Who Is Liable for a Truck Accident?

If you or someone you know is the victim of a trucking incident, you may ask, “Who is liable for a truck accident?” Collisions involving commercial trucks involve multiple parties, maintenance concerns, and ownership issues, making the answer to this question perplexing.

Understanding legal responsibility in truck accidents is crucial for victims seeking justice and those in the trucking industry looking to mitigate liability risk. If you need legal guidance or support, consider consulting a knowledgeable truck accident lawyer.

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Understanding Truck Accidents

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, commercial truck accidents kill more than 4,700 people yearly.

Many thousands more suffer injuries, and the victims are most commonly the occupants of other vehicles or vulnerable road users, such as bicyclists or pedestrians. The size of commercial trucks makes them a primary source of danger on the roadway.

They are much larger than other vehicles and around 20 to 30 times heavier than the average passenger car when carrying a full load.

Major associated risks include:

• An increased stopping distance: The brakes of these vehicles have to work harder to pull their weight to a complete stop. Commercial trucks travel up to 40 percent further than passenger cars after the driver brakes and even longer if they travel on wet or icy roads or at an excessive speed.
• A higher center of gravity: The taller profile of the truck makes it prone to rolling over if the cargo shifts inside its trailer or the vehicle takes sharp corners or curves at speed.
• Significantly larger blind spots: These make it difficult for the driver to see traffic in adjacent travel lanes or areas directly in front of or behind the truck without cameras or sensors. The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance explains that the right side blind spot is the largest, extending from the front of the truck to the back and three lanes over.
• A wide turning circle: Their long wheelbase makes it difficult for drivers to turn large trucks in tight spaces, forcing them to encroach into an adjacent travel lane or commence their turn from the center of the road. This poses a significant risk to vehicles traveling in neighboring lanes, as the driver may not see them due to the truck’s blind spots when initiating the turn.

Due to the ongoing concerns of truck accidents and the risk these commercial vehicles impose, the trucking industry is one of the most heavily regulated in the United States. Trucking companies and their drivers have a higher duty of care than other road users.

The Judicial Education Center defines a duty of care as the legal requirement to take reasonable actions to avoid causing physical harm or property damage to other people. All users of public roadways have a duty of care that includes following traffic laws and maintaining and properly insuring their vehicles.

Federal regulations that apply to the trucking industry include:

• Truck owner-operators and trucking companies must maintain a certain amount of public liability insurance to compensate those who have suffered injury due to driver negligence. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)—the government agency that oversees the U.S. trucking industry—requires freight carriers to maintain a policy with $750,000 to $5,000,000 in liability coverage to pay for injuries, property damage, and environmental restoration after an accident.
• All carriers and drivers operating commercial vehicles must comply with Hours of Service regulations. These rules limit the number of hours a driver can work without a break, aiming to reduce driver fatigue and the risk of accidents. Around 13 percent of drivers in trucking incidents report feelings of tiredness at the time of the crash, according to FMCSA.
• Qualified drivers who hold a specialized Commercial Driver’s License must submit to regular physical exams and random drug and alcohol screenings to gauge their fitness to operate the vehicle.

While commercial trucking industry regulations protect drivers and travelers on public roadways when accidents occur, the rules often make determining liability and obtaining evidence more complex.

It usually requires extensive investigation and comprehensive evidence—this often includes the driver’s electronic logs and the truck’s black box, which parties must gather quickly to avoid data overwriting.

Determining Liability in Truck Accidents

Liability is the legal responsibility for one’s actions or inactions. Establishing liability in a trucking accident involves identifying which party or parties acted negligently, leading to the accident.

Negligence is a legal term referring to a failure to exercise the degree of care expected of a reasonable person in similar circumstances.

Negligent parties owed a duty to ensure safety, failed to perform that duty, and if that failure resulted in damages to another.

The Role of Insurance Companies in Truck Accidents

Insurance companies play a significant role in determining liability and compensating victims after an accident.

They thoroughly investigate, gather evidence, and determine the at-fault party. Insurance companies are for-profit businesses and often seek to minimize their financial responsibility.

