How a Semi Truck Accident is Different from a Car Accident

Semi Truck Accident is Different from a Car Accident

Written by Jeremy D. Earle, JD

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February 2, 2023

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A TRUCK ACCIDENT AND A CAR ACCIDENT

When a person is wounded in a semi-truck or commercial truck accident, they often assume that the procedure would be similar to a car accident injury claim but on a much larger scale. This isn’t the case. In reality, passenger car collisions vary significantly from 18-wheeler collisions.

The seven most significant distinctions between a semi-truck accident and a car accident will be discussed in this article. If a truck accident has happened to you, you deserve an experienced truck accident attorney to get your a fair settlement. Car accident cases are difficult, and truck accident cases are even more complicated. Let us handle every detail! We offer a free consultation so you know what your options are. Our law firm specializes in truck accident lawsuits.

COMPREHENSIVE INSURANCE POLICIES

A commercial truck’s insurance coverage may be worth 50 times more than a passenger car’s insurance policy because of its size, nature, and interstate transportation. Generally, this level of coverage is required because of the potential for such a massive car to cause damage.

These insurance contracts may be worth millions of dollars, which is why the commercial truck’s insurance provider will go to any length to avoid accountability.

This usually indicates that their most experienced insurance adjusters will be assigned to the case. These highly skilled adjusters will use various strategies to lessen their client’s responsibility and shift blame to the injured party. They may be able to severely decrease or reject the claim if they successfully put even a little amount of blame on the wounded.

Similarly, to prevent a million-dollar payment, they may provide a substantial quantity of money upfront to divert the wounded victim’s attention away from the true worth of their case. Hire a lawyer instead of falling for it.

VARIOUS REGULATIONS

Trucking companies have little regard for the serious injuries their truck driver causes. Passenger vehicles do not stand a chance against the size of commercial motor vehicles. Severe injuries almost always happen to car accident victims. Our experienced personal injury attorney knows how to take on the insurance company, make a successful truck accident claim, and and ensure commercial truck drivers are held accountable.

Interstate deliveries are often seen on the roadways in commercial vehicles. Truck drivers and trucking businesses must register with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Department of Transportation due to this requirement. Due to the interstate nature of their work, trucking businesses are subject to hundreds of more rules than a conventional passenger car.

These rules cover maintenance of the trucks, specific driver’s licenses and qualifications, yearly inspections, and logbooks. This escalation in rules has created new opportunities for compensation.

Because passenger cars are not subject to the same restrictions as trucks, identifying the cause and blame of a truck accident is sometimes more difficult.

ADDITIONAL PROPERTY DAMAGE

Semi-trucks with a fully loaded trailer may weigh as much as 80,000 pounds. When paired with the truck’s size, this weight may do significant damage to everything in its path. As a consequence, commercial car collisions can cause extensive and expensive property damage. With so much devastation, it’s no wonder that number four is on our list.

MORE SERIOUS INJURIES

The injuries that trucking accidents and car accidents may produce are one of the most catastrophic disparities. When an 80,000-pound truck collides with a 3,000-pound car, the consequences may be catastrophic. As a result, injuries sustained in a truck collision are often much more severe than those sustained in a non-car accident.

Car passengers may suffer severe whiplash, back injuries, fractured bones, traumatic brain damage, and even death due to their injuries. Although trucking businesses often carry significantly greater insurance coverage to cover this risk, the consequences of a truck accident may be life-changing.

MORE EXPENSIVE MEDICAL BILLS

Because the injuries sustained in a truck collision are generally more serious than those sustained in a passenger car accident, it’s only natural that the medical expenditures related to the bodily injury would be substantially greater. Traumatic injuries are a very real danger in transportation accidents, as we’ve already explored.

Longer hospital stays, more comprehensive testing and diagnosis, longer healing times and measurements, and the consequences of permanent injuries and disabilities are all common outcomes. This might result in a protracted amount of time away from work, putting a victim’s financial condition in jeopardy.

If you are unable to work, you will not be compensated. When settling on an appropriate settlement sum, this issue must be considered. An expert personal injury lawyer will know how to evaluate present and future expenditures, as well as how to ensure that you are adequately compensated.

A HIGHER CHANCE OF DYING

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), heavy truck accidents kill between 3,000 and 5,000 people each year. Commercial truck accidents are just more likely to result in a fatality than a collision between two passenger cars, which is an alarming truth.

Before filing any form of claim after a loved one has been killed in a commercial truck accident, consult with a personal injury attorney. Death is difficult enough without adding the financial weight that might come with it.

REQUIRES SPECIALIZED LEGAL EXPERIENCE

An expert truck accident attorney is critical in each of the six areas listed above in ensuring that injured client gets the compensation they deserve. An experienced semi-truck lawyer is familiar with the insurance companies’ strategies, the drivers’ restrictions, and how their complicated insurance plans function.

Don’t be deceived by what seems to be a large first offer. You can be sure that if the insurance company agrees to pay anything, it will be a lowball offer.

THE SEVERITY OF DAMAGE CAUSED BY A SEMI-TRUCK IS COMMONLY HIGHER.

A truck accident’s violence may shatter a victim’s and their family’s lives. The injuries are more serious, and wrongful death cases are common. A semi-truck has a far larger effect than a car. Not only does the car suffer more damage, but it also often leads to serious or long-term injuries.

