Semi Truck Accident Law
A prior lake semi truck accident lawyer-truck crash can result in an injury of a serious nature that could cost a person a lot in medical expenses. It can also result in permanent disabilities that require expensive equipment and long-term therapy.
It is important to have a reputable New York truck accident lawyer to assist you after an accident. A qualified lawyer will assist you in proving your case with evidence like police reports or surveillance footage, for instance.
Poorly-Maintained Vehicles
Owner-operators and trucking companies typically do not take the proper steps to ensure that their vehicles are in good condition. This negligence leads to a large percentage of accidents that could have been avoided every year.
Compared to passenger cars, semis and tractor-trailers require more frequent maintenance work due to their size and heavier load. However the pressure of meeting deadlines and maximizing profits often takes precedence over maintaining the fleet. As a result, trucks are more prone to mechanical breakdowns that can cause catastrophic accidents.
The brakes on trucks must be able stop and slow down the vehicle at a moments notice. If the pads of a truck’s brakes, lines or return springs fail they can result in serious collisions and fatal injuries. These parts must be checked and repaired regularly in order to keep them in good condition.
Poor-maintained tires can also be a major cause of truck accidents. Tires that are worn down can cause the tires to lose traction, which causes the truck to skid or even rollover. If a tire is damaged in some way, such as having the incorrect air pressure or tread design, it may fail catastrophically.
The inspections are routine for trucks along with regular maintenance to identify mechanical issues before they lead to an accident. If an inspection is done incorrectly or if the repair shop doesn’t follow the manufacturer’s guidelines it could lead to an accident. In such cases, a company that hired the repair or maintenance shop or who was responsible for its supervision could be held accountable.
Poorly functioning lights, signals and reflectors are a common cause of truck accident. These components must function properly to enable drivers to detect and anticipate the truck’s movements particularly in rural areas or at night. Drivers or trucking companies may not maintain and inspect these equipment, or may not carry out regular safety checks.
A reputable Houston truck accident lawyer can review your case and determine who is liable for your damages when you’ve been injured in an accident involving a badly maintained commercial truck. These investigations can uncover evidence that demonstrates the defendant’s negligence in the accident and help you obtain the compensation you deserve.
Distracted Drivers
There aren’t many things more devastating than an accident involving a commercial truck. These huge vehicles weigh up to 25 times more than your vehicle and can cause a lot more injuries if they are involved in a collision. While a variety of factors can cause accidents, distracted driving is one of the most prevalent and risky. A truck driver who is distracted could lose control of their vehicle, or fail to see an accident on the road, leading to serious and life-threatening injuries.
Truck drivers must adhere to strict rules and regulations established by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. This includes a ban on texting or using cell phones while driving. Even if truckers follow the rules, they can be distracted and result in an accident. This could be due to mechanical distractions like not having your hands on the steering wheel, or by cognitive distractions like thinking about something other than driving.
Many people are aware that texting while driving can be risky, but many do not realize that other activities, such as eating, changing radio stations, or conversing with passengers can also be considered distracting. If a truck driver is distracted, they could wander off into a different lane or miss a traffic jam up ahead of them. When a truck driver’s attention is diverted, it takes only a split-second for a large vehicle to strike a passenger car.
It is important to gather details on any witnesses and to take photographs of the scene after an accident if an unintentionally distracted driver causes an accident with a truck. It is essential to know the name of the driver, the business for which they work and who owns the vehicle if it’s an independent contractor. This will affect the person who is responsible for your accident as the trucking company is responsible for hiring skilled and competent truck drivers. If the trucking company is found to be at least partially responsible for your accident, they may be held responsible for your economic and non-economic losses.
Rear-End Collisions
Rear-end collisions with trucks are common and often result in serious injuries. These accidents can occur in many different situations such as at an intersection or at a red light, when the trucker is not checking behind him for oncoming traffic. They can also occur when a car comes in front of the truck, causing the driver to slam on their brakes without warning. The trucker may then slam the car from behind.
It can be hard to establish fault when there’s rear-end collisions as it isn’t always evident the vehicle that was at fault. An experienced attorney can help gather evidence that proves the driver at the rear was responsible for the crash by following too closely or Vimeo distracted driving. This can include evidence such as photos, police reports, eyewitness testimony, and skid marks in the road.
The driver in the front of the car could also be held responsible for the incident. This could happen if they cut someone off or fail to use their turn signal in the way that a reasonable person would, or slam on the brakes at the last minute and cause the driver in the back to crash into the car directly in the front. This kind of situation is where modified comparative negligence laws be in 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 area that experiences the most impact. This means that people in the car are at risk of serious injuries if they hit their heads against the dashboard or the back window. They also may break bones from being bounced around the interior of the car due to the force of the crash. The injuries to the spine can be severe. The spinal cord is home to many nerves that regulate the body. Therefore, any damage to the spinal column may cause serious and lasting problems for victims.
A person who is the victim of a serious accident may also experience psychological and emotional trauma. They may experience difficulty sleeping or concentrating, which can lead to depression and anxiety. If they are unable work due to the extent of their injury, this can add pressure and financial hardship. An attorney can investigate the possible causes of liability to assist the victim to receive an appropriate amount of compensation for their loss.
Faulty trailer hitches
All vehicles, whether they’re a car or a truck, van flatbed, van, or are required to be securely connected to their trailers. Unintentionally pulling a trailer off can cause catastrophic accidents that lead to severe injuries or even death. If you’ve been injured by the trailer that has run away, contact a qualified vehicle accident attorney with a specialization in cases of hitch failure as soon as you can to discuss your legal options.
A faulty trailer hitch can be the result of a variety of things, from improper secured to faulty design. It could be due to an issue on the part of the manufacturer in which case the product liability law may apply. The person or company responsible for a defective trailer can be held accountable for the victim’s medical costs along with auto repair expenses and other losses that result from the incident.
For instance the fatal crash that took place in January 2014 on an Ohio road referred to locally as “Devil’s Backbone,” a trailer came out of the truck and careened head-on into two cars behind it. Initial investigations suggested that the crash was due to the truck driver’s negligence in failing to properly inspect and secure hitch. In June 2015, however, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration started investigating the possibility that a flaw in the hitch and an Ultra LT manufactured Fontaine Fifth Wheel in Trussville, Alabama, was the cause of the crash.
Due to the faulty hitch due to the hitch’s failure, the trailer struck the sides of the vehicles and then crashed into them head-on. This led to multiple deaths and serious injuries to the drivers of the vehicles.
The truck driver in the accident was convicted of vehicular homicide, but experts believe that he could have avoided the collision by conducting an extensive inspection of his trailer to ensure that all connections were secure. Faulty trailer hitsches can cause major catastrophes, since these incidents often involve a large amount of speed and could easily cause a collision with smaller vehicles or motorcycles. In these situations the trailer could distort the frame of a car and cause sharp metal fragments to injure passengers.