Both car and truck accidents can have devastating consequences including catastrophic injuries and fatalities. However, it is important to understand that truck accidents are far more complex. The size of commercial trucks, the number of parties involved and the laws that govern the trucking industry, create major legal differences that can significantly affect an injured victim’s compensation claim.
Below are the three major differences between a car accident lawsuit and a truck accident lawsuit, and why understanding them matters if you’ve been injured.
1. Liability Is More Complex in Truck Accident Lawsuits
In a typical car accident case, liability is usually straightforward. Most lawsuits involve one at-fault driver, and occasionally a second party such as the vehicle owner. The investigation focuses on common issues like speeding, distracted driving, failure to yield or running a red light, etc.
Truck accident cases, however, often involve multiple potentially liable parties. In addition to the truck driver, responsible parties may include:
• The trucking company or motor carrier
• The company that owns or leases the truck
• A third-party maintenance or repair company
• The cargo loading company and the offloading company
• The manufacturer of defective truck parts
For example, a crash may be caused by a fatigued driver, but the trucking company could still be liable for violating hours-of-service (HOS) rules or pressuring the driver to meet unrealistic deadlines. If improperly secured cargo caused the truck to overturn, a loading company may share responsibility.
This layered liability makes truck accident lawsuits far more complicated than car accident cases. An experienced attorney can help conduct an in-depth investigation in a timely manner to identify all responsible parties and preserve critical evidence before it is lost, misplaced or destroyed.
2. Truck Accident Cases Are Governed by Specialized Federal and State Laws
Car accident lawsuits are generally governed by state traffic laws and basic negligence principles. While insurance rules and fault standards vary by state, the legal framework is relatively straightforward.
Truck accident cases, by contrast, are heavily regulated by federal and state trucking laws, particularly those enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). These regulations cover nearly every aspect of commercial trucking, including:
• Driver qualification and training requirements
• Drug and alcohol testing
• Maximum driving hours and mandatory rest periods
• Vehicle inspection, maintenance, and repair standards
• Cargo weight limits and securement rules
When a trucking company or driver violates these regulations, those violations can serve as powerful evidence of negligence in a personal injury lawsuit. For instance, a logbook or electronic logging device (ELD) data may show that a driver was fatigued at the time of the crash.
Because these regulations are highly technical, truck accident cases often require testimony from accident reconstruction experts, trucking safety specialists and medical professionals.
3. Injuries and Damages Are Usually Far More Severe
The size and weight difference between passenger vehicles and commercial trucks is substantial. A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, compared to about 4,000 pounds for an average car. As a result, truck accidents often cause catastrophic injuries that are far more severe than those seen in most car accidents.
Common injuries in truck accident cases include:
• Traumatic brain injuries (TBI)
• Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
• Multiple fractures and crush injuries
• Internal organ damage
• Severe burns or amputations
These injuries frequently require long-term medical care, multiple surgeries, rehabilitation and in some cases, lifelong assistance. The financial impact can be overwhelming, affecting not only medical expenses but also lost earning capacity and quality of life.
Because the damages are so significant, truck accident cases typically involve much higher insurance policy limits compared to car accident cases. While this can increase the potential compensation for injured victims, it also means trucking companies and insurers aggressively defend these claims. Victims without experienced legal representation may be pressured into accepting settlements that fall far short of covering their long-term needs.
Why Legal Representation Matters More in Truck Accident Cases
While any injury claim benefits from legal guidance, truck accident lawsuits demand a higher level of legal experience and resources. Evidence such as driver logs, black box data, maintenance records and surveillance footage can be lost or destroyed quickly. Trucking companies often have rapid-response legal teams working to protect their interests immediately after a crash.
Contacting an Experienced Truck Accident Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident, or if you have lost a loved one in a motor vehicle accident caused by a negligent or careless 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. It is in the best interest of injured victims and their families in such cases to contact an experienced personal injury lawyer before contacting the people responsible for the injuries, and definitely before contacting or communicating with any insurance company, or their lawyers, investigators, or adjusters.
For over 54 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 $2,000,000 in a hit-and-run accident, 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. We also recovered $1,500,000 for a lady who was hurt by a bus.
We also obtained $295,000 out of a $300,000 insurance policy in compensation for the victim of a bicycle dooring accident (where a car door opens into the path of a bicyclist). One of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases. Also, we got a $1,400,000 verdict in a motorcycle accident.
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, lead poisoning, paraplegia cases and medical malpractice cases including, brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) and cerebral palsy 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
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External link: https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/hours-of-service