Commercial truck accidents are often far more serious than typical car crashes due to the massive size and weight of commercial vehicles. Delivery trucks and tractor-trailers can cause devastating injuries and fatalities when they collide with smaller passenger vehicles.
If you were injured in a truck collision, an experienced Richmond Hill truck accident lawyer can help you navigate the complex state and federal laws that apply to commercial trucking cases. Multiple parties may be responsible for your injuries, including the driver, trucking company, or maintenance provider. The personal injury attorneys at Bowen Painter Injury Lawyers can investigate your case and fight for the compensation you deserve.
What Are Common Causes of Commercial Truck Accidents?
The causes of commercial vehicle accidents are similar to those of standard passenger vehicle collisions, such as distracted driving, speeding, and failure to follow traffic laws. However, commercial truck accidents have some unique causes as well, including:
- Distracted, impaired, or fatigued driving: Federal regulations have a zero-tolerance level for drinking, texting, and other distractions, but drivers are often pushed by their companies to keep unrealistic schedules
- Blind spots: Huge blind spots to the sides and rear of the trailer make it hard for truck drivers making lane changes to see smaller vehicles traveling in those spots or pinned by traffic
- Mechanical failures: Caused by poor maintenance, overloading, or product defects not recognized by the manufacturer.
- Poor weather: Low visibility and high speeds increase the risk of a crash, and all other causes of accidents are made worse by wet, icy, or slippery roads
The multiple possible causes of a truck accident mean that accident victims must be prepared to show liability on the part of more than one party. The experienced attorneys from our Richmond Hill team can help you navigate this process after a collision with a commercial vehicle.
Proving Liability in a Commercial Vehicle Accident
The most essential thing you need after a commercial truck crash is evidence. Our legal team can help demonstrate that the truck driver was at fault, as well as any others who may have contributed to the Richmond Hill accident. The driver’s employer may try to blame the driver so their insurer does not have to pay. To avoid this, our attorneys need to gather other information.
Witness statements, photos of the scene, and the truck’s electronic logging device (ELD) could help prove who else may have been responsible for the accident. The ELD is similar to an airplane’s flight data recorder. It will show when the truck was last serviced, how fast it was driven at the time of the accident, and when the driver last took a rest break.
This data and other essential information are needed for your insurance claim, and if your case goes to court. Our attorneys can explain what else is necessary to help support your case.
Contact Our Richmond Hill Lawyers After a Truck Accident
Obtaining documentation in a commercial vehicle case is subject to strict deadlines. The attorneys at Bowen Painter Injury Law could help you get the ELD data before it is erased or deleted, and other information from the trucking company you may need to build your case. We assist with filing your claim with all companies involved and work hard to secure the compensation you need after your accident.
Contact a Richmond Hill truck accident lawyer from our firm today to share your story and schedule a free consultation.
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