When injured during serious truck accidents, victims may pursue compensatory damages with help from our attorneys.
Commercial trucks might strike passenger cars because of driver error, vehicle malfunction, or improper cargo loading, among other reasons. Even if an accident happened solely because of a truck driver’s negligence, their employer may share liability, and our lawyers can verify this after reviewing the accident’s circumstances and confirming the driver’s employment status. After any truck accident, victims should seek immediate care, as they may have to establish they sustained serious injuries to get compensation via lawsuits. Getting instant medical treatment can also enable our lawyers to prove causation, a crucial element of personal injury lawsuits, and help us establish a victim’s damages, both economic and non-economic.
Call the truck accident lawyers of The Martello Law Firm, PLLC at (914) 685-6950 for a free case evaluation.
Truck Accident Causes in Peekskill, NY
Commercial truck accidents can happen for many reasons, including driver error, vehicle malfunction, and overloading or improperly securing cargo. Identifying your accident’s cause is paramount, as this will indicate who our attorneys should include in your compensation claim.
Driver Error
Most truck accidents happen because of driver error. Commercial truck drivers might work long hours and, despite federal regulations limiting how long they can drive without taking breaks to sleep, might fall asleep at the wheel or drive fatigued. Drowsy driving might lead to serious accidents, like T-bone collisions, especially if trucks veer into lanes of oncoming traffic.
Other negligent acts that lead to truck accidents include speeding, making illegal turns, ignoring another driver’s right of way, and recklessly merging onto highways or into other lanes. Even when accidents happen because of driver error, the driver’s employer may be liable if they were working at the time. This is often the case in commercial vehicle accidents, and our truck accident lawyers may be able to hold trucking companies vicariously liable for collisions, injuries, and damages.
Vehicle Malfunction
Like any car, commercial semi trucks and other large vehicles need regular inspections and maintenance to ensure proper operation. Typically, this burden falls on the trucking company that owns the vehicle. Vehicle malfunctions that might lead to serious accidents include brake failure, loss of steering control, and transmission issues. Ignoring vehicle defects or failing to identify them could make a truck owner, likely a commercial trucking company, liable for any injuries or damages from an accident.
Overloading or Improperly Loading Cargo
Large commercial trucks transport goods and other materials, making proper loading paramount. Poorly secured items could shift while a truck moves, leading to unsafe weight distribution. This could cause drivers to temporarily lose steering control, possibly swerving into other lanes and causing accidents. Exceeding weight limits for cargo could lead to similar issues, and trucks might even topple over when turning. Overloaded trucks might be harder to steer and could even have longer stopping distances, potentially increasing the risk of rear-end collisions with passenger cars sharing the road.
The Importance of Seeking Medical Attention for Truck Accident Injuries in Peekskill, NY
You must seek immediate medical care from the appropriate physicians after a truck crash for several reasons, including proving you meet the serious injury threshold and may file a claim to recover both economic and non-economic damages. Immediate medical records from paramedics and emergency rooms can help prove causation, and your records from continuous treatment can show your damages from the accident.
To Meet the Serious Injury Threshold
According to I.S.C. Law § 5104(a), victims of auto accidents, including truck crashes, may only file lawsuits after suffering serious injuries or incurring a basic economic loss of $50,000. Death is a serious injury, and a victim’s personal representative may file a wrongful death claim in the event of a fatal truck accident in Peekskill. Dismembering and seriously disfiguring injuries are also serious, meaning victims may sue for limb loss or disfiguring burn injuries. Certain permanent injuries to body organs, members, functions, and systems are considered serious, as are injuries that pass the 90/180 rule. To qualify to sue under the 90/180 rule, victims must have sustained injuries that prevent them from engaging in normal daily activities for at least half of the first 180 days after a collision.
You need medical records to show you can get compensation through a lawsuit, which requires you to seek medical attention from physicians immediately after an accident and throughout your physical recovery.
To Prove Causation
Causation is a crucial part of all personal injury claims. It is the link between the at-fault party’s negligence and the victim’s injuries. Delaying medical attention could raise questions about causation, especially if your records do not line up with the crash’s date or circumstances. It is also important for victims to document their injuries exactly as they are immediately after an accident and ensure they do not worsen, as a negligent party may contest liability for medical costs due to a victim delaying medical care.
To Prove Your Damages
Medical records help solidify and prove your economic damages, as treatment comes with bills. Victims may receive countless invoices throughout their physical recoveries, and our lawyers can help keep this information organized so that we can present proof of damages to back up compensation requests. Do not stop receiving treatment out of concern for the cost, as the defendant should cover all reasonable and necessary medical expenses. In addition to helping prove your economic losses from a truck accident, going to the hospital and getting continuous care from physicians can help support requests for non-economic damages. The extensive treatment associated with serious injuries can contribute to a victim’s pain and suffering, which may already be considerable after a traumatic collision.
Call Our Peekskill, NY Attorneys for Help with Your Accident Case
Call our truck accident lawyers at (914) 685-6950 for a free case assessment from The Martello Law Firm, PLLC.
