Victims of truck collisions can pursue financial compensation by filing a personal injury claim with the at-fault party’s insurance company. Because trucking companies carry large insurance policies, there is a likely possibility that all of your damages can be compensated for fairly. These include medical bills, lost wages and earning ability, property damage, pain and suffering, and much more, depending on the severity of your injuries. In the event of a fatal accident, our wrongful death lawyers in South Carolina can help work towards financial compensation. Marc Brown has handled all types of truck crashes, from brake failures and overloading incidents, to aggressive, distracted, drowsy, and drunk driving.
Distracted Truck Driver
Truck operators, like passenger vehicle drivers, are prone to distracting themselves while they drive. Long hours on the road are likely to make anyone bored, though this is never an excuse for watching TV, texting, or engaging in other distractions while operating a 20,000 to 80,000 pound vehicle.
Drowsy Driving
Drowsy driving and falling asleep at the wheel can be avoided by one simple measure—pulling off the road and resting. However, with deadlines to make and their wages tied to covering large distances quickly, some truck drivers routinely violate federal rest regulations. No amount of coffee, caffeine pills, or narcotic stimulants can make up for sleep, however.
Aggressive Driving
Common examples of aggressive driving include speeding, tailgating, brake checking, refusing to allow another vehicle to merge or change lanes (such as speeding up or matching another vehicle’s speed to block it), merging regardless of the presence of another vehicle, making rapid lane changes, unnecessary use of the horn, and buzzing cyclists or pedestrians on the side of the road. These actions can cause serious wrecks when done by passenger vehicles; when the culprit is a truck driver, the results are often catastrophic.
Overloaded Truck Accident
An overloading or improperly loaded truck crash happens when 1) the truck is loaded with too much weight, or 2) when the distribution of the load is dangerous or the restraint/straps holding down the load are faulty. This type of negligence can cause shifting within the truck, cause objects to fall off the back of the truck, cause the driver to lose control, or cause a rollover.
Worn Out or Defective Truck Parts
Because of the immense size and weight of trucks, as well as the incredible number of miles put on them, trucks are more likely to crash due to catastrophic failure of brakes, tires, lighting systems, hitches, and other parts. Whether the crash was caused by negligent maintenance, or a manufacturer’s negligent design or build, South Carolina car accident injury victims can take action against the liable party.
Call South Carolina Truck Accident Attorney Marc Brown
There is rarely a “minor” collision involving large trucks. The passenger vehicle occupant or other, smaller, road user almost always suffers serious to extreme injuries, ranging from whiplash and facial injuries to fractured bones and traumatic brain injuries. To ensure that you receive fair compensation for the substantial damages you have suffered, call South Carolina truck accident attorney Marc Brown today at (803) 848-0008 to schedule a consultation at no cost.