According to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over 110,000 Americans were involved in auto accidents with commercial vehicles like 18 wheelers.
18-wheeler trucks are heavy and can cause an immense amount of damage. As a result, truck crashes involving light passenger vehicles are often deadly, with more than 4,000-people losing their lives in a truck accident each year.
The stats show that while trucks only account for 3% of all vehicles on the roads across the country, they’re responsible for 12% of all fatal auto wrecks.
Why Do I Need to Hire a Truck Accident Lawyer?
On many occasions, the victims involved in the crash have a legal claim against the truck driver and the company that owns the vehicle. However, the trauma involved with a truck accident is extensive. Many people fail to get the truck company or driver to cover the costs involved with the accident.
A truck crash is an unfortunate situation to deal with, and it could leave you with plenty of unwanted bills.
- Medical costs for treatment and physiotherapy
- Loss of income from your work
- Damage to your vehicle
- Diminished quality of life
These costs shouldn’t have to come out of your pocket, especially if you weren’t responsible for the accident.
Unfortunately, truck companies have teams of lawyers on standby ready to pounce to limit the company’s liability in your case. These attorneys may use unethical tactics to get you to settle early, often for a small amount that might not cover your expenses.
You need an experienced truck accident lawyer that knows how to handle your case. Truck accident attorneys will look for all the loopholes the trucking companies use to limit liability. Your truck accident attorney checks the logbooks, maintenance records, and the safety training records for all drivers.
When investigating your case, the truck accident lawyer looks into other factors that could influence the accident, such as a lack of sleep or other reasons why the driver may have been negligently operating the vehicle at the time of the accident.
Some of the more common reasons for truck accidents involve the following.
- The use of alcohol or drugs while driving
- Driving over the speed limit
- Driver fatigue
- Aggressive driver behavior
- Improperly secured loads
- Poor driver training
- Forged logbooks
Our professional truck accident lawyers in Houston have the training and experience you need to find out the facts about your case.
Your lawyer will leave no stone unturned in their investigation. There may be other contributing circumstances to your accident, and your truck accident lawyer will find them. Some of these circumstances include the following.
- Missing road signage
- Vehicle defects and failures
- Dangerous roads and driving surfaces
- Poor road design and maintenance
All trucking companies must comply with strict federal and state guidelines for the safe operation of 18-wheelers and other trucks. If injured in a truck accident, you have the right to claim your medical expenses, long-term care costs, and additional attributing costs from the trucking company.
These truck accident lawsuits can be extensive and expensive, and you need to work with a truck accident attorney in Houston with plenty of experience to achieve maximum and fair compensation.
Do I Need to File a Police Report After an Accident?
If you’re involved in a minor accident and can drive away from the scene, then report the accident to the local police department within 24-hours. The best practice is always to make the police report and contact a seasoned truck accident lawyer as soon as possible.
If there is an accident where someone is grievously injured or killed, you either need to give a statement on the scene or at the police station within 24-hours after the accident occurred. Filing a police report is critical to your insurance claim.
Filing Claims Against Negligent Drivers and Trucking Companies
It might surprise you to learn that the majority of truck accidents occur due to driver negligence. Many people don’t take the correct steps to file a claim due to the shock and adrenaline involved with the accident trauma.
Contact our offices today, and our Houston truck accident attorney will walk you through everything you need to know about hiring us to represent you in your case.
Work with the Best Houston Truck Accident Lawyer
Don’t leave any aspect of your truck accident case to chance. You need the best representation from the skilled and experienced legal team at the Hadi Law firm. Contact our practice today and arrange a consultation with one of our qualified truck accident lawyers.
According to Texas law, you may hire an attorney to represent you if you are at a “modified comparative fault” for your crash. This term means that your legal representative can recover money from the trucking company if you are equally liable for the collision.
In most personal injury claims involving a truck accident, the truck company will settle out of court. The truck company wants to avoid a court settlement, and you’ll need an seasoned truck accident lawyer to negotiate on your behalf.
We represent you in all negotiations, and we never accept a settlement until you are 100% happy with the offer.
- If possible you need to move your vehicle out of the way of traffic and to a safe place. Try to stay as close to the accident scene as you can. If your car is no longer functioning check your surroundings, leave your vehicle and move to a safer area.
- Call emergency services as soon as you can. Medical personnel may be needed at the scene and you will need an officer to record the accident.
- Make sure you and others are ok and receive medical attention if needed.
- Do not accept blame or assign blame.
- If you are able, try to record the accident. This can be in the form of photos and videos.
- Contact an experienced truck accident lawyer as soon as you can after the accident. The Hadi Law Firm is well versed in all commercial trucking laws in Texas and can provide you with the support that will help secure a just settlement.
In most cases, it is absolutely necessary to have a seasoned truck accident attorney in your corner. There are many pitfalls to pursuing a settlement without full knowledge of commercial trucking laws in Texas. The trucking company’s insurance may try to deny your claim and remove blame from the other party. A truck accident is a very traumatic and harrowing experience. You may have life-altering injuries, had a fatality of other persons such as passengers and your car may have been totaled. These compounding factors will have a detrimental impact on your life and you will need compensation to the full extent of the law. Our truck accident attorneys will aggressively fight for the full settlement you deserve.
Thorough investigations are one of our specialties. Our truck accident attorneys will review multiple sources of information in order to prove your case. This can be in the form of but not included to witness accounts, detailed review of police reports, review of trucking logbooks, examinations of video and photo footage either taken at the accident or dashcams and also using the many accident reconstruction experts at our disposal. It is our job to prove your case and our truck accident attorneys will vigorously pursue all avenues to get you the settlement you deserve.
Every case varies and depends on many factors. Some cases may take months while others may take years. Our truck accident attorneys understand that any major truck accident can be life-altering and are constantly working to wrap up cases as soon as they can while also getting you the full compensation you deserve.