Why Are Commercial Truck Accidents More Complicated Than Regular Car Wrecks?

If you’ve been hurt in a commercial truck accident caused by someone else’s negligent or reckless actions, you have the right to pursue compensation from the at-fault party. However, you may quickly come to find that truck accident cases are usually much more complicated than your typical car accident claim. For this reason, having experienced legal representation in your corner can make the difference in helping you recover fair and full compensation after a truck crash.

Why Are Truck Accidents More Complicated Than Regular Crashes?

Truck accident cases have several aspects that tend to make them more complicated than your average motor vehicle crash:

Truck accidents often involve a review of many more pieces of evidence due to the highly regulated nature of the trucking industry.
Multiple parties may each bear some share of liability for an accident, requiring that fault be allocated among the responsible parties.
Truck accidents often injure multiple people and cause serious, life-threatening injuries that may require expensive, long-term treatment, complicating the process of calculating your losses.
Trucking companies may employ complex corporate structures that may hide who can legally be held at fault for a crash. They also often have layered insurance coverage that makes it difficult to know how much coverage is available to compensate an injured victim.

Investigating a Crash

An experienced truck accident lawyer will look at the typical pieces of evidence used in motor vehicle accident cases, such as police crash reports, accident scene photos, and eyewitness testimony. But, in addition to this, a truck accident case requires attorneys to review many other types of documents and information, such as:

Truck driver logs that show how long a driver has been on duty and if they violated Federal Hours of Service regulations.
The truck driver’s employment and driving records, which may indicate if the driver had inadequate training or had a history of accidents
Logs from the truck’s electronic data recorder, a black box-like device equipped to most trucks that provides information such as the truck’s GPS position, speed, and driver inputs
Load manifests that show what cargo the truck was carrying and how it was loaded
Inspection and maintenance reports that may indicate if a mechanical failure caused by uncorrected wear and tear may have led to the crash

Who Might Be Responsible?

While many truck accidents can be attributed to the negligence or recklessness of the truck driver, several other parties may bear some or all the fault for the crash, including:

The trucking company, which may be subjected to employer liability if it employed the driver or may be held liable for its own direct negligence in hiring, training, and supervising a negligent driver
The truck’s owner, who can be held responsible for a lack of maintenance that causes an accident
The freight company, which may be responsible when issues with the truck load lead to a crash
The truck’s mechanic, who may be held responsible for improper maintenance
Manufacturers of the truck or parts used in the truck, who may be liable when defects lead to a mechanical failure and crash

What Type of Compensation Might I Be Owed?

Following a truck accident, you may be entitled to recover compensation for expenses and losses that result from the injuries you suffered in the crash, including:

Past and future expenses for medical treatment and rehabilitation
Lost wages
Lost earning potential
Damage to your vehicle or other personal property
Physical pain and emotional distress
Reduction in your enjoyment or quality of life due to resulting disfigurement or disability

How Breit Law Can Help

If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, let Breit Law help you pursue financial compensation from those at fault for the crash by:

Conducting an independent investigation of the crash, rather than simply relying on the efforts of the police or the insurance companies
Working with experts where necessary to evaluate the evidence and identify the causes of the accident and the at-fault parties
Filing claims with the at-fault trucking companies and their insurers
Aggressively pursuing fair and full compensation through a negotiated settlement or in court and at trial if necessary.

Call or contact the Hampton Roads truck accident lawyers at Breit Law for a free, no-obligation initial consultation with a skilled truck accident lawyer. William Breit has been representing injured victims in Virginia for more than 36 years. Let him leverage his vast experience and knowledge with these types of cases to help you get the care and financial recovery you need. Call us today at (757) 456-0333 or contact us online.