Orlando Truck Accident Lawyers: Seek Damages After a Crash

Orlando truck accident lawyers will help you and your family pursue compensation after an accident to help pay for injuries and other impacts of a truck accident.

Due to how large they are, it shouldn’t come as a shock that trucks cause a lot of damage on Florida roads every year. Just look at how much bigger they are compared to your standard passenger vehicles.

Trucks weigh thousands of pounds more than your average sedan or truck. In a crash, it’s not a question of equals. We simply hope that people in the car, van, or SUV walk away unscathed.

It’s no wonder, given their size, that truck accidents cause significant injuries and death, not to mention severe damage to other passengers’ vehicles. In addition, many truck accident victims need immediate, high-quality medical attention in the aftermath of a crash.

Having an experienced attorney with a proven track record representing Florida truck accident victims is vital to any successful personal injury case. Let’s examine some of the impacts of truck accidents and how Orlando truck accident lawyers can help.

When Truck Accidents Happen in Florida

There are thousands of big-rig trucks on America’s highways at any given hour. Florida has a lot of ports and is thus a significant import destination. Trucks move in, out, and across the state, delivering goods to businesses and costumer.

Every store you visit or business you frequent likely relies on trucks somehow. They deliver groceries to grocery stores, bring your Amazon packages to your front door, and provide medical supplies, gym equipment, and anything else you need or buy.

If you’ve been watching the news in the past few months, you’ve heard that the United States is in a supply chain crunch. There are shortages of goods in many places across the country, and companies are feeling the pain from customers.

Truck drivers are already under a lot of stress. When you add the public pressure related to the supply chain to the equation, it increases the risks on the road. Let’s take a look at some of the main reasons why truck accidents happen.

Driver Fatigue

This continues to be a major problem in commercial truck driving across the country. Drives push themselves too far and start to lose the alertness needed to operate safely on the road. There are laws in place that try to prevent drivers from driving tired or going for too many hours. However, some drivers still test their limits to make deliveries on time or to earn extra money.

When drivers stay on the road too long, they put others in danger. Most trucking companies and their clients are ethical and abide by the law. However, there are some operators who knowingly break the law and push their drivers past their limits.

Violating the government’s hours of service rules found in FMCSA Regulations, Part 395, is a common cause of trucking accidents. The main focus of the regulation is its 11-hour rule that stipulates drivers can operate a truck for no more than 11 hours at a time after resting for 10 hours in the last 14 hours. Passenger trucks can only drive for 10 hours after eight hours of consecutive rest.

Excessive Speed

If you’ve been on Florida highways, then you know truck drivers go fast! They push speed limits trying to get where they’re going. People think it’s okay when nothing terrible happens, but they don’t realize that trucks are more challenging to control than passenger vehicles. If they have to swerve or stop suddenly, the truck can sway out of its lane and collide with cars in the area. It takes longer for trucks to slow and stop, and trailers make speeding even more dangerous.

Disregarding Load Limits

In addition to limits on driving shifts, regulations also dictate how much each truck can carry. Florida has specific weight limits based on truck size found here. If a truck carries more weight than it should, it increases the risk of accidents because it makes the truck harder to control.

Driving Under the Influence (DUI)

Even though truckers are on the job while driving, plenty of accidents happen every year that involve drugs or alcohol. Trucks are heavy and large enough to inflict serious damage. When a driver is under the influence, it increases the chances of an accident, and drivers cannot react quickly and appropriately behind the wheel.

Mechanical Defects

Trucks are complicated machines designed to carry heavy loads for long distances. They require reliable and durable components to keep things safe and moving. Sometimes mistakes happen, and faulty parts find their way into trucks. If a part fails, it can cause accidents and injuries to anyone in the area.

Orlando Truck Accident Lawyers Can Win You Justice

Big-rig or semi-truck accidents often have dire effects. They cause property damage and personal injuries or death. If you or someone you know is hurt in an accident with a truck, finding a team of Orlando Truck Accidents Lawyers should be one of your first steps to seek justice.

An experienced attorney knows how to gather evidence to bolster your personal injury lawsuit and help you see appropriate damages to cover:

• Medical Costs
• Lost Income
• Pain & Suffering
• Property Damage

For example, your lawyer will likely access a trucking company’s or a driver’s logs to see how many hours they were driving or when the last inspection happened. They’ll find any holes in compliance that contributed to the crash, whether it’s driver fatigue or a faulty vehicle part.

They’ll know how to assign liability if other factors besides the driver contributed to the crash. For instance, if a supplier puts too much weight in the cargo area of a truck without the driver’s knowledge, it’s a recipe for disaster. An experienced lawyer will discover who decided to exceed weight limits and hold them accountable.

The Process Orlando Truck Accident Lawyers Go Through

Every truck accident is different, but for the most part, you can expect your Orlando truck accident lawyers to do the following:

Depositions

Your lawyer can take the depositions of company representatives, the truck driver, suppliers, safety inspectors, and anyone else potentially involved in the crash. In addition, they can talk to mechanics, dispatches, and other people who played a part in what happened.

Expert Testimony

If you’re filing a personal injury lawsuit, you usually need expert testimony to back up your case and your claims about the incident. Your lawyer can consult with accident reconstruction experts, medical professionals, security professionals, and people in the trucking industry to establish expected standards of operation and whether the driver or company in question failed to live up to said standard.

EOBRD Records

More and more, trucking companies and individual operators use electronic onboard recording devices, or EOBRDs, to log trips and guarantee compliance. Your legal team will see about gaining access to those records and whether they offer any insight into why the accident took place.

Accident Details

There are a million details involved in accident examinations. Major red flags are things like tire tread depth, brake quality, delayed maintenance, or a driver with a poor safety record. Your attorney can submit motions to obtain records related to your case.

How to Know When You Can Sue After a Truck Accident

You can’t always seek legal damages or file a personal lawsuit after an accident. Well, you technically can, but it’s not always going to work. How can you tell when you have a solid case?

You can sue a truck driver, their company, supplier, or any other liable party when they are responsible. Having a team of skilled Orlando truck accident lawyers consulting you is the fastest and easiest path to a successful case.

How Much Compensation Can Orlando Truck Accident Lawyers Win for Me?

The amount you win in court or via settlement depends on several factors. For example, the severity of injuries, the circumstances surrounding the case, the number of liable parties, and more will dictate how much you eventually receive in damages.

Find the best lawyers you can with a track record of winning important truck accident cases. Don’t take the first offer from an insurance company or trucking operator that comes your way. The temptation is strong, especially when dealing with medical bills and needing your car fixed, but you’re likely shorting yourself.

An expert lawyer will know how much your case is worth and will have the trial experience necessary to win you more.

Leighton Panoff Law is the leading Florida legal team that specializes in trucking accidents. Leighton Panoff Law has won some of the largest verdicts and settlements for people who have been injured by trucking crashes.  In one recent case, Leighton Panoff Law recovered $6 million for the  family of a man struck by the side of the road by a truck, and in another, Leighton Panoff Law won a verdict of $7.4 million for a man injured when a big rig hit his car head on.  We have published The Ultimate Guide to Truck Accident Cases and actively tries cases against trucking companies across the country.  Talk to us about your case in a no-obligation, free consultation to find out what you should do next.