Getting the compensation you need to fix your car and, more importantly, pay your hospital bills, is never easy after a crash. It seems like the insurance company is always trying to shortchange you. And if you were injured in a crash with a commercial truck? That process just got much, much harder.
So why is that? For starters, the drivers actually involved in the crash may not be the only people legally liable.
Who Can Be Named in a Lawsuit After a Serious Truck Accident?
When you are hit by a commercial truck, you don’t just have to deal with another private citizen – you are dealing with an on-the-clock employee and their employer, and potentially several additional parties as well, including:
- The company that owns the truck, AND/OR
- The company that leases the truck
- The company that employs the driver, AND/OR
- The company that leases the driver
- The company that built the truck or any of its parts, AND/OR
- The company that repaired or performed maintenance or inspection on the truck
- The company that loaded the cargo
- The company or party responsible for maintaining the road and signage the accident occurred on
For more information on these potentially liable parties, and why and under what circumstances they could be held responsible for your injuries, download our free guide by clicking the image below.
Truck Accidents are Different, So You Need a Truck Accident Attorney
You may think a truck accident is the same as a car accident, just on a larger scale, and they can be handled the same way. This isn’t true. Truck accidents need to be negotiated and litigated differently.
Firstly, there are numerous parties that may need to be held responsible for their part in contributing to your injuries.
Secondly, the process of proving fault is different, in part because the physics behind a truck crash are different. Trucks are harder to turn and harder to bring to a complete halt, and the distance needed to slow or stop a truck changes depending on how much cargo they are carrying.
Truck drivers and trucking companies are also held to their own additional laws – including how much cargo they can carry, how long a driver can drive in a single stretch, who can legally drive a commercial truck, and more.
The last reason is potentially the most important to your case. Because truck accidents have the potential to cause so much more harm than an ordinary car crash, trucking companies are required to carry much higher insurance policies which pay out much higher settlements. But when you or a loved one have suffered severe, disabling, or even fatal injuries, you will need every penny of that or maybe even more to recover.
Insurance companies will be reluctant to pay. Only an experienced truck accident attorney can negotiate a settlement that covers all the expenses and pain and suffering you’ve faced and will likely continue to face after a truck accident.
Call Dudley DeBosier for a Free Case Review
At Dudley DeBosier, we know how devastating truck accidents can be. That’s why we offer the No Fee Guarantee®: you pay nothing, unless we win.
When you are severely injured and likely unable to work, you don’t need to worry about how to afford a lawyer, so we got rid of that problem entirely. We don’t charge for your initial consultation to discuss your case, and if you decide to hire us, we don’t charge until you get your compensation check in the mail.
Contact us today for your free case consultation.