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How Legal Claims Stemming from Truck Accidents Differ From Those Related to Car Accidents

When you suffer an injury in a motor vehicle accident, you may experience a long and emotional road to recovery whether that be from physical injuries, lost time at work, other financial stressors, or emotional trauma. That may be true no matter what type of vehicles were involved in the collision.

If you or a loved one have been injured in a motor vehicle accident that was someone else’s fault, you may be entitled to compensation. The type of vehicles involved in a collision may require a case to be handled differently.

Cases involving commercial trucks are often handled differently than those involving passenger vehicles. The sheer size and weight of those vehicles can cause significant damages, including death, when they are involved in a collision.

If you or a loved one has been injured by a semi-truck, you must speak to a truck accident lawyer as soon as you’re able to. Generally, trucking companies have accident response departments and large legal teams focused on defending against your injury claims.

Those teams often respond to the scene of a collision immediately. You need experienced representation to ensure that you properly document evidence as soon as possible and that you ultimately receive what you are entitled to. You need an attorney who understands just how different these cases can be from cases involving regular automobiles.

Regulatory laws

Trucking companies and drivers are required to comply with strict state and federal regulations set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. When these standards aren’t met, it’s only a matter of time until an accident occurs.

Truck drivers are considered professional drivers. This means both the drivers and trucking companies that employ them must follow and adhere to extensive safety laws and regulations put in place to protect both truck drivers and all the other drivers on the road.

These regulations include limits on driving vs. rest time, medical examinations for drivers, drug tests, specialty training, and more.

These trucking laws also place expectations on trucking companies to ensure that they have competent, professional, and safe drivers on our roads. Trucking companies are required to take steps to ensure that they only hire qualified drivers and give those drivers the proper training to operate large trucks safely.

Some Differences

Truck accidents differ from many automobile accidents because drivers are often the employees or independent contractors of other companies. Employers are responsible and liable for negligent acts of their employees on the job. This means if you are in a wreck caused by a commercial truck driver, you may be able to collect from the trucking company that employs that driver. Laws require trucking companies and truck drivers to carry more in liability insurance than states require of drivers of regular automobiles. Many trucking companies carry several layers of insurance that may be in play to address a claim.

There could potentially be more defendants involved in any lawsuit with commercial truck accidents. The trucking company, the driver, the shipper, the broker, or the trailer owner, for instance, could all play a role in an accident and be responsible for injuries caused therein.

If you are involved in a commercial truck accident, contact our experienced truck accident lawyers in Hamilton, Ohio at the Richards Injury Firm.

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