Many accidents in the United States involve trucks. It is said that trucks are responsible for 130,000 injuries and 5,000 deaths each year. Our economy relies heavily on trucks for transportation of goods. Trucks are how all of our food, electronics, clothing, and other manufactured items reach retailers. If there were fewer trucks on the road, the economy would decline. Although this is true, trucks can be extremely dangerous to average vehicles due to sheer size and weight. A rig style truck or big truck is classified as any vehicle that has a weight of 10,000 pounds or more.
If you have been in an accident, make sure to contact a truck accident attorney right away. You will need to get started on obtaining the legal advice that you need to obtain compensation. Injuries that are received in a truck accident can be mild, moderate, severe, or even cause death. Injuries usually include but are not limited to conclusions, major trauma, broken bones, comas, cuts, severed limbs, emotional distress, and so much more. The victim has the right to recover compensation for medical bills, property damage, hospital bills, suffering, pain, emotional distress, and any life altering experiences. Sometimes a victim can receive punitive damages.
Punitive penalties are imposed by the court. These are meant to punish the defendant in hopes that they will never perform the same acts again. Truck drivers rarely experience injuries. They are pretty well protected by the vehicle they are driving. It is even more rare for a truck drive to die as a result of an accident with another vehicle. Trucks are 40 times heavier than other vehicles, causing great force on impact. The defendant can be the driver or the truck company. It depends on the situation. It can also be a marketer designer, manufacturer, retailer, or any place that has created or installed a defective part. You can always file a claim against multiple parties. Your truck accident attorney will help you make the decisions for this process. The United States Department of Transportation enforces an unsafe driving act.
These driving acts include merging improperly, inattentive driving, failure to stop, failure to slow down, unsafe speed, following too close, not driving safe in weather conditions, carelessness when changing lanes, not watching blind spots, unsafe turning, and more. These are considered in every accident case. This is looked at with all parties involved. The victim’s driving will be assessed as well. It needs to be proved that you were not at fault in any manner. If you are found to be at fault at least minimally, it will affect the outcome of your case. The trucking companies will be trying to find some fault on your behalf.
It is imperative that you have a truck accident attorney that knows the truck accident laws. The defense will have a case that may be based on many things that are untrue. Companies have been known to tamper with evidence and documentation in order to win the case.
Additional Legal Information: The Truck Accident Lawyers of Gordon & Elias. Providing legal support for Massachusetts and nationwide.
