Semi Truck Accident Law
A severe injury sustained in the crash of a semi-truck can leave the victim with medical bills. It can also lead to permanent disabilities that require expensive equipment and long-term physical therapy.
It is vital to have a reputable New York truck accident lawyer on your side following an accident. A skilled attorney can establish your case through evidence like police reports and surveillance camera footage and more.
Poorly maintained vehicles
Owner-operators and trucking companies typically fail to take the necessary steps to ensure their vehicles are in good repair. This negligence results in an increase in the number of preventable accidents every year.
Semis and tractor trailers require more frequent maintenance than passenger cars due to their size and heavier weight. However the pressure of meeting deadlines and maximizing profits often take precedence over maintaining the fleet. This is why trucks are susceptible to mechanical problems that can could cause devastating accidents.
The brakes on a truck must be able to stop and slow down the vehicle at a single notice. When the brake pads on a truck lines, lines or return springs wear out they could result in serious collisions and fatal injuries. It is crucial that these parts are regularly inspected and replaced as required to ensure that they remain in good working order.
Tires that aren't well maintained can also be a major factor in truck accidents. Worn tires can lose traction, which causes the truck to skid or even roll over. Tires that aren't working, whether it's due to incorrect tread design or air pressure may fail catastrophically.
Trucks need routine inspections in addition to regular maintenance to spot mechanical problems before they cause an incident. However, if an inspection is conducted incorrectly or the repair shop doesn't adhere to the guidelines of the manufacturer this could result in an accident. In such cases, a company that commissioned the repair or maintenance shop or supervised it could be held accountable.
Incorrect lights, signals and reflectors are a common reason for truck accidents. These devices must be correctly functioning to allow drivers to see their truck and anticipate its movements, especially in rural areas and after dark. Trucking companies or drivers could not maintain and inspect these elements, or they might not conduct regular safety inspections.
A reliable Houston truck accident lawyer can examine your case to determine who is liable for your damages should you be injured in an accident involving a badly maintained commercial truck. These investigations can uncover evidence to prove the defendant's negligence in the accident and help you receive the compensation you're due.
Distracted Drivers
Accidents involving commercial trucks can be devastating. These huge vehicles can weigh as much as 25-times more than your vehicle and cause far more injuries in accidents. Distracted driving is one of many factors that can cause accidents. A driver who is distracted could lose control of the vehicle or fail to notice an opportunity to avoid a road accident that could result in serious and life-altering injuries.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has strict rules and regulations for truck drivers. This includes a ban on texting and using cell phones while driving. However, even when truckers adhere to the rules, they could still get distracted and cause crashes. This could be the result of manual distractions such as taking a hand off the wheel or cognitive distractions like thinking about something else other than driving.
Many people are aware that texting while driving can be dangerous, but few know that other activities, like eating, changing radio stations, or chatting with passengers, can also be considered distracting. When a truck driver is distracted, they may get lost in a lane or fail to notice an obstruction in front of them. It only takes a fraction of a second for a large truck to hit a passenger vehicle when the trucker's focus is diverted.
It is crucial to gather details about witnesses and to take photographs of the scene of the crash when an unintentionally distracted driver causes the truck to crash. It is also helpful to determine the name of the driver of the truck and the company they are employed by, as well in determining who owns the truck if they are an independent contractor. This could impact on who's responsible for the accident, because it is the trucking company's responsibility to find competent and skilled truck drivers. If the trucking company is found to be partially responsible for your accident, it could be liable to you for both economic as well as non-economic losses.
Rear-End Collisions
Rear-end truck collisions are quite common and can result in serious injuries. They can occur in a variety settings, such as at a red light or stop signal, where the trucker is unable to check behind them for any traffic that is coming up. vacaville semi truck accident claim can also happen when a car is able to cut in front of the truck, causing the driver to apply their brakes without warning. The trucker may then slam the car from behind.
It can be difficult to prove the cause of an accident that occurs at the rear, as it is not always obvious what vehicle caused the accident. An experienced attorney can gather evidence to show that the driver behind caused the crash due to following too closely or driving while distracted. This evidence could include photos, police reports and eyewitness testimony as well as skid marks in the road.
Sometimes, the driver in the front may be found to be the one responsible for the accident as well. This could happen if they cut off someone else or fail to utilize their turn signal as a reasonable person would, or put on the brakes at the last moment which causes the driver in the back to slam into the car directly in front of them. This type of scenario is where modified comparative negligence laws could come into play, where the jury assigns a percentage of blame to each party, and damages are reduced accordingly.
Lacerations and Bruises
In a rear-end crash the rear end of the vehicle is the one that suffers the most impact. This means that the passengers are at risk of serious injuries if they hit their heads against the dashboard or the back window. They also may break bones as they are thrown around the interior of the car as a result of the force of the crash. Spinal injuries can be very serious. The damage to the spine could cause serious and lasting effects on victims.
A person who has been involved in a serious accident might also suffer emotional and psychological trauma. They may experience difficulties sleeping or concentrating which can lead them to anxiety and depression. If they're unable work due to the seriousness of their injury it can create pressure and financial hardship. An attorney can research all possible causes of liability and help a victim seek fair compensation for their losses.
The trailer is not working properly
No matter if you're driving the vehicle of a car, truck, a van or a flatbed, all vehicles must to be securely attached to their trailers. Unexpectedly unhitching a trailer can cause catastrophic accidents that lead to severe injuries, or even death. If you've been injured in a collision involving a runaway trailer, contact an experienced lawyer for car accidents with a specialization in cases of hitch failure immediately to discuss your legal options.
The reason behind a defective trailer hitch can be caused by a variety, ranging from improper security or design. It could be due to an issue on the part of the manufacturer in which case product liability laws may apply. The company or the person who is at fault for a faulty trailer could be held accountable for victims' medical bills as well as auto repair costs as well as other losses that result from the incident.
For instance, in a deadly crash that took place in January 2014 on an Ohio road locally known as "Devil's Backbone," a trailer came loose from the truck and slid directly into two cars in front of it. Initial investigations linked the incident to the driver's negligence for not inspecting and secure hitch. In June 2015, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began investigating the possibility that a manufacturing defect caused the hitch that was involved in the crash -it was an Ultra LT manufactured by Fontaine Fifth Wheel of Trussville, Alabama -- to fail on a large proportion of times.
Due to the malfunctioning hitch due to the hitch's failure, the trailer struck the sides of the vehicles and then crashed into them head-on. This resulted in multiple fatalities and serious injuries to drivers of the vehicles.
The driver of the truck that was involved in the crash was found guilty of vehicular manslaughter, but experts believe that he could have avoided the collision with the other vehicles if he had conducted a thorough inspection of his trailer and made sure that all connections were in good order. Incorrect trailer hitches can cause major catastrophes. These types of accidents are typically high-speed and are able to sidewipe motorcycles or smaller cars. In such instances, the trailer can distort the frame of a vehicle and force razor sharp metal fragments to impale passengers inside.