The trucking industry is quickly growing in the U.S. because over 70% of consumer goods make their way to their final destination by large trucks. Trucking can be a lucrative business and a good source of income for drivers, but the industry has one of the highest fatality rates in the U.S. There has been a 52% increase in truck accident deaths since 2009.
Overwhelmingly, truck accident death victims are passengers of other vehicles and not the drivers of the truck themselves. 68% of all truck accident fatalities are passengers in other vehicles. Even more alarming, 74% of all fatal injury crashes involve a large truck.
Despite what you may think, most truck accidents occur on major roads and not highways or interstates. As a passenger in a much smaller vehicle, you must take precautions to protect yourself and your passengers from large truck accidents. But, even if you take all the right precautions, accidents can still happen.
The CEO Lawyer Truck Accident Attorneys Are Here to Help
If you are involved in a truck accident, and you have been injured, call Ali Awad, the CEO Lawyer, for a consultation of your case. The CEO Lawyer is the founder and managing attorney of one of the fastest-growing law firms in the country, the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm. With over one million followers on social media, Ali Awad has built a reputation for giving free legal advice to his followers. You can trust the CEO Lawyer and his injury and accident attorneys to ensure you are receiving the best legal advice and the top settlement for your truck accident. Contact us online or call (833) 254-2923 to start your case today.
Common Causes of Large Truck Accidents
As mentioned above, large truck accidents are on the rise in the U.S. Large trucks are still the best way to move consumer goods across the country. As demand for products increases, especially due to the pandemic, more and more trucks are on the roads.
If you are traveling on a roadway with large trucks, it is important to keep in mind that trucks cannot maneuver as quickly as a car and have much poorer visibility. Therefore, as a passenger vehicle driver, you are expected to use extra caution when traveling alongside large trucks. However, you can be doing everything right and still find yourself injured after an accident with a large truck.
In 2007, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA) conducted a large-scale study of truck accidents and the reasons behind them. They broke their findings down into three categories: critical events, critical reasons, and associated factors.
Critical events refer to the circumstances that made an accident unavoidable. The FMSCA identified three major critical events that led to collisions with vehicles.
- In 32% of the studied cases, the large truck veered out of their travel lane and into the lane of another car.
- Loss of control due to driving too fast for conditions, mechanical failure, shifting cargo, or poor road conditions led to accidents 29% of the time.
- Rear-end collisions with another vehicle in the truck’s lane accounted for 22% of accidents.
The critical reasons for large truck accidents refer to the immediate reason or immediate failure that led to an accident. The study listed critical reasons for the accident-related to the driver in four categories:
- The first, “non-performance,” refers to actions in which the driver was physically impaired and unable to respond appropriately. Falling asleep at the wheel or being disabled by some other physical impairment, like a seizure or heart attack, is also included in this category. These types of actions accounted for 12% of truck-related accidents.
- The second category is “recognition” and refers to accidents caused by the driver being distracted or inattentive. These actions accounted for 28% of accidents.
- “Decision” is the third category and accounts for the largest share of accidents at 38%. This refers to the driver making the wrong choice or a poor decision that led to the accident. Speeding, driving too fast for conditions, and following too closely fall under this category.
- The final category is “performance” and refers to a driver who is panicked or unable to exercise good directional control. This category makes up the smallest percentage of accidents at 9%.
In addition to these causations, the report found that there were hundreds of associated factors that impacted whether or not a collision would take place and how severe the accident would be. It is important to note that the associated factors refer to both the driver of the large truck and the driver of the vehicle, as not all large truck wrecks are the fault of the semi-truck driver.
The top associated factors are:
- Driver fatigue
- Braking problems
- Inattention, poor attention, or distraction
- Drug and alcohol use, including prescription drug use
- Driving too fast or driving too fast for conditions
- Traffic congestion
- A previous crash (“rubbernecking”)
- Being unfamiliar with the roadway
- Roadway issues (construction, potholes, shifting lanes, etc.).
- Failing to yield where appropriate
- Illegal handling or maneuvering of the vehicle
How Can a Truck Accident Attorney Help Me After an Accident?
You may be wondering if you have grounds to sue after an accident with a large truck that left you with injuries. In many cases, the answer is yes. But, you will want an experienced truck accident attorney to take the lead on your case and help you develop a winning legal strategy to recover compensation for all of your injuries, losses, and damages.
The most important thing that a truck accident attorney can do is help you determine liability in your case. If a truck driver loses control of their vehicle, they put everyone around them at a high risk of injury because of both the size and weight of their truck and their inability to quickly maneuver the rig to safety. Large truck accidents can involve multiple liable parties, including the truck driver and the truck driver’s company.
