On the roads of Terre Haute, Indiana, a truck accident can instantaneously upend your life. Even minor collisions with a commercial truck can leave you with significant trauma and severe injury.
Cargo-carrying commercial trucks weigh, on average, between 10,000 and 85,000 pounds. In comparison, an average car weighs between 2,600 and 3,000 pounds and an SUV weighs between 3,000 and 3,500 pounds. Thus, a collision between a truck and a passenger vehicle can cause catastrophic damage.
As you attempt to recover from the emotional and physical trauma of a truck accident, you may find yourself suffocating under the weight of an unexpected financial and daily life toll. Where can you turn for help? Is there any way to legally recoup what you’ve lost?
A truck accident lawyer in Terre Haute may be able to support your road to recovery by standing beside you in your pursuit of justice. You shouldn’t have to navigate legal waters on your own. Discover how the truck accident attorneys of Yosha Law can help.
What you need to know about Terre Haute truck accidents
You may not have control over the possibility of a truck accident in Terre Haute, but you might have legal avenues that you can explore on your road to just compensation. However, the complexities of a truck accident case may make it difficult to determine liability.
Although you can pursue an insurance claim and a personal injury lawsuit on your own, you may end up accepting lowball offers from the insurance companies that leave you without further legal recourse.
A lawyer in Terre Haute may be able to help ensure you receive the justice you deserve, and can advise you on every step of the claims and lawsuit processes. Your truck accident may leave you traumatized, but you don’t have to walk alone in its aftermath.
- Why truck accidents can result in severe injury
- Yosha Law truck accident lawyers in Terre Haute
- How to determine liability in a Terre Haute truck accident
- Damages in a Terre Haute truck accident case
- Contact Yosha Law
Why truck accidents can result in severe injury
Although any accident can cause emotional, mental, and physical injury, the mass and weight of trucks present many safety risks in a collision with other vehicles. It’s important not to follow a truck too closely, and to remain on high alert and caution when passing a big rig on the highway.
Each year, commercial trucks travel over 300 billion miles on U.S. roads. If you drive on non-residential highways, chances are that you’ll share the road with numerous big rigs and semi trucks.
Some of the reasons truck accidents can result in severe injury or even fatalities include:
- Commercial trucks take 40% longer to come to a full stop than passenger vehicles
- Traveling at highway speeds of 65 mph, the average car needs 316 feet to completely stop: A truck requires 525 feet to fully stop
- Improper maintenance and incorrectly retreaded tires can fall off semi trucks and cause great safety hazards that lead to collisions
- High winds can cause a truck driver to lose control of their vehicle, and can even topple a truck over or cause a truck to jackknife
- Commercial trucks often carry toxic or hazardous material as cargo. A spill of hazardous materials can endanger anyone who’s sharing the road with a truck
Yosha Law truck accident lawyers in Terre Haute
On your own, it may prove difficult for you to cut through the red tape that surrounds truck accident liability. Multiple parties may be determined to hold fault in your collision, and discerning what compensation you’re owed from each party could require an attorney.
Large insurance companies may be eager to reach a quick settlement in your personal injury case. Insurers could find ways to deny your claim, or offer you a quick, low settlement to ensure you have no valid claim for further compensation.
Yosha Law truck accident lawyers in Terre Haute understand how tempting a quick settlement can seem — you need money now to take care of mounting expenses. Nevertheless, accepting a lower amount than you are justly owed means any future expenses directly related to your collision will not be covered.
A Terre Haute truck accident lawyer can help you discern the compensatory damages you should seek in your case, and explain each step of the legal process. We’ll work tirelessly on your behalf to find the justice you’re owed.
Our truck accident lawyers can provide the following:
- Calculation of damages:
Compensatory damages fall into several categories, and it’s vital to discern what specific damages you may be owed. Our attorneys can help you to determine the damages you should seek, and calculate the monetary amount you’re owed.
- Collection of evidence:
Evidence is the foundation of your personal injury lawsuit. We’ll painstakingly gather all forensic evidence pertaining to your truck accident, including debris from the collision, photos, police reports, trucker’s driving logs and employment history, and any pertinent video evidence.
- Constant communication:
If you retain our services, our contact with you isn’t limited to an initial consultation and a settlement meeting. We’ll explore the merits of your case, explain legal terms and steps, truthfully communicate the progress of your legal claim, and answer all of your questions.
- Eyewitness interviews:
We’ll interview witnesses to your accident and those who can testify to the havoc wreaked on your personal and professional life in the aftermath of your collision. Eyewitnesses to your accident can also help our Terre Haute truck accidents determine liability in your case.
