Truck Accidents Cause Life Altering Injuries

Car accidents happen every day in Georgia. Over 140,000 people per year suffer injuries in Georgia car accidents. About ten percent of these accidents involve commercial trucks. Those accidents frequently result in catastrophic injuries, and often, death.

Big rigs, eighteen-wheelers, tractor-trailers, and other commercial trucks are large vehicles, capable of far more destruction than an ordinary passenger vehicle. When your car is struck by one of these enormous vehicles, the result can be deadly for you or your loved ones.

We all have to share the same roads. But large trucks take up more space and cause greater damage to life and property when they cause an accident. If this has happened to you or a loved one, you deserve compassionate and aggressive legal representation by a Georgia truck accident injury lawyer you trust.

Truck Accident Factors

Truck accidents result from many factors. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, these are the ten most common factors which cause truck accidents:

• Brake issues
• Traffic congestion
• Prescription drug use by the driver
• Speeding
• Unfamiliar roads
• Poor road conditions
• Red lights
• Excessive use of over-the-counter drugs
• Inadequate surveillance by the truck company
• Fatigue

While fatigue is last on the list here, drowsy drivers cause over 6000 accidents per year, and drowsy driving displays similar effects to driving under the influence of alcohol. This is especially important to consider in your commercial truck accident case, because companies push truck drivers to their limits, often beyond, to meet extremely tight delivery deadlines. This could have played a part in the accident where you suffered injuries. 

What to do After Your Accident

After a collision with a semi-truck, you will be shaken, if not severely injured. The steps you take immediately after the accident can help your truck accident injury claim.

1. Call 911 – Truck accident injuries are often severe, so you may be physically unable to call for help. Ideally, someone else who witnessed the accident will. When the authorities arrive, they will speak with witnesses and create a diagram of your accident. They may not assign fault to the truck driver but their objective report will help us show you were not to blame for the accident. Medical personnel will also come with the police. Do not refuse medical attention. Your injuries may be severe and you may have injuries you do not realize. Stabilizing your physical health is the most important and most urgent matter.
2. Take pictures and get witness information – You may need to ask a trusted friend or family member to take pictures of the accident scene, any vehicles involved, your injuries, and the road conditions. Doing so will help us, along with our experts, re-create your accident scene to show the negligence of the truck driver. It’s also important to get witness contact information. Witnesses may not stick around for the police to arrive, but we certainly want to speak with them. They may provide a different perspective on what caused your accident and provide details on the moments leading up to your accident.
3. Keep a journal – As you make progress in your recovery, you will not recall all of the day to day suffering and roadblocks you encountered. Writing in a daily journal will help us show the pain and suffering you endured, and continue to endure, as a result of someone else’s negligence, recklessness, or carelessness. Doing so can help maximize your financial recovery.

Finally, discuss your legal options with a Woodstock catastrophic truck accident injury lawyer. Your legal counsel can guide you through the complex personal injury claims process, and help increase the chances you make a full and complete recovery.

Truckers have Special Laws

Nearly 60% of all goods travelling in the United States get transported by trucks. Far and away, commercial trucks transport more goods than any other means of transportation. This results in many trucks on the roads, day and night. As a result, truck drivers and truck companies are subject to additional laws, above and beyond what you are, as a regular vehicle driver.

• Hours of service – The law does not allow truck drivers to log more than a certain number of hours behind the wheel without taking a break. This helps to prevent extreme fatigue and reduce the number of accidents.
• DUI – Just like you have to abide by laws governing the use of alcohol, so do truck drivers. The difference, however, is that truck drivers have a lower threshold. Their blood alcohol level must not exceed 0.04%.
• Record keeping – Truck drivers and truck companies are required to keep meticulous records. These include specific drive times, inspections, maintenance, and other important compliance records.
• Licensing – Every driver must carry a license to operate a vehicle on the road. Truck drivers must carry additional licensing called a CDL, a commercial driver’s license. This proves they have at least taken the required training to operate a commercial truck.

When any of these regulations are overlooked or disregarded, that could contribute to your accident. If a driver is improperly trained, does not have the correct license, does not keep proper records, drives for too many hours, falsified records, or any other issue, that could help to show they were at fault for your accident and subsequent injuries. To help you prove this, contact a seasoned Woodstock truck accident lawyer today. 

Truck Accident Liability

Just like regular car accidents, truck accident causes vary greatly. What is usually common among all truck accidents, however, is the resulting catastrophic injuries suffered by victims. This is where liability becomes important. But determining liability in truck accident cases presents challenges. There are many people and companies who could be at fault for your injuries. And it might be more than just one.

Truck Driver

When most people think of the person to blame for their truck accident, the truck driver comes to mind first. That makes sense – they were driving. They may have been speeding, ran a red light, maybe exceeded the hours they could drive, or were under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Regardless of the reason, the truck driver may be at fault completely or partially for your accident.

