You can sue the trucking company after being injured in a truck accident. Suing the trucking company may be possible if the trucking company engaged in negligence. If a truck driver caused your accident, you may also sue their employer (the trucking company), even if their employer was not negligent.
There can be circumstances where a trucking company is not liable for a truck accident. However, there are many cases where a trucking company or their insurer must pay for damages to an accident victim.
A Truck Accident Lawyer Will Determine Who Owes You Money
Diagnosing liability is usually not a truck accident victim’s area of experience. Your job is not as a lawyer, and you may not know where to start when seeking compensation for accident-related damages.
Because of their training and job, a truck accident lawyer is the perfect person to determine who owes you money. They will make this determination by:
- Obtaining your account of the truck accident: You were in the accident, so your account of the collision will be one of the most valuable resources your lawyer can rely on. Because the attorney-client relationship is built on trust, your lawyer will put stock in your memory of the collision.
- Reviewing all evidence: A wise truck accident attorney lets the evidence tell the story of a collision. Witness testimony, video, and other evidence will help your lawyer learn why the accident happened and, by extension, who is financially responsible for your damages.
- Consulting experts: Experts can help establish liability for a truck accident, particularly when fault for the accident is not obvious. An expert may provide their opinion, reconstruct an accident, and contribute in other ways that help a lawyer determine liability for a client’s damages.
- Relying on their legal training to establish liability: Attorneys understand what it means to be at fault, as well as what it means to be liable. Your lawyer will rely on their legal training and experience as they make the case that others (possibly including a trucking company) owe you compensation.
You may have some idea who caused your accident. However, diagnosing liability requires more than knowing who is at fault. Let an experienced truck accident attorney determine for certain who must pay the cost of your accident-related damages.
Lawyers Look for Negligence When Determining Liability for a Truck Accident
The first step in determining liability for a truck accident is figuring out who is at fault for the collision. As your lawyer is investigating your accident to determine fault, they will look for signs of negligence by a trucking company, truck driver, or other parties.
When your lawyer has identified negligent parties, they will make the case that:
- The negligent parties owed you a duty of care that compelled them to act as a reasonable party would in the same circumstance.
- The negligent parties breached their duties of care by acting unreasonably.
- The breach of duty of care caused the truck accident in which you suffered injury.
- You have suffered damages due to the liable parties’ breaches of duty of care.
One or more parties can be negligent in causing a truck accident. Consider, for example, that a trucking company hires a driver who does not have the skill or experience necessary to operate a truck safely. The driver proceeds to cause an accident because of their lack of skill. Both parties will be negligent and likely be liable for a victim’s damages.
How a Trucking Company’s Negligence May Have Led to Your Accident
A trucking company is an employer who, like a parent overseeing a child, is responsible for drivers’ actions. If the driver causes an accident, the trucking company likely shares liability. That said, a trucking company can directly contribute to a truck accident by:
Hiring Thoughtlessly
Trucking companies may be desperate for drivers or other employees, especially as driver shortages continue. Yet, safety must always be a top concern, and trucking companies must never compromise on hiring standards.
Thoughtless or careless hiring includes signing drivers or other employees who:
- Are physically unfit for the demands of the job
- Are not cognitively sharp enough to handle the rigorous mental demands of trucking
- Are emotionally or psychologically unstable (which may increase the likelihood of road rage and dangerous driving)
- Have a poor driving record
- Have a recent history of drug or alcohol abuse that may suggest an active addiction
- Lack any necessary credentials, including but not limited to a commercial driver’s license (CDL)
Hiring only qualified, skilled drivers (and other employees) is the first of many steps that can reduce the risk of truck accidents. If a trucking company hired someone who was unqualified or unfit, the trucking company should pay for any resulting accident.
Allowing Drivers’ Negligence to Go Unpunished
Trucking companies can monitor their drivers’ driving practices by:
- Placing speed monitors and restrictors in trucks
- Installing and monitoring inward-facing cameras that show the trucker while driving
- Installing and monitoring outward-facing cameras
- Acting on tips from the public about dangerous driving by truckers
Speeding, tailgating, and other dangerous driving activities warrant discipline by a trucking company. When a company fails to discipline negligent drivers swiftly and seriously, they condone the driver’s dangerous behaviors.
Failing to Service and Replace Defective Vehicles
Though some truck drivers own their vehicles, many operate the trucking company’s truck. This is why trucking companies are often responsible for defective cabs and cargo trailers.
A trucking company must:
- Regularly inspect its trucks.
- Complete regular maintenance and service.
- Replace trucks and trailers that are outdated or beyond repair.
- Instruct drivers and other employees about best inspection and maintenance practices.
- Discipline employees who fail to complete inspections, don’t seek immediate maintenance when a problem arises or engage in other truck-related types of negligence.
A truck driver might follow the speed limit, maintain a safe distance, and engage in other safe driving practices. If their tire blows out or their brakes are shot, all their safe driving will be for naught.
