How Do I Help At A Big Rig Accident?

Car accidents are severe enough. Accidents involving big rigs can be a thousand times worse in every aspect, whether you take into account the frequency of deaths, severity of injuries, or the number of other vehicles getting affected.

Get legal opinion

If you’ve been involved in a semi-truck accident, it would be advisable to immediately consult an experienced truck accident attorney because of the simple reason that the law in this regard is too complex in nature for most people to understand.

Time is very pivotal

Necessary evidence may disappear as time goes by, such as the truck driver’s log, which may legally be eliminated after 6 months if no attorney subpoenas it or gets a court order immediately after the truck accident. This is very important because logbooks can supply evidence of maintenance and repairs, the driver’s timetable and the mistakes made by the driver that may have resulted in the accident. Furthermore, memories vanish, people move away or become ill or even die. All these parameters must be taken into account; otherwise, gathering evidence and contacting witnesses may become a tedious task.

Insurance caveats

Because road accidents can be a very costly affair, trucking companies tend to carry plenty of insurance. Accidents are costly for the insurance companies, too. That’s why both the trucking company and their insurance company will want to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, sometimes even right at the scene of the accident.

It is advisable to never sign any document presented to you by an insurance company without having your attorney look at it. You could be signing away your right to proper compensation. It’s your responsibility to keep in mind that insurance companies make their money by investing. That clearly depicts that the less they can pay out in compensation to you and the longer they can delay any such payments, the more income they will be generating.

Reasons for trucking accidents

The reasons behind these types of accidents are more or less similar to that of normal car accidents: driver intoxication, brake failure, and carefree driving, as well as others, such as overloaded trucks, oversized trucks, and driver fatigue. It is worth noting that an oversized big rig takes longer to stop. Furthermore, it also gathers more speed, especially on downhill grades, needing more use of the brakes, which can result in overheating. A lopsided load puts too much impetus on the tires and axles, which can break.