What to Do After a Semi-Truck Accident

Contact Us Today Common Injuries in Truck Accidents The difference in weight between a semi-truck and a passenger vehicle is massive. Unfortunately, that means that when a truck hits a car, the occupants of the smaller vehicle are likely to sustain serious injuries. Some common truck accident injuries include: Traumatic Brain Injuries – Severe blows to the head can cause traumatic brain injuries in which the brain swells and bleeds. These injuries require immediate medical attention to prevent death and to limit permanent damage. Neck and Back Injuries – Whiplash and other neck and back injuries can damage the spinal cord, leading to paralysis below the injury site. Broken Bones – The blunt force trauma of a truck accident can fracture bones. Arms and legs can break as they strike the car’s interior, and seatbelts can crack ribs. Burn Injuries – Particularly bad crashes can tear a fuel line, causing a fire. Burn injuries require extensive medical treatment. Amputations – The crash itself can sometimes amputate limbs. The crash may damage limbs beyond recovery, or rescuers may need to perform an amputation to extract a victim from the vehicle. Why Victims Must Seek Immediate Medical Attention There are several reasons why it’s essential to seek immediate medical attention after a truck accident. First, your injuries may be severe and can worsen over time if not treated. Injuries like whiplash may not be immediately apparent. However, delaying treatment can leave a lasting impact. Second, by seeking immediate medical attention, you show that your injuries are real, severe, and directly connected to the accident. If you delay treatment by a few days or weeks, the insurance company or opposing lawyers may use that to argue that your injuries weren’t as bad as you claim they were or that they had some other source. Third, when you seek medical attention, you create a paper trail of your injuries. Medical records provide essential documentation of your injuries that you need to build your case. An experienced truck accident attorney can use your medical records to prove the extent of your damages and losses. Ongoing Medical Care and Treatment for Truck Accident Injuries Medical treatment resulting from a truck accident is often extensive and ongoing. Over the next few weeks, months, and potentially years, you may have to undergo the following: Additional Surgeries – Internal injuries and broken bones may require more than one surgery to resolve. Physical Therapy – Traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, and spinal cord injuries all include extensive physical therapy as ongoing medical care. Pain Management – You may need to seek long-term pain care, especially if your injuries last longer than you can safely take habit-forming prescription medications. Lifestyle Changes – After a severe injury, you may be unable to do what you once could. Standing or sitting for extended periods may cause pain, and you may require a wheelchair. Contact Our Phoenix Truck Accident Attorney for Help If you’ve been injured in a truck accident in the Phoenix area, you need an Arizona truck accident lawyer to help you seek justice and accountability. Our attorney can investigate the crash, determine if the truck driver or trucking company acted with negligence prior to the crash, and seek the damages you need to recover. Contact Silkman Law Firm Injury & Accident Lawyer today and let our team pursue the money you need for your long-term care. About the Author Alex Silkman is the founder and managing member of Silkman Law Firm Injury & Accident Lawyer. A Personal Injury Lawyer in Phoenix AZ, he focuses exclusively on personal injury, motorcycle accidents, truck accidents, and wrongful death cases, with the goal of getting truly just results for accident victims and their families. Past personal injury cases have included $2.4 million dollars awarded in a wrongful death motorcycle crash, $2.2 million in a malpractice settlement, and a $450,000 award from a car crash resulting in a thoracic vertebrae compression fracture and a fractured clavicle.

