Truck accidents often result in major injuries and fatalities, particularly affecting those who travel in smaller passenger vehicles. The main problem here is the vulnerability of the occupants of the smaller vehicles. Large trucks typically weigh at least 20 to 30 times as much as passenger vehicles. They are also taller with greater ground clearance, which means smaller cars may slide under the trailer leading to horrific injuries.
Factors in Large Truck Accidents
It is important to remember that a truck’s braking capability can also be a factor in such accidents. Loaded tractor-trailers may require 20 to 40 percent greater distance than cars to stop when moving at the same speeds. This discrepancy may be even greater on wet and slippery roads or with poorly maintained brakes. Truck driver fatigue is also a known crash risk.
Drivers of large, commercial trucks are required to follow federal hours-of-service regulations when it comes to the number of hours they can remain on the road without breaks. However, numerous surveys show that many drivers violate these federal hours-of-service regulations and work longer than permitted, putting themselves and others on the roadway at risk.
Truck Accident Investigations
If you have been injured in a truck accident, the quality of evidence you can produce to show negligence on the part of a truck driver or company can be extremely valuable and help maximize the compensation for your losses. Here are a few points to remember when it comes to truck accident investigation.
Time is of the essence. With fatal collisions or crashes involving major injuries, it is highly likely that the insurance company for the trucking firm or company will send an accident investigation team to the crash site. These individuals work for the trucking company and may include accident reconstruction experts and defense lawyers who visit the scene of the crash before the vehicles are moved in order to gather the evidence and information they need. Victims and their families require an experienced truck accident lawyer on their side right away – someone who will be able to preserve and protect crucial pieces of evidence before it is lost, misplaced or destroyed. This is why it is very important that you call a truck accident lawyer as soon as possible.
Choose the right lawyer for your case. While it is important that you find an attorney quickly, it is also critical that you make the right choice. You want to pick a lawyer who has significant experience handling personal injury cases. You need someone who has a track record of successfully handling personal injury cases and helping clients obtain the maximum possible compensation in their cases.
Evidence must be preserved. Important evidence in truck accidents may include vehicle crash data from the black box; physical evidence from the crash scene such as debris; paper or digital logbooks showing hours worked by the truck driver; vehicle maintenance records that show when the vehicle was serviced or when parts were replaced; truck driver’s cell phone records, which may show that he or she was distracted at the time; and eyewitness accounts.
Compensation for Victims
Injured victims of these types of accidents can seek compensation for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost income and benefits, hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Families of deceased victims can also seek compensation by filing what is known as a wrongful death lawsuit.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident, or if you have lost a loved one in an auto accident caused by a negligent driver, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
For over 46 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com