How a Truck Accident Case is Handled

Every year a staggering number of people in California and across the country are involved in accidents caused by commercial vehicles. Often such accidents turn fatal because of the sheer size and weight of the trucks.

Whenever trucks are involved in an accident trucking laws come into play and therefore victims ought to contact a California truck accident lawyer who specializes in handling accidents caused by big rigs, semis, and 18-wheelers. This is the best way to ensure that they have the best chance to get maximum compensation in a truck accident claim. 

How do the truck accident attorneys deal with cases?

Some law firms have accident re-constructionists on their team who are dispatched immediately to investigate the scene of the accident or they have an independent contractor they know who can be depended on. The re-constructionist’s job is to photograph the accident scene and gather evidence. They will also co-ordinate with investigating law enforcement officers to obtain as much information as possible. It is important that the re-constructionist reaches the site within 48 hours because much evidence such as tire marks and skid marks could disappear. 

These tire marks could disappear because of the elements related to Mother Nature, other cars driving over them, and even some of the clean-up process could damage the truck accident scene.

The movie Speed did not have a truck smashing through everything, it had a bus but just like a truck, buses are large and massive and carry with them a lot of kinetic energy. If you are hit by anything this large you will know it. If your car does not have safety measures built in, you could be in trouble. Truck accidents are serious business, a truck can be a massive threat on the road if the truck has not been maintained or the driver does not have a full grasp on how to operate such a machine, certainly when pulling a long trailer like it does.

Now if the truck has to maintain a speed of at least 50 mph no matter what, that is even more worrisome!  

Most likely a bomb is not involved but this website (Truck-Accident.USAttorneys) should be. If you need legal assistance, that website should be your go to tool. Outstanding truck accident lawyers are listed on this site.

Evidence Preservation

According to Mesa, CA truck accident lawyers one of the important documents in an accident case is the spoliation of evidence letter to the trucking company asking the company and its insurance provider to preserve physical evidence and to handover a copies of certain documents to the firm for inspection. This is in addition to documents relating to the driver and the unit.

The letter must clarify why these documents are important in relation to the cause of action issued by your client. If the accident is a result of a manufacturing defect then the company must retain and maintain defective parts including tow bars and rear guards.

Mesa, CA truck accident attorneys proclaim that another important task is to request the trucking company involved to remove the ECM or electronic control module from the vehicle and keep it aside for later inspection.

ECMs are basically electronic recorders that capture data pertaining to the tractor’s operations such as speed, engine controls, and system operations. The investigator can download the data and study the patterns to determine if the unit suffered from mechanical issues that could have contributed to the accident.

Filing the Claim

Before filing a personal injury lawsuit, a legal counselor will find out if the manufacturer of the trailer or the tractor can be named in a product liability suit. They can also file a claim against shippers and brokers. In addition, many states have direct action statutes which enable you to make the insurer partly liable for the accident especially if they have been party to the negligent hiring of the driver if the driver was not qualified. Sometimes illegal aliens are hired who do not know English and cannot read road signs.  

The claim can contain the following allegations like negligent maintenance and inspection, negligent hiring, punitive damages, driver fatigue, and FMCSR violations.

List of Documents Demanded from Your Legal Representative

• Evidence of the driver’s qualification
• Logs by the driver covering at least 8 days prior to the accident
• Inspection reports for 3 months
• Annual Inspection Report
• Maintenance repair records for a year preceding the accident
• ECM Data
• Data Printouts from other recording devices
• Post-accident alcohol and drug test reports
• Accident register covering time period preceding the accident
• Procedure and policy manuals
• Hotels receipts, weight tickets, bill of lading for the 8 day span just before the accident
• Trailer tracking system messages

If you are severely injured in a truck accident, you have the right to be compensated for both economic and non-economic damages. However, it would be wise to seek help from a truck accident lawyer in California.