collision. However, there may have been a mechanical issue, a fatigued driver trying to meet a time deadline and quota, an improperly secured load or poor road conditions. The reasons for the accident are always important to note, as they dictate what evidence needs to be secured to prove your case.
If there are a number of issues involved in the accident, there could be multiple parties named as defendants. For this reason, you need the assistance of an experienced truck accident lawyer to determine who should be held accountable for your accident.
Numerous parties may be named as being responsible for the trucking accident. However, the main culpability generally rests with the person who was negligent in their duty of care at the time of the accident and if that same individual and/or others were at fault for the collision.
In the vast majority of trucking accidents, the trucker/operator is at fault for the collision. However, there may have been a mechanical issue, a fatigued driver trying to meet a time deadline and quota, an improperly secured load or poor road conditions. The reasons for the accident are always important to note, as they dictate what evidence needs to be secured to prove your case.
If there are a number of issues involved in the accident, there could be multiple parties named as defendants. For this reason, you need the assistance of an experienced truck accident lawyer to determine who should be held accountable for your accident.
Depending on the circumstances of the accident, your lawsuit may seek compensation from both parties — the trucker and the trucking company. You would need to discuss the case with an attorney and provide complete details and the cause of the accident in order for the attorney to determine whether or not to sue the trucker and his or her employer.
For example, if the truck that hit your vehicle had poorly maintained brakes that failed prior to the collision, the trucking company might be held liable for the accident. However, if a truck turned in front of you illegally, the driver would most likely be considered at fault. There is an important law involved here as well, referred to as the respondeat superior doctrine, which holds trucking companies liable for the actions of their drivers.
You may be able to sue a trucking company if an employment relationship can be established between the trucker and the trucking company. If there is an employer/employee relationship, the company may be held legally liable for their driver’s negligence. It is not always easy to determine the relationship between a trucker and the company for which he or she works, particularly if the driver is an independent contractor. Your attorney would need to find out how much supervision the trucker received from the company to determine his or her status.
There are number of things one may expect to recover, but since each case is different, we are only providing a general idea of what compensation may be recovered.
One may be able to recover compensation for:
Compensation may be awarded for emotional distress, pain and suffering, lost income, property damage, medical bills and diminished earning capacity.
Yes, an accident involving a big rig is handled differently than a collision involving other car accidents. The reason for this is that trucks, by law, are mandated to carry higher amounts of insurance and truckers must meet much higher safety standards than the average car drivers.
Because trucks travel from coast-to-coast, it means they are engaging in interstate commerce, and that means they are therefore subject to a myriad of federal rules and regulations that do not apply to other vehicles.
Trucking firms have the responsibility to do background checks before hiring a driver and they must also, on a regular basis, evaluate their job performance, which may include, but not be limited to: driving skills, driving record, reliability, up-to-date licenses and so forth. Part of what should be a yearly evaluation also includes drug and alcohol testing. Truckers must also obey the limit on the number of hours they may drive daily. In reality, that does not always happen and an accident may be caused by a fatigued driver.
If an attorney can prove the trucker and/or trucking company violated the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulation Act, it is often the foundation for establishing fault.
No, it is not OK to give a statement. Insurance companies are not your friends. After an accident, the first thing an insurance company does is send an insurance adjuster to the crash scene in order to asses the situation and gather evidence. Next, the agency will send an insurance adjuster to gather a recorded statement from the victim.
Do not give a statement verbally or in writing because anything you say can be used to deny or discount your claim later. Insurance adjusters are known to use trick questions to get a victim to talk. Always speak to an experienced trucking accident lawyer before talking to an insurance adjuster and/or an attorney representing the trucking company.