Truck accidents are famous for being extreme. People are often severely injured or even killed, and multiple drivers may be involved. Trying to get your life back on track after a truck crash can feel overwhelming. An attorney can help you get fair compensation so you can get your life back.

Truck accidents tend to inflict massive damage. Survivors often require extensive medical care and must contend with destroyed vehicles, immense pain, and deep psychological trauma. As such, your compensation for a truck accident should be substantial. We should include the negligent trucker who caused the accident and their employer. In some cases, additional drivers or third parties may be implicated. Our lawyer can help you begin your case.

Ask our truck accident attorneys for a private, free case assessment when you call Schoenfeld Law Firm at (504) 688-7760.

Damages to Consider in Your Truck Accident Case

Truck crashes are often much more severe than your average vehicle accident. As such, damages are often much more substantial. Your specific damages will depend on your situation, and you should discuss all of them with your lawyer.

Medical Costs

Truck accident victims often have severe injuries. Broken bones, lacerations, and internal organ damage may be just the tip of the iceberg. Some victims experience catastrophic injuries, and they may live with medical complications or disabilities for a long time or for life. Injuries like spinal cord damage, traumatic brain injuries, and amputations are not unheard of and may lead to astronomical medical costs.

Property Damage

Trucks are large, heavy, and fast; a perfect recipe for a highway disaster. As you can imagine, when trucks crash into other vehicles, the other vehicles are often destroyed. Personal items inside these vehicles may also be damaged or lost at the accident scene. Be sure to account for all your property costs when calculating damages.

Lost Earnings and Income

Severe injuries usually require victims to leave their jobs for a while to recover. This might mean taking a few weeks off or taking a much longer leave of absence. Some people may never fully return to work and may need to quit their jobs with no other source of income. Your attorney can help you determine how much income you have lost and how much you will likely continue to lose and add it to your claims for damages.

Pain and Suffering

The physical, mental, and emotional pain, suffering, and anguish you experience because of a truck accident can be immense. Your physical injuries may be excruciating, and the pain may last for some time. At the same time, you may be reeling from the psychological trauma of the accident and how it has changed your life. These damages may warrant significant compensation.

Will the Truck Driver Face Criminal Charges After an Accident?

Maybe. The truck driver’s actions might constitute a criminal offense, and police will likely look for signs of criminal behavior during their investigation. If the truck driver is charged and prosecuted, your civil lawsuit may have to wait until criminal proceedings are complete.

If the truck driver is found guilty or pleads guilty in criminal court, we may use the verdict or the plea as evidence in your civil lawsuit. Even if the truck driver is found not guilty in criminal court, you may still sue them in civil court. The standard is different between civil and criminal cases.

Suing a Truck Driver for a Crash

Of course, we must include the negligent truck driver, as they are likely a primary defendant. Trucker negligence is a common cause of accidents and may include, but is not limited to, the following:

• Reckless driving
• Speeding
• Driving while distracted
• Tired driving
• Failing to signal

When You Can Sue Trucking Companies for Truck Accidents in Houma, LA

If we believe the truck driver is directly responsible for the accident, we should also include their employer, the trucking company, in the lawsuit.

Vicarious Liability/Respondeat Superior

The trucking company may be held vicariously liable simply because it hired the truck driver. Under the legal doctrine of respondeat superior, employers may be held vicariously liable for injuries caused by negligent employees if the employees were acting within the normal scope of their jobs.

Direct Liability

If, for whatever reason, vicarious liability does not apply, we may seek to have the trucking company held directly liable. For example, if the trucking company knew the truck driver had an alcohol problem but hired them anyway, and the truck driver was intoxicated when they caused the accident, the company may be directly liable for negligent hiring.

What if Multiple Injured Drivers Sue for the Same Truck Accident?

Others may be hurt in the same truck crash as you, and they may pursue their own lawsuits. Your claim should remain independent. However, the court may combine various aspects of all the plaintiffs’ cases to make trying them more efficient. It may be possible to pool evidence and resources with other plaintiffs so everyone’s cases are stronger.

When cases involve many plaintiffs, courts may certify them as a class action. However, this is generally only possible with larger numbers of plaintiffs, usually about 40 or more. While smaller groups may be certified as class actions, this is unusual.

Are Truck Drivers at Fault if They Violated Trucking Laws?

In truck crash cases, we may be able to argue negligence per se if the truck driver violated federal trucking regulations. Negligence per se is a form of negligence that arises directly from violating certain rules, regulations, or laws.

For example, federal regulations limit how long a truck driver may be on the road. If a trucker exceeds these hours before causing an accident, we can argue that the violation makes them inherently negligent.

How Video Footage Affects Truck Accident Claims

Our truck accident lawyers can check the area for private security cameras and traffic cameras. You or other drivers might have had dashcams in your vehicles. The truck likely has security cameras equipped. Cameras may monitor the inside of the cab where the truck driver sits and the road in front of the truck. Whatever footage exists, we must obtain it quickly before it is inadvertently deleted.

Can You Get Evidence From a Truck’s Event Data Recorder?

Large trucks are often equipped with event data recorders (EDRs), also called black box devices. These devices record data about the truck’s mechanical actions, such as speed, acceleration rates, braking, and crash data.

Trucks may also have electronic logging devices (ELDs) that record the driver’s hours of service to ensure compliance with federal regulations. Data from EDRs and ELDs may be crucial to investigating the accident and proving what happened and who is responsible.

Speak to Our Truck Accident Attorneys in Houma, LA About Your Legal Claims

Ask our truck accident attorneys for a private, free case assessment when you call Schoenfeld Law Firm at (504) 688-7760.