Truck Owner

Truck drivers sometimes own the truck company and contract for delivery jobs. Whether the truck driver owns their own company or the driver is employed by another company, the company has a duty to ensure the driver is qualified and has the appropriate licenses to drive a commercial truck. When the company fails to take these steps, we may be able to hold them liable for your injuries.

Truck Manufacturer

As is the case with regular vehicles, sometimes a manufacturer makes a mistake in assembly. If this is the reason for your crash, the truck manufacturer could be liable for your injuries.

Parts Manufacturer

When a part is assembled on the truck during production or a replacement part is added, it might be defective. If that is the case, the parts manufacturer could be partially liable for the injuries you suffered.

Maintenance Company

The maintenance company and the mechanic ensure safe operation of the semi-truck. If they are negligent in repairing the truck or assemble parts incorrectly, that could cause an accident to happen.

What makes commercial truck accident cases difficult is the fact that we could potentially hold any of these people and companies liable for causing the crash, and usually more than one are at fault. That means you need the assistance of a legal team with experience in truck accident cases. It usually requires experts to help re-create the accident, and to gain a complete understanding of how the accident was caused and who is to blame. Without this information, it’s nearly impossible to hold the negligent parties accountable and ensure your settlement or award properly covers your medical bills and associated damages.

Catastrophic Injuries

Commercial trucks are massive vehicles. The sheer size and weight of a tractor-trailer means that any impact, even at slow speeds, could cause life-altering injuries. 

These include:

• Multiple broken bones
• Burns
• Spinal cord injuries
• Neck injuries
• Crushed limbs
• Amputation
• Concussions and other traumatic brain injuries
• Internal organ damage
• Internal hemorrhaging 

These injuries require extensive medical attention. That comes with astronomical medical bills. Here are just some of the hurdles you may face in your recovery:

• Long periods out of work
• Extended hospital stays
• Multiple surgeries
• Routine doctor visits
• High prescription pill costs
• Rehabilitation in a facility
• In home nursing care

The financial requirements for you to get better will only be apparent after you begin your recovery. What’s important is that you work with a trusted Woodstock truck accident lawyer to help you maximize your financial recovery so you do not have to pay out of pocket for any of your medical expenses. You did not cause the accident, so you should bear none of the responsibility for the medical bills. 

Truck Accident Damages

Because truck accidents are generally severe accidents, they cause serious injuries. When you or a loved one suffer a catastrophic injury in a truck accident, you deserve to have your bills covered by the at fault party. Working with us, we can try to get you compensation for:

• Pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Lost wages
• Lost earning potential
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Medical bills
• Rehabilitation costs
• Nursing home costs

When your injuries are so severe that you cannot return to work, this puts extra stress on your family, who may also miss extended periods of work caring for you. When your life is changed so dramatically, it’s important that you receive help to ease your transition. The best way to get this help is to make sure you focus all of your effort and energy on your physical recovery. Your lawyer should take the legal stress off your shoulders, working hard to maximize your financial recovery so you do not worry about how to pay your bills.

Use Caution when You Receive Settlement Offers

Insurance companies are in the business of making money. They do not make money when they pay the full value of your claim. So they try to lowball you. Tragically, many people take the lowball settlement offer without realizing the funds they receive will not cover all of their bills or the extent of their damages.

Working with us, we can help you create an accurate estimate of your future medical needs. It’s clear how much you need to cover the bills sitting on your coffee table but, depending on the severity of your injuries, it might present challenges when trying to determine how much more you will need.

We look at your prognosis and lean on our experience of helping clients just like you. We understand what it will take to manage your physical recovery. This gives us a starting point for negotiations with the insurance company.

They know you are out of work and you have medical expenses piling up daily. They take advantage of this knowledge and offer you much less than your claim is actually worth. 

What’s worse, if you sign a low ball settlement just to put this experience behind you, signing it may waive your right to bring any future claims against the insurance company or defendant for your injuries resulting from this accident. This means you could end up paying out of pocket for medical expenses resulting from an accident you did not cause. The best way to avoid this is to work with a Georgia lawyer you trust. 

How we Can Help You

Choosing the right truck accident lawyer in Woodstock can feel daunting. What you need is someone with the resources to handle your complex truck accident injury case. We can:

• Speak with experts to re-create your accident
• Evaluate your right to recover
• Hold the at fault parties liable for your injuries
• Estimate the total value of your claim
• Negotiate with multiple insurance companies to maximize your recovery
• Represent you throughout the entire legal process

Contact the Law Offices of Kyle E. Koester, LLC today online or call us at 770-744-5250 for a free, 100% confidential, no-obligation case evaluation.