- Filing time-sensitive documents:
Your truck accident may involve mountains of time-sensitive paperwork that needs to be signed and filed. We can manage these legal documents and ensure they’re taken care of in an efficient and timely manner.
- Retention of forensic witnesses:
Forensic experts like crash reconstructionists, heavy truck experts, and medical professionals who can testify to the gravity and impact of your injuries may help to strengthen your case. If necessary, we’ll retain forensic witnesses to testify on your behalf.
- Representation in all meetings and negotiations:
A Terre Haute truck accident lawyer can fully represent you in all legal meetings with insurers and named defendants in your personal injury lawsuit. We’ll advise you and consult with you on the best course of action after these meetings.
- Support you in court:
95% of personal injury cases are settled before they reach trial. However, if a settlement cannot be reached in your case, we will fight for you in court.
How to determine liability in a Terre Haute truck accident
Most commercial truck drivers carry various types of insurance. This means that multiple parties may hold liability for your accident. For example, if a cargo company did not provide adequate storage and protection for their materials, and a cargo leak or spill caused your accident, the cargo company may be held legally responsible.
A Terre Haute truck accident lawyer may thoroughly examine the cause of your crash and the history of the trucking company, trucker, and vehicle manufacturer to determine the parties that could owe you compensation.
Your attorney may research the following to determine liability:
- Black box:
Similar to a plane’s black box, a commercial truck is equipped with a data recorder. This black box may reflect irregularities and careless driving decisions.
- Logtime records:
If a trucker is overworked and doesn’t adhere to mandatory hours off in between trucking routes, the trucker could be determined to be at fault in your accident
- Maintenance, safety, and training records:
If a trucker’s employer has a history of cutting corners or overlooking maintenance and safety regulations entirely, doesn’t provide adequate training and development for trucking employees, or employs truckers who don’t hold appropriate, up-to-date licensing, they may be legally responsible for your accident.
- Truck manufacturer recalls and safety issues:
If the truck’s manufacturer has a lengthy history of safety issues, or has failed to issue a recall on truck parts they knew to be faulty or malfunctioning, the company may be on the legal hook for your compensation.
Damages in a Terre Haute truck accident case
In a personal injury case, damages refer to the various types of compensation you may be owed after your Terre Haute truck accident. Damages are broken into three different categories and allow you to recoup some of the priceless losses you’ve experienced, along with the costs you’ve incurred as a result of your collision.
A Terre Haute truck accident lawyer can help you to determine what damages you might seek in your legal claim.
Special damages
The losses you’ve incurred that have a cemented monetary value fall under special damages (also known as economic damages). Special damages help alleviate the financial burdens you suffer as a result of your accident and can include estimated future costs.
Special damages include:
- Assisted living expenses
- Lost wages
- Medical expenses (present and future)
- Property repair and replacement
- Transportation costs
General damages
Often, your truck accident may leave you with losses that can’t be quantified. General damages (also known as non-economic damages) cannot replace these transformative losses, but they may help to ease your burdens and allow you to concentrate on healing.
General damages include:
- Catastrophic injury
- Disfigurement
- Emotional trauma (including anxiety, depression, insomnia, and post traumatic stress disorder)
- Hearing loss
- Loss of limb
- Loss of quality of life
- Loss of vision
- Pain and suffering
- Paralysis
- Permanent disability
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
- Wrongful death
Punitive damages
Although civil trials on fictional TV shows seem to always include punitive damages, they are rarely sought by a plaintiff and even more rarely meted out by a judge or a jury. Punitive damages (also known as exemplary damages) are typically a form of punishment for grossly negligent defendants.
A judge or a jury may choose to include punitive damages in a verdict to show a defendant there are consequences for their reckless or willfully negligent actions. For example, if a trucker responsible for your collision was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, a judge might decide to add punitive damages to the compensation you’re owed.
These damages are additional to the compensation you may be awarded after your Terre Haute truck accident. In Indiana, 75% of punitive damages are allocated to the Indiana Violent Crimes Victim Compensation Fund and 25% are awarded to the plaintiff.
Contact Yosha Law
The Terre Haute truck accident lawyers of Yosha Law understand that you may feel overwhelmed by your pain and suffering and worried about the expenses you’ve sustained. You don’t have to travel the road to healing alone.
We care deeply about the individual needs you have, and consider each of our clients as extended members of our family. We’re proud of the justice we’ve found for numerous clients, and the ways our work can help the greater Indiana community.
After your truck accident, we can walk beside you and help you so that you can focus on your recovery. Let us deal with the nuances of your case and negotiate with the insurance companies.
Contact a Terre Haute truck accident lawyer to schedule an obligation-free consultation today.
