If you are injured in a truck accident, you need to contact an experienced truck accident lawyer who has the special knowledge truck accident victims need to get the highest settlements for their serious injuries. Law has the expertise that separates them from other personal injury lawyers who don’t know the difference between car and truck accidents.
Cars and SUVs are very different from 18-wheel tractor-trailers, not just because of size and weight, but also because truck accidents need to be handled by lawyers who possess more specialized legal experience to ensure that all parties who are liable to the personal injury victim are held accountable.
Experienced Truck Accident Lawyers Do More
Trucks are usually operated by commercial enterprises and can travel across several state lines every day. Large corporations can afford to own their own tractor-trailers, or delivery trucks, or tankers. Other companies find it more economical to lease a truck or to hire an owner-driver who works as a private contractor.
Trucks in different industries are regulated more heavily than are passenger cars, and the regulations are designed to minimize the threat of injury or death to the community. When serious truck accidents cause severe injuries to other drivers or passengers in smaller vehicles, an expert truck accident lawyer conducts a widespread search for records and documents that will reveal the history and travel of the truck.
Extra investigation and research are needed to protect truck accident injury victims
A truck driver is an obvious person to hold responsible after a serious accident. So is their boss if they were acting within the scope of their employment. A skilled truck accident attorney investigates all these facts in truck accident claims:
- driver’s driving record (prior accidents, suspensions, license lapses, missed training)
- the number of hours driven in the past 96 hours (were federal regulation limits exceeded?)
- hours-driven log entries (violation if not maintained)
- full inspection of the truck and its operating safety (tires, brakes, steering, suspension, etc.)
- truck’s maintenance history (maintenance schedule, last maintenance, maintenance performed, identity and qualification of the maintenance mechanic, supervisor, list of parts checked or replaced, tire age and record of wear measured, brake system condition, source and manufacturer of all parts used, etc.)
- Identity of the cab-tractor owner, the trailer owner, party leasing and identify of the lessor
- identity and location of the party who loaded the trailer, owner of the cargo,
- review of all federal and state records filed with Interstate Commerce Commission and corresponding state agency relating to the truck
- location of corporate headquarters of the truck owner, lessor, lessee, etc.
- all prior recorded safety violations issued against any involved company
- history of prior lawsuits against the company
How Does a Truck Accident Attorney Use this Information?
Each of the inquiries listed in the previous section can identify a new deep-pocket defendant whose own negligence in the stream of events contributed to the accident and our client’s severe injuries. Each additional party sharing responsibility for the truck accident is another source from which to recover the maximum compensation possible for our client and their family.
By obtaining all records of previous infractions, missed scheduled maintenance, neglected repairs, use of defective parts (premature failure of part), and other hidden failures, we may increase our client’s grounds to demand a higher settlement amount to resolve the truck accident-related disability claims.
Francis Babet loves pursuing excellence through writing and has a passion for Legal. He currently writes for The Clauson law Firm, a USA Based Law Firm that provides SSD, SSI, SSDI, Personal Injury, and Drugs and Devices. His work has been published on various sites related to Social Security Disability, Supplemental Security Income and more.
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