Failing to Monitor Drivers’ Health and Wellbeing
Drivers themselves have the greatest capacity to cause or prevent truck accidents. For this reason, trucking companies must ensure that their drivers:
- Are generally healthy
- Are not visually impaired
- Are not using drugs or alcohol in an unsafe manner
- Are emotionally and psychologically stable
- Respect FMCSA rules and traffic laws
A trucking company must never let loyalty or profit motives trump public safety. If a truck driver is unfit to do their job, the trucking company must part ways with that driver.
Creating a Rule-Breaking Culture
Some trucking companies show a blatant disregard for the rules, which the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) might call a “serious pattern of violations.” A rule-breaking culture can include one in which:
- Employees, including drivers, are encouraged to cut corners or break rules if they can get away with it
- FMCSA violations, broken laws, and other unsafe acts go unpunished (or lightly punished)
- Drug and alcohol use is overlooked or permitted
- Outdated and defective vehicles and trailers go unreplaced because of the cost of replacing such dangerous equipment
Truck accident attorneys understand FMCSA regulations and best practices in the trucking industry. Your attorney will identify every type of negligence by a trucking company that contributed to your accident.
How a Truck Driver’s Negligence May Have Caused the Crash
Trucking companies may check all the boxes. They may hire drivers who appear qualified, monitor those driver’s performance, test for drug and alcohol use, and use safe vehicles. Yet, a driver may decide one day to engage in dangerous behavior that causes a collision, which may include:
- Speeding
- Tailgating
- Distracted driving
- Entering a roadway when it’s not safe to
- Changing lanes without checking blind spots
- Intoxicated driving
- Engaging in road rage
- Driving while tired or physically unfit
Even in these cases of obvious driver negligence, the trucking company may share financial liability for your damages.
Your Attorney Will Evaluate Other Potentially Liable Parties
While truck drivers and trucking companies are often liable for accidents, other potential defendants in a truck accident lawsuit include:
- Municipalities, which are typically responsible for road conditions
- Vehicle manufacturers, who must ensure vehicles are designed, assembled, and affixed with warnings in the proper way
- Pedestrians, who can cause accidents by entering the roadway without the right of way
- Bicyclists, who can also trigger a collision by entering the path of motor vehicles without the right of way to do so
Your attorney will have no preconceptions about who is liable for your accident. They will investigate with an open mind and let the facts and evidence lead them to liable parties.
Once Your Lawyer Determines Liability, They’ll Build Your Case
Your truck accident lawyer will quickly determine whose negligence caused your accident. They will then determine whether you should:
- File an insurance claim with the at-fault parties’ insurance provider
- File an insurance claim with your insurance provider
- Sue liable parties, which may include a trucking company
Once you and your lawyer agree on your case strategy, it will be time for your lawyer to build the case. Common steps in building truck accident cases include:
Creating a Cache of Evidence
Your attorney will secure all evidence proving the negligence of a truck driver, trucking company, or other at-fault party. Such evidence may include:
- Evidence from the trucking company, such as in-cab video footage, footage from outward-facing cameras, employment records, and black box data
- Eyewitness accounts of how the collision happened
- Video from traffic cameras or other cameras
- Any police report related to the truck accident
While you get treatment, your lawyer will interview witnesses, contact the city about traffic camera footage, and seek all other evidence to benefit your case.
Proving Your Damages
Your attorney must show how the truck accident has taken a toll on you. Helpful documentation of your damages may include:
- All accident-related medical records (including medical images)
- Medical bills
- Pre-accident income statements (to compare with post-accident income records)
- Invoices for vehicle repairs
If any other types of documentation prove the cost of your accident, trust your attorney to use that documentation in your case.
Calculating the Value of Your Damages (Then Demanding a Fair Settlement)
Your attorney will determine the precise financial value of your damages. Economic and non-economic damages will be part of your lawyer’s case valuation.
Once your lawyer knows the fair value of your case, they will seek a fair settlement from insurers or directly from liable parties.
Suing Liable Parties (If You Choose To)
Your lawyer will update you as settlement negotiations unfold. Insurance companies may be willing to pay you fairly. If they are not, you may decide (in lockstep with your lawyer) to sue a trucking company or another liable party.
Leading a Trial for You
If you sue, your attorney can continue negotiating a settlement. If no fair settlement offer arrives, your attorney may encourage you to take your case to trial. If that’s what you do, your lawyer will handle every step of the trial process.
Damages a Trucking Company (or Other Liable Party) Will Have to Pay For
Your truck accident lawyer will have a solid understanding of your damages, as many truck accident victims suffer in similar ways.
Some of the damages common to truck accident claims and lawsuits are:
- Pain and suffering
- The cost of counseling, medications, and other mental health services
- Lost income
- Diminished earning power
- Vehicle repair costs
- Medical expenses
Your injuries, symptoms, disability status, type of pain and suffering, and other unique considerations will affect your recoverable damages.
Anyone Can Afford a Lawyer After a Truck Accident
Truck accident cases are uniquely complicated. Your lawyer may need to obtain evidence from a trucking company that may not want to provide the evidence. Anyone leading a truck accident case should also understand FMCSA regulations, the technical aspects of trucks, and related information.
Let a skilled truck accident lawyer use their existing knowledge, legal experience, time, and abundant energy on your behalf.