A collision with a truck can be life-altering— one of the most traumatic events that you could experience. The terror of being unable to avoid a collision with a truck is indescribable, and these crashes produce severe and sometimes fatal injuries. If you were hurt or a loved one was killed in a truck accident, get in touch with an experienced lawyer right away.
We are proud that other legal professionals recommend Colling Gilbert Wright when their friends and loved ones need a personal injury attorney. Our Kissimmee truck accident lawyer will provide necessary support throughout your recovery and advocate to ensure you receive compensation that reflects the severity of your injuries.
Truck Crashes Can Cause Catastrophic Harm
Collisions with trucks are a common cause of death and serious injuries on the highways. A truck’s huge mass and weight in comparison to passenger vehicles make collisions extremely dangerous. The smaller vehicle is often destroyed and its occupants badly hurt.
People who survive collisions with commercial trucks often suffer permanently debilitating injuries. Our Kissimmee truck accident attorneys represent truck crash survivors with injuries like:
- Multiple complex fractures
- Disfiguring or blinding facial injuries
- Traumatic amputations
- Damage to internal organs
- Moderate to severe traumatic brain injury
- Spinal cord injury
Many survivors also experience extensive psychological trauma that can lead to conditions like severe anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Your recovery from serious injuries may require extensive medical intervention and rehabilitation. Our team at The Florida Firm can ensure you receive the medical care you need from the best specialists in the field. We can also assist you in making payment arrangements with healthcare providers and creditors, applying for disability benefits, and directing you to other resources that can provide aid and support throughout your recovery.
What Are the Common Reasons for Truck Wrecks?
Commercial trucks are difficult to drive. Drivers holding commercial licenses are highly skilled, but that does not mean they do not make mistakes. In fact, truck driver error is a factor in most wrecks involving commercial vehicles.
Truckers often have demanding schedules, which can lead to fatigue. Tired truck drivers may speed, take their eyes off the road, or cause accidents through delayed responses. Sometimes truckers use alcohol or drugs during their hauls, which often leads to wrecks.
The truck’s owner must keep the vehicle well-maintained. Equipment failures and delayed maintenance also lead to crashes. Our Kissimmee lawyers are skilled at truck accident investigations and can identify the culpable parties and hold them accountable for your injuries.
Who Is Liable for a Commercial Truck Collision?
Truck driver error is often the cause of a crash, but the individual driver is not always personally liable. If the trucker hauls goods as an employee, their employer is liable for their mistakes and will be responsible for paying you compensation. The employer may also be liable for its own negligence if it failed to thoroughly screen a driver, provided inadequate training or supervision, or imposed an unreasonable delivery schedule.
If the driver is an independent contractor, their commercial insurance policy should cover your injuries. Additionally, the company that hired the trucker could be liable for negligent hiring. The truck owner is liable if poor maintenance was a factor in the crash, and the company that loaded the cargo may be responsible if excess weight or an unbalanced load contributed to the accident.
Sometimes, poor road design, broken or missing traffic control devices, or inadequate maintenance lead to a truck accident. The local government responsible for the road would be liable in that case. An experienced attorney at Colling Gilbert Wright will review all the circumstances to identify every party who might have partial representation for a Kissimmee truck crash. Bringing claims against multiple parties increases the pool of insurance coverage and helps ensure you receive fair compensation.
Insurance Companies Often Try to Limit Your Damages
Injured people are sometimes surprised at how aggressively an insurance company will fight to avoid paying them a fair sum for their injuries. Industry marketing presents insurance companies as benevolent institutions there to help you in your time of need. They are actually for-profit enterprises that spend huge sums on investigators, adjusters, and lawyers, all to limit their liability in an accident.
Florida Statutes § 768.81 allows an insurance company to reduce its liability by transferring blame for the incident to you. It is not unusual for an insurance company representative to accuse an injured accident victim of causing the accident through their own negligent driving or worsening their own injuries by failing to follow medical advice. You can be assured the company will closely review your statements after the accident, your medical records, social media accounts, and employment records, looking for evidence that could be favorable to its position. You should not have to deal with this kind of stress, especially when you are recovering from serious injuries. Our Kissimmee semi-truck accident lawyers from The Florida Firm understand the way insurance companies build their cases and will shut down their unfair attempts to limit their liability at your expense.
Ensuring Adequate Compensation
Truck accident cases are complex because they usually involve multiple parties— the driver, hauling company, truck manufacturer, and the company that loaded the cargo, all might share responsibility. Florida Statutes § 95.11(3)(a) sets the time limit for bringing a lawsuit at two years from the date of injury, so it is important to contact The Florida Firm early so that our Kissimmee attorneys have adequate time to investigate the truck accident and identify the responsible parties.
Negotiations result in an appropriate settlement in most cases. However, when one or more parties do not negotiate in good faith, we are always prepared to take a case to trial. A trial is also a possibility if one of the responsible parties’ conduct was so egregious that you can claim punitive damages.
You are entitled to reimbursement of all your past and future injury-related expenses, plus additional money to compensate for your pain and suffering. The lawyers at Colling Gilbert Wright have obtained sums exceeding $500,000 in numerous cases of clients suffering death or serious injuries in truck accidents, in addition to a million-dollar settlement.
Steps to Take After a Truck Accident
If you are involved in a truck crash, there is a strong possibility that you have significant injuries. Stay as still as you can and do not attempt to exit your vehicle unless it is unsafe to remain in it. Do lock your dashboard camera and try to copy the file to your phone right away, if possible.
Accept ambulance transport if it is offered. If not, have someone drive you to an emergency room or urgent care center immediately after the crash, even if you do not believe you have serious injuries. Any delay endangers your health and weakens your legal claim.
From the moment of the crash, you must assume that insurance companies for the responsible parties will scrutinize your words and conduct. Do not speak about the possible causes of the accident with witnesses or emergency responders. It is wise to take a social media break until your claim is resolved. If that is impossible, limit your social media presence to the extent possible.
Get Legal Advice Right Away
Engaging legal representation immediately insulates you from contact with the responsible parties, which protects you from pressure to settle for less than your claim is worth. Bringing in a Kissimmee truck accident attorney early in the case also allows them to begin investigating before evidence erodes or disappears, and while witnesses’ memories are fresh.
Pursue Damages for Your Truck Accident Injuries With a Kissimmee Lawyer
If you suffered severe injuries in a truck accident that was not your fault, the responsible parties must compensate you for your losses. The transportation industry has teams of defense lawyers trying to limit your compensation, so it is critical that you work with a skilled and experienced Kissimmee truck accident lawyer.
Our attorneys at The Florida Firm have a well-deserved reputation for representing individuals who have been injured effectively and with compassion. We do not collect fees or costs unless we win money for you, so there is no risk —contact us today.