They may engage in tactics such as pushing you to accept a quick and low settlement by an arbitrary deadline that doesn’t allow you ample time to consider the offer or delaying their evaluation of the claim as the statute of limitations approaches.

An experienced truck accident lawyer can protect your rights and advocate on your behalf to secure an adequate settlement.

Truck Accidents Legal Processes

When a truck accident results in injury or death due to a negligent truck driver, trucking company, or other at-fault party, the victim or family members of the deceased can seek compensation.

The first involves filing a personal injury claim against the at-fault party’s liability insurance coverage. Your truck accident lawyer can secure evidence, evaluate the details of the crash, prove liability, and identify all sources of insurance.

An attorney can determine the value of your claim by considering factors such as the severity and extent of the injuries, including permanent disabilities that will result in lost earning capacity and future medical expenses, and the level of carelessness that resulted in the accident.

Once they have determined the value of your claim, the attorney can submit a demand package to the at-fault party’s insurer. This contains the details of the accident, documentation of the incurred expenses due to the accident, and a demand for the value of the claim.

When the insurance company receives the claim, they will assign a claims adjuster to evaluate it and determine whether their client was liable and—if so— how much compensation they owe to the claimant due to that liability.

The claims adjuster can decide to pay the demand outright, deny the claim—notifying the claimant and their attorney of the reason for their decision—or offer a settlement.

As claims adjusters aim to protect the bottom line of the insurance company that employs them, and there are only a few specific reasons to deny a claim, a settlement offer is a common outcome.

Initial settlement offers, however, frequently won’t pay the true value of the financial and psychological consequences a victim or their family members have suffered after a truck accident.

An attorney can negotiate with the claims adjuster and convince them to increase their offer.

Every state has a statute of limitations on personal injury claims. The statute of limitations sets the maximum time that parties of a legal dispute have to file their claim as a lawsuit in court.

The personal injury statute of limitations is usually one to five years from the accident date. If an individual dies after suffering injuries in an accident involving a truck and their family members file a wrongful death claim to seek compensation, the statute of limitations clock begins ticking on the day of the victim’s death.

If the insurer fails to pay the claimant’s demand or enter into a settlement agreement, the court process offers you a second opportunity to seek compensation.

Even after you file a lawsuit, the at-fault party’s insurer can resolve the matter at any time by offering an acceptable settlement as long as the court has not made a decision on the case.

Your attorney can also continue settlement negotiations while preparing the case for trial. The pre-trial process is typically when both parties prepare motions and responses to motions, attend hearings, and exchange evidence and information they plan to use at trial.

The Importance of Legal Representation in Truck Accidents

Legal representation is crucial in determining liability after a truck accident. An experienced lawyer can gather and analyze evidence, negotiate with insurance companies, represent you in court, and strive to secure the compensation you deserve.

Many people who have suffered injuries or lost loved ones in accidents hesitate to hire a lawyer because they don’t think they can afford it.

You can afford legal representation in most cases, because personal injury and wrongful death attorneys typically work on a contingent fee basis.

The American Bar Association describes the contingent fee arrangement as a billing method that allows claimants to wait until they receive compensation before paying their legal fees.

Here is how it works:

• You attend a free case evaluation with an experienced truck accident lawyer who will discuss the details of your case, explain the personal injury claims process, and answer your legal questions. If you decide you would like to hire the attorney, you sign a contingent fee agreement. This legally binding agreement outlines the services the lawyer and their legal team will provide and designates a portion of the overall compensation as payment for their services.
• Work on your claim can begin immediately, and you will not receive a bill for attorney’s services while your case is active.
• When they win or settle your case, your attorney will receive the compensation. They will retain the agreed-upon percentage for their payment, settle any medical liens on the award, and pay the remainder to you.

An Experienced Lawyer Can Establish Who is Liable in Your Case

Understanding who is liable for a truck accident is crucial for victims seeking justice and restitution for their harm. An experienced personal injury lawyer plays a vital role in determining liability and advocating for your rights to compensation when dealing with insurance companies, judges, or juries.

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