Alta Truck Accident Injury Attorneys

Truck accidents in Alta can happen in more ways than a straightforward collision. A vehicle can be struck by falling cargo without the truck itself ever making contact, and Iowa truck drivers who spend much of their time on the road may be hurt outside the state entirely, raising complicated legal questions. No matter the circumstances, insurance companies rarely make the claims process easy for injured Iowans. Below, we explain your rights after being struck by falling cargo, what happens when an Iowa truck driver is hurt out of state, and what insurance companies do not want you to know.

Struck by Falling Cargo in Alta? You May Still Have a Truck Accident Claim

Drivers struck by falling cargo from a large truck can file a truck accident claim. This is called an unsecured load, and unfortunately, most truck accident lawyers are very familiar with this situation. Many times cargo is secured inside a tractor trailer, but sometimes the cargo is not enclosed in a trailer. Cargo such as pipes, logs, and boxes may be exposed, and if it is not secure, it can enter the roadway and create a very dangerous hazard.

Filing a Truck Accident Claim for Falling Cargo

Even if the truck does not physically crash into another vehicle, victims of accidents caused by falling cargo can still file a truck accident claim. This is because truck drivers and companies have a responsibility to keep cargo secure so that others are not injured, and truck drivers have a duty to drive safely so that cargo does not fall off the trailer and into the path of other vehicles. A driver must suffer damages or injuries caused by the falling cargo to file a claim, since simply witnessing cargo fall off a trailer does not warrant a claim on its own.

Determining Accident Liability

Determining liability is the most important part of a claim like this. If the truck driver was the one who loaded the cargo, he or she may be held responsible for causing the accident. If another employee of the trucking or shipping company loaded the cargo, that employee may bear some responsibility. If the driver is hauling cargo for a trucking or shipping company, the truck company may be liable under a law called respondeat superior, meaning the company bears liability for any injuries or harmful acts caused by employees during the course of their employment. To hold the company liable, the victim must be able to prove that the truck driver or another employee of the trucking company was negligent. If a third party loaded the cargo, that party may be found to hold accident liability. Product defects are another possibility, since if the cargo was securely loaded but a defect with the trailer led to the cargo coming loose, the manufacturer of the trailer could hold accident liability. Multiple parties could also be at fault in these cases, which is why an Alta truck accident attorney can review the facts and help establish liability.

Iowa Truck Driver Hurt Out of State

Iowa is home to more than 20 trucking companies that hire employees from all over the United States and operate in most states. Depending on the agreement between the employer and the truck driver, along with other factors like where the driver was physically located when hired and how often they work from Iowa, jurisdiction over an out-of-state injury can become complicated.

Does Iowa Have Jurisdiction for Your Work Injury?

Iowa Code Section 85.71 determines whether a workers' compensation case can be successfully brought in Iowa. A few things factor into this determination. If you were injured in Iowa while working, Iowa Code has subject matter jurisdiction over personal injuries sustained by an employee arising out of and in the course of employment within the state. If your employer has a place of business in Iowa, you work under a contract stating your claims are governed by Iowa law, and you regularly work in Iowa, some trucking companies enter into contracts specifically giving Iowa jurisdiction over work injuries regardless of where they occur, so it is important to check the language of your contract.

What Counts as Regularly Working From Iowa?

Another factor is whether your employer has a place of business in Iowa and you regularly work at or from that place of business, even without a signed contract stating Iowa has jurisdiction. One of the biggest issues in these cases is what regularly working from an Iowa business actually means. This has been defined to not require a majority of your time be spent in Iowa, but rather whether it is usual or customary for the employee to work out of the employer's terminal in Iowa as the home terminal, picking up loads in the state and transporting loads within or through it, without any specific quantity of time required. Whether your contract of hire was made in Iowa also matters, which is generally interpreted based on where you were physically located when you agreed to become employed. If you were in Iowa when you accepted the job offer and you regularly work in Iowa, jurisdiction is more likely to apply, but if you accepted the offer while in another state, Iowa likely does not have jurisdiction under this section. Finally, if your contract of hire was made in Iowa and you have no remedy under another state's workers' compensation laws, that can also support Iowa jurisdiction, since some states do not allow jurisdiction even for an injury within their borders if your employer is based elsewhere and did not pay into that state's system.

What Insurance Companies Do Not Want Alta Truck Accident Victims to Know

Insurance companies are some of the richest and most powerful corporations in the country. Each year they donate significant sums to politicians in an attempt to reduce the rights and compensation available to hardworking Iowans so they can make more profit. However, what they do not control are the judges and juries that ultimately decide the amount of compensation owed after a truck accident or other injury.

The Insurance Company Is Legally Allowed to Mislead You

There is no law requiring the insurance company for the other side to tell you the truth or act in your best interests. This is why an adjuster will sometimes act like your friend and try to build trust, especially when your injuries are serious. It is a bad idea to trust an adjuster, since their job is to pay you as little as possible, and they may receive promotions or bonuses for building a track record of underpaying claims.

You Do Not Have to Give a Recorded Statement

An adjuster may tell you a recorded statement is required to evaluate your claim, but in reality you have no obligation to provide one. They want a recorded statement so they can ask questions in a way that can later be used against you, since an unprepared answer about prior injuries or health history could seriously damage your credibility and your case.

Their "Final Offer" Is Usually Not Their Best Offer

Often during negotiations, an insurance company will say they are presenting their final offer, but this is usually not the case. There is little downside to proposing a counteroffer, since it is unlikely they will withdraw what they have already offered. Sometimes it takes filing a lawsuit and going through that process to get to their actual best offer.