Due to the sheer size and weight of commercial trucks, truck accidents tend to have more devastating effects than accidents involving smaller vehicles. The occupants usually suffer the most severe consequences whenever an accident involves a truck and a passenger vehicle. Even if these occupants survive, they may end up sustaining life-changing injuries that take months or even years to recover.
If you’ve recently been injured in a truck accident, you have the legal right to file a claim and recover financial compensation for your incurred damages. Consider contacting a Clovis truck accident lawyer at Kash Legal to help you navigate this complicated legal process and ensure justice is served.
How a Clovis Truck Accident Attorney Can Help Your Case
Generally, the financial stakes in truck accidents are higher than in other motor vehicle accidents. Truck accidents often result in extensive property damage and catastrophic injuries for the victims. Also, trucking companies carry huge liability insurance coverage than the average driver.
Therefore, the jury verdicts and financial settlements for these accidents tend to be higher. All this means that the trucking company’s insurance company and defense lawyers will do everything possible to ensure you don’t get the financial compensation you deserve.
Fortunately, you can always hire a lawyer to level the playing field and increase your chances of getting justice. A competent Clovis truck accident lawyer will protect your legal rights, handle every aspect of your case, and fight for you against the insurance company to ensure you get the maximum compensation possible.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents in California
Like most motor vehicle accidents, truck accidents are caused by many factors. However, some of these factors cause truck accidents more often than others. They include:
- Driving while intoxicated
- Distracted driving
- Speeding
- Fatigued driving
- Poor road conditions
- Defective truck parts, such as brake failure
- Improperly secured cargo
- Improper training
- Improperly maintained trucks
- Bad weather conditions such as rain and snow
At Kash Legal, we’ll conduct an independent investigation into the events surrounding your truck accident, determine the causation, and identify all the potentially liable parties.
What to Do After a Truck Accident
If you’re involved in a truck accident, there are several steps you can follow to protect your health and strengthen your claim. They include:
- Check yourself and others for injuries
- Move to safety, away from oncoming traffic
- Call 911 to report the accident and request paramedics if you or any other person is severely injured
- Take pictures and videos of the accident scene, damaged vehicles, and your injuries. This will be irrefutable evidence when you file a claim against the insurance company.
- Exchange contact details and insurance information with the other driver. You should also note down their employer’s name and contact information.
- Note down the names and phone numbers of witnesses at the accident scene.
- See a doctor immediately after leaving the accident scene. Some injuries may take days or even months to appear. Therefore, the doctor must carry out the necessary diagnostic tests and administer the appropriate treatment method promptly.
- Contact a Clovis truck accident lawyer to discuss your legal options.
Most insurance companies usually specify when you must notify them about an accident you were involved in. Therefore, ensure you double-check your insurance policy to be safe. However, it’s in your best interest to notify them immediately.
What Damages Can I Claim in a Truck Accident Case?
If someone else’s negligence caused the truck accident, you don’t have to bear the financial burden alone. At Kash Legal, we will fight to hold that person accountable for their negligent actions and help you pursue compensation for the following damages:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income and benefits
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life
- Property damage
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Punitive damages, if applicable
As a truck accident victim, you should never accept a lowball settlement from the insurance company. Let us handle the negotiations with the insurance company and their defense lawyers to maximize your financial recovery.
Establishing Negligence in a Truck Accident Case
All personal injury cases, including those involving truck accidents, are centered around the issue of negligence. This means that to recover compensation, you must prove that someone else’s negligence led to the truck accident that caused your injuries. To establish negligence, your truck accident lawyer must prove the following elements:
- Duty of care: Your lawyer must prove that the defendant owed you and other road users a reasonable duty of care.
- Breach: Your lawyer must prove that the defendant breached their duty of care to you by acting negligently.
- Causation: Your lawyer must prove that the defendant’s breach of their duty of care to you was the proximate cause of the truck accident.
- Damages: Your lawyer must prove that you suffered injuries and monetary losses due to the truck accident caused by the defendant.
To prove these elements of negligence, a Clovis truck accident attorney from our law firm will gather and present different evidence, including traffic camera footage of the crash, witness statements, driver logs, the police report, and photos of the accident scene.
Truck accidents may involve multiple liable parties, including the truck driver, trucking company, manufacturer of the truck’s parts, government entities, transit companies, and even other motorists.
How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit After a Truck Accident?
If you’ve been injured in a truck accident due to someone else’s negligence, you should know that you have limited time to take legal action against them. According to the California Code of Civil Procedure §335.1, you have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit if you’ve been injured in a truck accident. This time limit starts from the date of the accident.
Additionally, you have two years to file a wrongful death lawsuit if you’ve lost a loved one in a truck accident caused by someone else’s negligence. If you fail to file a lawsuit within these set time limits, you automatically lose your right to pursue financial compensation.
Contact the Expert Truck Accident Attorneys at Kash Legal
If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, don’t hesitate to contact a Clovis truck accident lawyer at Kash Legal. Our lawyers have years of experience representing truck accident victims and are ready to represent you.
We can help build a case against the liable parties and work closely with you to ensure you get justice. Call us at (888) 527-4128 or complete our online form to schedule a free consultation today.
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