After the typical car crash, the people involved might file insurance claims hoping to obtain financial compensation for their injuries. The process can be vastly different when the vehicle that caused the crash isn’t another passenger vehicle but rather a commercial truck.
The rules of the road are different for commercial trucks, and the rules for financial compensation are often different as well. Semi-trucks can theoretically cause extreme injuries and death. Even though federal regulations require six-figure insurance policies for semi-trucks, that coverage may not be enough to replace the lifetime of wages and to cover massive medical expenses.
How can someone affected by a semi-truck crash pursue a personal injury lawsuit?
By establishing liability
The first step toward a semi-truck lawsuit is establishing who may be liable for the crash. Even if it is quite clear that the semi-truck driver caused the wreck, they may not be the only party liable for the damages caused. Oftentimes, liability related to a worker’s actions may pass to an employer. Additionally, there are many mistakes and oversights commonly made by transportation companies that could make them directly legally and financially responsible for a collision. There could even be third parties, like clients who improperly loaded trailers, who may be liable for the wreck. Establishing who should be defendants in the lawsuit is a necessary initial step.
By qualifying losses
A personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit requires more than just liability. There also needs to be economic harm. Those affected by semi-truck crashes may need to quantify the lost income and medical expenses related to the collision. They may also need to look at long-term future losses and even non-economic losses to maximize the amount of compensation that they pursue. The process of calculating damages can be very difficult, and people often bring in lawyers to assist them with this process.
By submitting paperwork to the courts
State statutes in Iowa limit personal lawsuits by imposing a statute of limitations. Someone injured by a crash or surviving family members of someone who died in a crash usually need to take legal action within two years of the collision. If they fail to do so, they may potentially lose the right to request compensation through the courts. It is easy for those grieving a loved one’s death or adjusting to life with serious injuries to overlook the need to file a lawsuit until it is too late. There are a host of other mistakes possible as well.
Having the right assistance when filing a lawsuit after a semi-truck crash can increase someone’s chances of success. A lawsuit can potentially be the only means available for fully recovering the losses generated by a semi-truck collision.