Lake City Truck Accident Injury Attorneys

Large commercial trucks and tractor-trailers are heavy, difficult to maneuver, and can obstruct other drivers' views, making them some of the most dangerous vehicles on the road under any conditions. A crash with one of these vehicles near Lake City can leave a victim facing significant medical bills, permanent disability, and lost wages. The Lake City truck accident attorneys at Walker, Billingsley & Bair want local residents to understand how insurance companies handle these claims, who can be held liable, and how to protect a claim from start to finish.

Semi Truck Accidents: Insurance Companies, Damages, and Liability

No matter what type of truck accident you have experienced near Lake City, you are likely dealing with significant medical bills and lost wages as a result. To fight for damages, you will have to file a truck accident claim with the responsible insurance company. Once this has been done, the insurance company will send an adjuster to evaluate your damages. Keep in mind that an adjuster works for the insurance company and generally will not have your best interests in mind.

Insurance Industry Tricks to Watch For

Some of the insurance industry tactics you must be careful of include an adjuster who underestimates the value of your claim, an adjuster who delays an investigation in an attempt to frustrate you into accepting their settlement offer, and an insurer that uses its own medical professionals to downplay your injury or claim you had a pre-existing condition. If the insurer refuses to pay you what you deserve, you may have to pursue compensation through a lawsuit.

Determining Liability After a Truck Accident

In a truck accident lawsuit, you will have to prove that the defendant's negligence was the cause of your personal injuries, and you may be able to claim damages from several responsible parties. These parties may include the driver of the truck, the trucking or shipping company, the safety director of the company, the vehicle inspector, or the manufacturer of the truck. An attorney can investigate your case to determine liability and represent your interests, so you can focus on recovery instead of dealing with insurance adjusters and tedious settlement negotiations.

The Five Most Common Types of Fatal Semi Truck Accidents

The five most common types of fatal truck accidents include underride accidents, which occur when smaller passenger vehicles drive underneath large commercial trucks, override accidents, which occur when a larger commercial truck drives over a smaller vehicle, motorcycle, or pedestrian, jackknife accidents, which can occur when a semi suddenly hits its brakes and the trailer folds into the truck, head-on collisions, and rollovers. A truck accident will not necessarily fall within one of these categories, but they represent the most common scenarios.

Commercial Truck Accident Liability for Delivery Drivers

A delivery truck is considered a commercial vehicle, and when an accident involving a delivery truck or another commercial vehicle type occurs, the injuries are often very serious. If you have been involved in an accident with a commercial vehicle near Lake City, here is what you need to know about liability.

Who Is Liable for an Accident Caused by a Commercial Driver?

In the majority of cases, one of two parties will be held liable when an accident involving a commercial vehicle occurs: the driver of the vehicle or the company that owns the truck. If the driver of the truck is an employee of the trucking company, the company will usually be held liable under the legal doctrine of respondeat superior, which means an employer is liable for the actions of its employees while they are acting within the scope of their employment.

If the driver of the delivery truck is an independent contractor, the driver may be held liable rather than the company that contracted him or her. In some cases, neither the driver nor the trucking company will be held liable, such as when a product malfunctions or a defective part on the truck caused the crash. Instead, the manufacturer of the truck or a truck part, the shipper, or even the party responsible for loading the truck's cargo may be held liable.

How to Prove Liability

If you have been in an accident caused by a commercial driver near Lake City, you will have to prove the negligence of the at-fault party. Examples of negligence may include failing to perform an inspection of or maintenance on the vehicle, improper loading of cargo, impaired driving, speeding, aggressive driving, or failure to adhere to traffic laws. Negligence is essentially any time someone acts, or fails to act, reasonably, as compared to what another person in the same situation would do. You will need to prepare yourself for the trucking company to investigate the crash on its own.

Protecting Your Truck Accident Claim: What Lake City Victims Need to Know

Regardless of which law firm a Lake City accident victim chooses to represent them, a handful of core principles are critical to receiving a fair and just settlement after a truck accident.

Tell Your Doctor Everything That Hurts

One of the most critical pieces of evidence is how you feel and how your injuries have affected your ability to function on a daily basis. Your doctor is required to keep accurate and detailed records of your medical history and care, including your description of how you were injured, your physical complaints, your injuries, the doctor's examination findings, and the treatment you received. The insurance company will base its offer to you on this critical information. If you fail to tell the doctor everything that hurts, it will not be treated properly, and no one will know about it. If you first begin to complain about a problem weeks or even months after you were hurt, the insurance company will claim the problem was not related to the accident and reduce its settlement offer.

Follow Your Doctor's Orders

If your doctor tells you to get therapy several days a week but you only go once, you will damage your claim. The insurance company will argue that you could not have been truly injured, or you would have followed your doctor's recommendations, and will reduce its settlement offer to you as a result.

Keep a Diary to Document Your Injuries

Few people ever think to write down how they felt after a wreck. You need to remember the details of your injury and how you felt on a day-to-day basis. A diary helps provide an accurate account of your injuries and how they affected your ability to function on a daily basis. Your diary can help prove the extent of your injuries and may mean a higher evaluation of your claim.

Keep Documentation Regarding Missed Work

It is important to keep track of the time you missed from work. This includes keeping doctors' excuses for missed work and documenting the time you miss for medical appointments.

Be Careful What You Say

The insurance company and its lawyers will use anything and everything you tell them against you. No matter what, do not lie. Even a small lie can ruin your credibility. The best policy is to always tell the truth, so you never have to worry about what you said.