If you’ve driven next to a commercial truck or have seen a big truck crash into car, you may be worried what would happen if you had the misfortune of being such a collision. You’re not alone in your concerns.
Immediately after the accident, police must be present at the scene. In most states, like New York, the law requires police to be called after an accident the culminates in any type of personal injury or property damage. The police will acquire statements from the involved parties and will need photos, and statements of any witness that may still be on the scene.
Often, witnesses are left off of a police report, so if you’ve taken care to document the names of witnesses, your attorney can contact them for alternate version of events. It is always beneficial to secure as much evidence as possible after a crash involving a semi-truck, so document as much as possible including witness information, pictures of the vehicles, pictures of your injuries, and any other relevant information. If you’ve sustained suffered visible bruising or skin tears photograph those areas immediately.
An experienced truck accident attorney is invaluable in these events. Truck companies begin investigating a wreck immediately, so you will want to be represented by an attorney that marshals the resources to match that urgency. One of the seasoned truck accident lawyers at HURT-511 will know the details of personal injury laws in New York your state, federal trucking regulations, and steps to take to protect your legal rights.
It will be of outmost importance to take steps to prevent destruction (accidental or intentional) of key evidence like driver logs and black box data. It may be necessary to also consult with accident reconstruction experts if liability is contested. Hiring a personal injury lawyer means you have someone on your side throughout the entire process, from start to finish.
Lack of transportation can snowball into other issues. Missed work could mean no paycheck, which could mean getting behind on bills and not being able to afford life’s necessities. To ensure your car gets fixed, you can go through your own insurance company. However, if you do not have collision coverage your only choice may be to go through the trucking company’s insurance. A full service personal injury law firm can assist on your property damage claim by helping you get a rental car and doing what’s possible to speed up the investigation, such as contacting witnesses.
Before giving any statement to any insurance company or adjuster, it is recommended that you consult legal counsel of your own first to explain your rights and be there with you every step of the way. What seems like a harmless series of questions matters – a lot. Recorded statements or interviews can be used against you later, and an innocent question can be asked in a way that elicits a response damaging to your claim. An insurance company could use your own responses to assign a percentage of fault for the crash to you.
In a civil claim against a truck driver, you likely need to prove negligence. This legal burden of proof requires you to show that the other driver acted unreasonably under the circumstances. Common examples of negligence are speeding, running a red light, disregarding a stop sign, failing to maintain a safe lookout, and texting while driving, to name a few. If a trucker was on the clock and acting in the course and scope of employment, his or her employer can be held vicariously responsible for your injuries.
Assuming you can prove the other driver caused the accident, the focus shifts to damages. While most people injured in truck accidents simply wish they could turn back time to where the wreck never happened in the first place, we know that’s not possible. Instead, the form of recovery is monetary damages. If you are hurt in a truck accident, you can recover compensatory damages designed to make you whole.
Included in these damages are reimbursement for medical bills, prescriptions, medical devices like crutches, lost wages, property damage (car repairs, total loss, etc.), and out of pocket expenses. If you suffered a traumatic injury, your attorney may need to consult with expert witnesses to document future losses, such as medical bills and lost earnings.
At HURT-511, our personal injury lawyers help injured workers recover the benefits to which they are entitled by law. For a free consultation with an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer, call us toll-free at 800-4878-511 or complete our online form. Our firm handles accident and injury claims throughout all five boroughs of New York.
HURT-511 operates in all boroughs of New York including all Bronx neighborhoods, namely: Bedford Park, Belmont, Fordham, Highbridge, Hunts Point, Jerome Park, Kingsbridge, Morris Park, Morrisania, Mott Haven, Parkchester, Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil, Throgs Neck, University Heights and Woodlawn.
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