Ali Awad, the CEO Lawyer, offers no-obligation consultations of truck accident cases. You have nothing to lose by calling his office and discussing the details of your case. This can help you determine your next steps and course of action after you have been injured in a truck accident.
Proving Truck Driver Negligence
Your attorney’s most important role will be determining who is liable for your accident and actively pursuing a settlement with the insurance company based on the facts of the case that you provide during your consultation.
A major part of determining fault is establishing negligence. In order to prove that the truck driver was acting negligently, your attorney will gather evidence to establish:
- The driver of the large truck had a duty of care to other drivers. Truck drivers must take reasonable actions to prevent accidents.
- The driver breached or failed to meet the duty of care established, and this action or failure to act resulted in your accident.
- Finally, your attorney must draw a link between the accident and your injuries. They must show that your injuries, damages, and losses are the direct result of the accident caused by the truck driver’s negligence.
By proving negligence, your lawyer will establish fault in your truck accident case. However, the driver may not be fully or wholly to blame for the accident. In some circumstances, your truck accident lawyer will go after the trucking company, as well.
Holding the Trucking Company Liable For Your Accident
In some cases and in some states, determining fault in your truck accident may not be straightforward. In these situations, you want an experienced truck accident attorney working for you. A regular person may not know about shared liability in an accident. If you do not and you fail to hold the trucking company liable in addition to the driver, you could be missing out on a large settlement that will help you pay for outstanding damages and medical bills.
As mentioned above, the trucking industry is growing rapidly. Due to the pandemic, companies are having a hard time finding and keeping good drivers. This can lead to poor hiring and training protocols that lead to severe accidents.
A good accident attorney can help you establish a case against the trucking company if it is determined that they acted negligently in hiring and training. Some of the most common ways in which you can prove partial or total company liability is by establishing:
- The company failed to obtain a background check that would reveal a driver’s previous traffic record, including violations and convictions for DUI or reckless driving.
- The company did not properly train the employee and allowed them to operate a large truck without adequate knowledge or experience.
- The company failed to maintain its equipment, which led to mechanical failure.
Trucking companies are under immense pressure to hire and retain drivers for positions that require long hours on the road away from their families. This can lead to turnover due to burnout. However, no staffing shortage is worth endangering the lives of truck drivers or drivers of passenger vehicles.
What Type of Compensation Can I Expect?
Injuries resulting from an accident with a large truck can be severe. Some injuries may continue to impact you for the rest of your life. If this describes your case, you are entitled to compensation to pay for your medical bills and expenses – both current and future. But that is not all. If you hire a personal injury attorney to represent you after an accident with a large truck, you can expect them to demand a settlement that covers:
- Current and future medical expenses that relate to the injury you sustained during the accident. This includes your emergency room visit, surgical costs, assistive devices, rehabilitation, and ongoing care.
- Lost wages and loss of earning capacity. You may be out of work for an extended period of time. You are entitled to the wages you lost as well as any future wages you will be missing due to your injury.
- Non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, and mental anguish. You have a right to compensation for the pain you experienced following the accident. Not all pain is physical. If you develop depression, anxiety, or PTSD after your accident, you deserve remuneration for these burdens, as well.
Finding a Truck Accident Law Firm
If you have been injured in an accident involving a large truck, you may be tempted to take on the insurance company alone in order to save time and maximize your settlement. However, this is not advised. Large truck accidents can have multiple liable parties, and you can be sure that the trucking company will hire their legal representation to protect their interests. You must remember that a business is going to protect its bottom line above all else. You need to have the same attitude.
The CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm has the knowledge and experience you are looking for to represent you in a case against a truck driver or a trucking company. Ali Awad does not accept lowball offers, and you can be sure he will work hard to get you the maximum settlement for your personal injury case.
After an accident, your first steps should be contacting emergency services and seeking medical treatment for any injuries you sustained during the accident. Your second step should be contacting Ali Awad for a free consultation of your case. The CEO Lawyer will ask you questions about your case and provide you with information on what you should do next to protect your interests and pursue compensation for your injuries, losses, and damages.
Ali Awad, Trucking Accident Lawyer
Ali Awad is also known as the CEO Lawyer because he turned a small, local firm into an eight-figure business in just three short years. Ali Awad is a fierce negotiator that doesn’t back down from a fight with tough insurance companies. If you have the CEO Lawyer representing you, you can be sure that he will not accept a lowball offer and will take your case to court if needed.
The CEO Lawyer is followed by millions on social media because he is a trusted source of sound legal advice. If you have questions about an accident with a large truck in which you were injured, call his firm today at (833) 254-2923 for a no-obligation consultation of your case.