APPROACHING A TRUCKING COMPANY

One of the most significant distinctions between a car and a truck collision is frequently more than one insurance company accountable for payments. Because Colorado law permits you to sue several parties in a single accident, you might file multiple lawsuits against not just the trucking business but also the driver and any manufacturers involved.

When you have a claim against a trucking firm, you will be dealing with insurance companies that are extremely experienced and aggressive (and their attorneys). These attorneys exclusively represent their clients in court, and their purpose is to reduce the severity of the case and deny blame to safeguard their financial obligations. This is one of the key reasons to engage a service that solely handles large-scale accidents.

THE CAUSES OF THESE TYPES OF ACCIDENTS MUST BE UNDERSTOOD.

Another significant distinction between a commercial motor car or semi-truck accident and an car accident is determining the event’s cause. The majority of the time, a separate combination of factors causes truck accidents.

Car accidents are often caused by a single driver’s mistake (not stopping in time, distracted driving, speeding, etc.). Trucking collisions, on the other hand, are more likely to occur because of their sheer size. They are less able to stop swiftly and make incorrect turns.

Another cause of this collision is equipment failure or manufacturing faults, which might lead to a lawsuit against the truck’s manufacturer. Different check-ups on the car are the duty of the driver and the trucking business.

A skilled trucking law company will know how to research the cause of a truck accident properly. This involves an examination of the trucking logs, the truck company’s safety records, the driver’s safety record, hour logs, and any training/licenses, as well as any manufacturer recalls or flaws. With a semi-truck collision, gathering all the information and proof is significantly more difficult than a car accident.

IN WHAT WAYS ARE TRUCK ACCIDENTS MORE COMPLEX IN NATURE?

In shipping truck accidents, it is very difficult to determine how the accident occurred, who was culpable, and where the blame falls to guarantee the victim receives the compensation they deserve and will provide for future medical treatments.

Another reason not to take on these types of cases without the expertise of a law firm with over 50 years of combined experience, such as Warrior Truck Accident Law Firm, is calculating economic damages (medical care, loss of income, and loss of earning), non-economic damages (pain and suffering), and punitive damages (when the trucking company acts in bad faith).

INJURIES CAUSED BY TRUCK ACCIDENTS ARE MORE SERIOUS

The conclusion is almost always tragic when it comes to the injuries that a victim sustains in a collision with a tractor-trailer. 18-wheelers, for example, are large, tall, and almost 20 times heavier than a car. Consequently, they are considerably more likely to cause truck accidents that result in serious injuries and disabilities to other road users.

TBI, head and neck injuries, amputations, bone fractures, burn injuries, and life-long damage to the bones, muscles, or nerves in the spinal cord are just a few of the serious ailments that may result from this sort of catastrophe. Accidents involving large trucks are also more likely to result in fatalities. According to the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Highway Safety and Motor Cars report,

ACCIDENT NEGLIGENCE LAWS IN COLORADO

Your lawyer will need to work with you to determine who was negligent (at fault) and how careless they were to limit who is legally accountable. When it comes to truck accidents in Colorado, the negligent party is held liable. A party is negligent if they broke a duty of care and caused harm to another person directly and indirectly. To establish negligence, each of these criteria must be satisfied.

YOU MUST PROVE THAT THE OTHER MOTORIST HAD A DUTY OF CARE TO YOU.

Generally, everyone has a responsibility to behave reasonably toward the general public. As a result, a semi-truck driver will be required to behave as a respectable semi-truck driver under identical driving circumstances.

YOUR LAWYER MUST ADDITIONALLY DEMONSTRATE THAT THIS OBLIGATION WAS BREACHED

This will need to demonstrate that the other party behaved irrationally. It must be shown that the motorist did not operate in the same manner as other reasonable drivers on the road.

YOUR SIDE MUST SHOW THAT THERE WAS DIRECT AND INDIRECT CAUSATION

This signifies that the acts of the other motorist caused the collision, and there were no external, unforeseen reasons to blame.

YOU MUST DEMONSTRATE YOUR LOSSES AND FIGHT FOR THE COMPENSATION TO WHICH YOU ARE ENTITLED

Depending on your scenario, this battle may occur in a courtroom or in negotiations with the insurance company. Physical pain, material damage, and mental distress are all examples of damages.

WHAT SHOULD YOU ASK A COLORADO TRACTOR TRAILER ACCIDENT LAWYER WHEN YOU MEET WITH THEM?

In Colorado, depending on the level of fault, damages are limited.

You should be aware that Colorado uses a negligence model that limits damages based on who is at blame. In most car accidents, both parties might be found to be somewhat at blame. A court will lower the number of damages granted by deducting the amount the party seeking damages was accountable. For example, if your total losses are $10,000 but you were judged to be 20% at fault, the most you may collect is $8,000.

Finally, you must ensure that the opposing party bears more than half of the blame. You will not be compensated if a court determines that you are even 1% more than 50% liable. For example, if the other party was 49 per cent at fault for the accident while you were 51 per cent at fault, you will be banned from obtaining any damages.

PLEASE GET IN TOUCH WITH US RIGHT AWAY

Warrior Truck Accident Lawyers, has handled several truck accident claims and successfully obtained big payments for clients. Contact our office now at 719-881-8976 if you or a loved one has been hurt in a commercial truck or 18-wheeler accident.

Warrior Car Accident Lawyers

1902 W. Colorado Ave., Suite 100

Colorado Springs, CO 80904

719-300-1100

Free Consultation

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