Liability for a Commercial Truck Crash

Truck accident cases can be more complicated than other motor vehicle accident cases. For example, determining who is responsible after a truck wreck can be tough. It’s not necessarily the truck driver, even if they were negligent. If the truck driver is an employee, the employer is usually liable for his negligence on the job. Of course, those companies will do whatever they can to get off the hook. 

A lot of truck drivers are independent contractors. If the driver who hit you is a contractor, the company will immediately say they’re not responsible. That’s not always true. They might be responsible if they did something wrong that helped cause the accident. For example: 

• The trucking company may be responsible if they were careless in hiring a driver without the right training or with a bad driving record
• The trucking company might be responsible if they were supposed to maintain the truck and bad equipment caused the wreck
• The trucking company may be responsible if they didn’t follow the rules, like making the driver work longer hours than the law allows

Even if the driver is their employee, the trucking company will scramble to avoid liability. They’ll have a whole team of lawyers and experts hard at work spinning the story. One way they do that is to try to show that the crash was your fault. Most people don’t have the knowledge or experience to fight them, so your best bet is to connect with a Texas truck wreck lawyer as soon as possible after your crash.

Damages in Commercial Truck Collision Cases

Every truck crash case is different. Your damages are specific to you. The best way to learn more about what losses you may be compensated for is to talk to a Texas truck crash attorney. Some common types of damages include: 

• Payment of your medical bills (or reimbursement for bills you’ve paid)
• Payment for physical therapy, counseling, or other services you need because of the accident
• Payment for medical equipment and supplies you need because of the crash
• Compensation for lost income during your recovery
• Estimated future medical costs
• Estimated future lost earnings
• Pain and suffering

Not everything on the list applies in every case. Proving some of these damages will require expert witnesses. For instance, you will likely need a medical expert to talk about your injuries and any future care you may need because of the accident. If you can’t go back to the work you did before, you’ll need an economic expert to calculate your lost earnings. At Godsey Law Firm, P.C., we know how to identify and work with the best experts for your case.

Protecting Yourself after a Big Truck Accident

Ideally, some of the first things you’ll do after a truck collision are: 

• Take pictures or video at the scene
• Get contact information from any witnesses
• Notice any cameras that may have caught the crash
• Get medical attention

You may have been too seriously hurt or just too upset to gather evidence right after the accident. We can look for video footage, witnesses, and other evidence. But, getting medical attention right away is important for your health and your case. If you didn’t get medical care after the crash, see a doctor right away. After you get checked out: 

• Follow the doctor’s instructions
• Get any tests that were ordered 
• Schedule and keep follow-up appointments
• Do physical therapy or other exercises the doctor tells you to
• Don’t try to go back to work too soon
• Don’t exert yourself more than recommended

Following those rules will help you recover as quickly and completely as possible. It will also protect your case. If you don’t take care of yourself, the person who hit you may claim it’s your own fault you haven’t recovered. 

You should also keep a journal of your day-to-day life, including pain levels, medications, and limitations you face. You probably think you will never forget those days, weeks, or months after the accident. But, it may be two years or more before you tell your story in court. You can use your notes from those days to help you remember.

The Best Way to Deal with Insurance Companies

When you’ve been injured in a crash, there’s only one good way to deal with the other driver’s insurance company. Don’t. The insurance company rep will probably be sweet and friendly on the phone. You can’t afford to forget what their job is. Insurance companies have a lot of tricks up their sleeves, all to save the company money. 

They may try to get you chatting, then lead you into saying something that will hurt your case. They may take things you said out of context to use against you later, when you don’t even remember saying them. They may tell you they want to get you a quick settlement because they know you need the money, really hoping to trick you into taking less. That’s especially dangerous if you don’t yet know what kind of medical care you’ll need in the future.

But, you don’t need to know every trick the insurance company may play. You just need an advocate who already understands them.