Car accidents happen very frequently, especially on the highways. When they do occur, the casualties are usually minimal when compare to commercial truck accidents. Although the trucking accident rate isn’t as high as passenger cars, it’s always a difficult situation for injured victims to be in. Not only would they have to deal with a very long process, but the injuries from a commercial trucking accident are often very scary.
Having a police report and contacting your car’s insurance company may not be enough if you’re involved in a commercial trucking accident. Although they’re some of the requirements, you’ll definitely need to go further as things will certainly get more complicated.
What exactly should you do? I’m going to share that with you in a few minutes, but first how about we spend a little time talking about safety? You need to remember that your safety should always be your first priority no matter what.
Prevention is always the best
Most accidents are unpreventable, hence that’s why they’re called accidents. But you should always try not to make it easier for an accident to take place. What do I mean about that? There are various little mistakes we commit while driving that can result in an accident.
For example, if you cut in front of a truck and then unluckily you have to hit your brakes, the truck’s driver may not be able to stop the truck in time. This little scenario can easily result into an accident that could have been prevented. Be sure to switch lanes at the right time.
Following the rules of the road could also prevent you from getting into accidents. Some drivers are very careless or reckless when driving. On many occasions I find myself hitting my brake just because a reckless driver had cut me off. These are behaviors that can be fatal to any driver on the road.
What should you do if you’re a victim of a company trucking accident?
No one would want to be involved in any car accident, but yet being in at least one accident is something that all drivers should expect to happen at one point in time.
It could be the worst experience for you given all the things you may have to do after having involved in a car accident. It’s even worst if the accident involved a trucking company.
The best thing to do initially when you’re a victim of an accident involving a semi-truck is to hire a lawyer immediately. It’s one mistake made by so many people because they underestimate the legal involvement associating with a commercial trucking accident.
A semi-truck accident is very different from regular car accidents. Each state has a different approach when it comes to assessing such accidents. Farar & Lewis LLP states:
“All states use some form of comparative negligence law. Comparative negligence is the legal notion that most accidents are not the direct fault of one actor and each operator is assessed a percentage of comparative fault.”
With that being said, you can’t expect to take on a case alone unless you’re an attorney yourself. You’ll need some good quality legal help to ensure that you aren’t being taken advantage of.
After all, a commercial trucking accident has the capability to completely change someone’s life. It’s a very serious matter that requires some very serious actions. Most lawyers will not charge you a dime until your case is won, so not having money shouldn’t be a problem for you. Therefore you should never try to tackle such a case alone, or you’ll be risking the outcome.
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