Truck accidents are incredibly dangerous. There is a good chance that anyone in an ordinary motor vehicle that gets hit by a truck will get seriously injured. Victims of truck accidents often face a long road to recovery from their injuries and hefty medical bills that need to be paid. It is not unusual for injuries sustained in a truck accident to change the victim’s life forever.
If you or a loved one are dealing with the aftermath of truck accident injuries around Prattville, AL, we can help. We can assist you by finding out who you should sue, gathering facts and evidence about your case, and negotiating with insurance companies or opposing counsel to give you the best chance of getting the financial compensation you need to recover after a truck accident. Our skilled attorneys have represented many truck accident victims, and we are ready to lend our legal expertise to your case.
Call (844) 876-4357 to have a free initial case review with our truck accident lawyers from Howe Law.
Trucks That Can Cause Accidents in Prattville, AL
Many different kinds of commercial trucks go through Prattville and the surrounding area every day. While getting into an accident with any of these vehicles has a good chance of seriously injuring you, the specific type of truck that hit you is an important piece of information to our truck accident lawyers. You can get information like what company owns that truck, the truck manufacturer, and other important details that can indicate who the correct parties are to bring to court to answer for your injuries.
Semi Trucks and Tractor-Trailers
Semi trucks and tractor-trailers deliver countless packages across the United States every day. Unfortunately, that also means that many semi trucks and tractor-trailers get into accidents. Semi trucks are large and heavy, so the damage that can result from a semi truck accident is often severe.
These 18-wheelers are arguably the most dangerous vehicle a driver can expect to be hit by on the road. Compared to ordinary vehicles or even other trucks, 18-wheelers and tractor-trailers are massive. It is almost a certainty that any accident involving an 18-wheeler will result in catastrophic injuries or even death.
Garbage Trucks
Garbage trucks frequently stop when picking up trash along their route. This could make it tough for drivers behind a garbage truck to predict when the truck is going to stop. A garbage truck driver who is not paying attention to their surroundings can easily stop too early and cause another driver to hit them.
Dump Trucks
Dump trucks hold debris from construction sites and other places. Accordingly, their cargo is not tied down in place. The contents of a dump truck could fly out of the vehicle and hit an unsuspecting motorist or pedestrian.
Tanker Trucks
Accidents involving tanker trucks are especially dangerous because they often carry dangerous materials as cargo. You could get badly burnt if the substance being carried by a tanker truck combusts in an accident, and volatile hazardous substances have a chance to explode if they are impacted too forcefully or ignite if a fire or a spark reaches them.
Concrete Mixers/Cement Trucks
Cement mixers and concrete trucks are likely to be involved in “rollover accidents.” A rollover accident is when a truck becomes off balance and rolls over onto its side or roof. Rollover accidents can crush cars caught beneath the turned-over truck. Moreover, a rollover accident may be so sudden that other vehicles cannot react quickly enough to avoid this new obstacle in their path.
Ways Truck Drivers Can Be Negligent in a Prattville, AL Truck Accident
For a truck accident lawsuit to succeed, you have to demonstrate to the court that the defendant was negligent in order to recover damages. Negligence in a legal context means that the defendant acted carelessly and their carelessness caused the accident that got you injured. In truck accidents, the truck driver is frequently the party that was negligent and caused your injuries. We will go over some of the ways a truck driver could be negligent below. However, that does not mean that the truck driver is the only party that could be liable for your injuries. Their employer or another entity could also be liable if the facts support it.
Ignoring Traffic Rules
Just like it is negligent for ordinary drivers to ignore the rules of the road, it is negligent for truck drivers not to follow basic traffic rules. If a truck driver was speeding, running red lights, or merging lanes when they were not supposed to when they injured you in an accident, you could have a claim against them.
Violations of Trucking Regulations
There are also rules and regulations that truck drivers must follow in addition to ordinary traffic rules. One of the most important regulations that truck drivers must follow pertains to hours of service. The FMCSA outlines these rules on its website.
First, truck drivers must take a 30-minute break after eight hours of consecutive driving. Second, any 11-hour driving period must be followed by ten hours of rest. Third, truckers cannot drive beyond 14 consecutive hours when getting back on the road after a ten-hour off-duty period. Finally, truckers cannot drive more than 60 hours in seven consecutive workdays or 70 hours in eight consecutive workdays.
These laws are in place because it is well-known how dangerous it is to drive a vehicle while fatigued and tired. It is almost as reckless as driving drunk. Truckers travel great distances, so are more likely to be behind the wheel for a long time and get tired, which could result in an accident.
Truckers are required to keep logbooks of their hours on the road. These logs are useful pieces of evidence for our lawyers to potentially prove that a truck driver was negligent.
Speak With Our Prattville, AL Truck Accident Lawyers Today
Howe Law’s truck accident lawyers are available to discuss your case at (844) 876-4357.
