An accident involving a semi-truck can be severe in more ways than one: not only can the injuries and damage be greater than an accident with only cars, but getting compensation from the insurance company can be significantly harder. If the accident was the result of someone’s negligence, you need to understand how to determine who was responsible and how to prove it. Below are important factors that will help you progress your claim toward a legitimate case.
Driver Liability
A driver’s negligence is probably the first thing you will look to in deciding whether to sue. A driver who was fatigued, intoxicated, distracted, speeding, improperly trained, or driving aggressively may have caused the crash due to his or her recklessness. Regulations are in place to prevent drivers from overexerting themselves during long days of driving or making critical mistakes, but that won’t keep them all from happening. When proving that a driver was negligent, you may need to turn to expert witnesses, log books, driving history and experience, and photos of the scene.
Company Liability
An accident may have occurred by no fault of the driver, but by a flaw in the truck itself. It is the company’s responsibility to regularly examine their trucks for defects or failures that could become fatal on the road. If they neglected this duty, they may be held accountable.
Manufacturer Liability
In certain cases, a truck may have defective parts that should have never been released in the first place. These defects fall to the manufacturer for not catching them sooner or recalling them, and they can be held liable for the crash if it occurred specifically because of the defective part.
Expert Witnesses
Expert witnesses can be essential in helping recreate the accident so that everyone can understand what went wrong and proving that you deserve a settlement. Here are some examples of witnesses that can be particularly helpful in truck accident cases:
- Accident Reconstruction Expert
- Economic Expert
- Medical Expert
- Psychological Expert
- Mechanical Expert
- Road Design Expert
Each expert’s statement can make a difference in your case and help prove aspects of the crash that aren’t so clear-cut after the fact.
Hiring a lawyer can be your best bet when it comes to truck accident cases. A trucking company’s policies can be worth millions of dollars, and insurance agencies may fight hard to keep from paying what you’re due. A lawyer can not only help you understand the laws of the trucking industry, but help win your case, too.
Source: Truck Accident Lawyer Trenton, NJ, Davis & Brusca, LLC