Contact Us Today Although truck driver error or vehicle mechanical failures often cause or contribute to catastrophic truck accidents, poor road conditions – due to weather, inadequate road maintenance, or poor roadway design – are another critical factor in many accidents. If you were injured in a big rig truck accident, you need an experienced truck accident lawyer for wrecks caused by bad road conditions on your side. At Silkman Law Firm Injury & Accident Lawyer, we can investigate your accident and help you pursue options for recovery. Road Conditions: A Hidden Factor in Truck Accidents According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, roadway problems were among the top ten factors coded for drivers and their vehicles in a recent large truck crash causation study. Although weather does not typically affect road conditions in Arizona, poorly designed roadways in our state or road conditions due to poor maintenance can play a role in truck accidents.  Potholes or otherwise damaged or neglected roads can contribute to crashes if they affect the truck driver’s ability to control the vehicle. Poorly designed roads with tight entrance ramps or roads that are too steep for a large commercial truck can contribute to serious accidents, resulting in devastating injuries. Unfortunately, some road conditions are often not immediately apparent to truck drivers, affecting their ability to avoid such hazards. Who Is Liable for a Truck Accident Caused by Poor Road Conditions? Under Arizona law, the party responsible for the accident must pay for the victim’s financial losses, including medical expenses and lost wages. Determining who or what entity is liable for the accident can be a challenging inquiry for which you need a lawyer. Your lawyer will investigate the circumstances of the accident to decipher who is responsible. They will examine the truck driver's actions, whether the driver was an employee or independent contractor of a trucking company, the company’s policies and procedures concerning hiring and training drivers, and the vehicle’s maintenance log as they assess liability.  In addition to these potentially responsible parties, governmental entities or agencies may be found liable in part for the accident if hazardous road conditions contributed to the crash. For example, if the local municipality failed to maintain the roads to the extent that potholes or loose gravel caused the accident, they may be held responsible. Likewise, the governmental agency responsible for the design of the roadway, intersection, or placement of traffic signs and signals may be liable for the accident if these factors played a role in the crash.  Because suing the government involves specific deadlines and other procedural hurdles, contacting a truck accident lawyer as soon as possible after the accident for wrecks caused by bad road conditions is critical to your case. Seeking Justice and Support You can seek compensation from the party responsible for the accident that caused your injuries. Our firm will thoroughly investigate the accident and assess your financial losses so we can seek maximum compensation for your medical expenses, lost wages, and even money for pain and suffering. Contact Our Phoenix Truck Accident Attorneys for Help If you were hurt in a truck road accident, call Silkman Law Firm Injury & Accident Lawyer. Our legal team is well-equipped to handle all aspects of your case. We understand that you may feel intimidated by the legal process and need clarification about what steps you can take while recovering from your injuries. We have vast experience helping accident victims just like you. Contact us today for a free case review.

Contact Us Today All vehicle accidents can be devastating and life-changing, whether they involve cars, motorcycles, or semi-trucks. Property damage, serious injuries, high medical bills, and loss of life can result from any roadway accident. Despite similar impacts, it’s essential to understand how truck accident claims differ from auto accident claims. The size of the vehicles and the complex legal system surrounding commercial trucks make it harder to recover from an 18-wheeler accident. Why Truck Accident Claims Are Different A fully loaded semi-truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, roughly 20 times heavier than the average passenger car. As a result, truck accidents tend to be more severe and fatal than accidents that just involve cars. There are also multiple potentially liable parties in truck accidents, making it challenging to determine the identity of the at-fault party.  Additionally, the types of injuries from a semi-truck accident tend to be more severe than a car accident.  These injuries include: Brain trauma Spinal cord injuries Paralysis Burns Loss of limbs Facial and dental injuries Internal organ damage Fractures Lacerations Neck injuries Recovering from a semi-truck accident can require extensive medical care and long-term rehabilitation, which can lead to costly medical bills. Generally speaking, more money is necessary to cover losses after a truck accident because the injuries are more severe than those in auto accident claims.  You can seek compensation to cover the following: Medical bills Lost wages Long-term medical care Loss of future earning potential Pain and suffering Loss of enjoyment of life Identifying the Parties Involved in a Truck Accident Claim A truck accident could include more liable parties than a car accident because trucking is a commercial industry. Parties that could be at fault in semi-truck accident claims include: The truck driver Trucking company Truck manufacturers Truck maintenance providers Cargo loading company Other motorist(s) Understanding the Legal Process Because of its complexity, a truck accident investigation can require more time, energy, and attention than a car accident investigation. It takes time to interview multiple drivers, collect evidence like maintenance records, and conduct a thorough crash investigation.  A skilled truck accident attorney can: Investigate your claim to determine fault and collect evidence Interview witnesses and evaluate their credibility Obtain data from the truck’s black box Engage accident reconstruction specialists Assess your injuries and assign a value to your losses Negotiate with insurance companies Manage communications with insurers and at-fault parties File a lawsuit within the statute of limitations and track vital deadlines Concisely present how you’ve been affected by the accident Vigorously represent you in court if necessary Hiring a truck accident attorney can guide you down the path of recovering money to cover your medical bills and care. Contact Our Phoenix Truck Accident Attorneys to Learn More Working with an experienced truck accident attorney is essential when pursuing the compensation you need after you’ve been injured in a truck accident due to someone else’s actions. At Silkman Law Firm Injury & Accident Lawyer, we only concentrate on personal injury cases. Our legal team can vigorously investigate your truck accident, and we know how to protect you against insurance company tactics to reduce the value of your claim. Contact us today for your free consultation.