Any accident involving a large truck has the potential to cause significant injuries and damages. A number of federal laws that are in place aim to eliminate or reduce some of the risk factors including drowsy driving, impaired driving and poor vehicle maintenance. When a large truck is not maintained properly, there is the risk of parts failing and/or malfunctioning, which may result in a tragic and devastating crash. As New York truck accident lawyers, we have seen auto accident cases that were caused by improperly maintained brakes, bad tires or even burnt out lights.
Truck Drivers’ Responsibility
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires drivers to perform inspections both before and after a trip. This law is in place to ensure that the vehicle is safe to operate. The laws place significant responsibility for a vehicle’s safety on the truck driver and operator. This ranges from carrying out the necessary inspections to ensuring that the loads are properly secured.
First, drivers are required under federal regulations to conduct pre-trip and post-trip safety inspections on the trucks they are driving and confirm that the vehicle is safe to drive before embarking on the trip. In addition, truck drivers must fill out and sign a written report covering the inspection of parts including tires, brakes, horns, lights, mirrors, etc. Before getting on the road, the truck driver must be satisfied that the vehicle is safe to drive and sign the report.
If the driver determines that the truck is not safe for the road, then the trucking company should make the repairs before the vehicle gets back on the road. The driver also has the responsibility of making sure that the issues are resolved before driving the truck. It is important to note that truck owners or trucking companies cannot require drivers to operate a problematic truck that has safety issues. Trucking companies are also required by law to keep vehicle inspection reports for at least three months.
Truck Accident Investigations
Truck accidents that occur due to vehicle maintenance issues are fairly common. This is why it is important to make sure that the all evidence is preserved after a truck accident. The truck itself should be preserved so experts can analyze it for equipment failure due to lack of maintenance. An experienced New York truck accident lawyer can also request vehicle maintenance logs in a timely manner. Since the law only requires that companies keep them for three months, they may get deleted or tossed out if not requested immediately. Your truck accident attorney can send out a spoliation letter, which will help ensure that these logs and other crucial pieces of evidence are preserved.
In cases where lack of proper truck maintenance caused or contributed to the accident, several parties may be held liable including the truck driver, the trucking company, a truck maintenance company, if one was involved, as well as other potential parties.
Compensation for Truck Accident Victims
Injured victims of truck accidents can seek compensation from responsible parties such as the driver, his employer, the trucking company, the truck’s owner, the trailer owner and his or her insurance company, etc. Victims may also 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 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