No road accident is an easy site to see. However, accidents involving trucks can be particularly devastating. When an 80,000-pound weighing truck hits a passenger vehicle, the extent of damage to the car and the passengers inside can be severe and even lead to death.
Truck accidents often occur either due to the driver’s negligence or the truck company’s poor maintenance of their vehicles. Sometimes, both the reasons may apply. To seek compensation, you must establish liability. To understand your legal options, we recommended speaking to a Lehi, UT truck accident lawyer.
How is fault determined in a truck accident?
In a truck accident, the fault is determined using negligence. If the truck driver owed you a duty of care and failed to do so, resulting in the collision and your injuries, they are the liable party in the case. There goes a lot into proving negligence, and it is usually a long and complicated process.
Establishing liability requires analyzing the incident thoroughly. Speaking with the police officers that were at the site after the accident and reviewing police reports is an essential step. When the police arrive at the accident site, they create a detailed description of their perception of the incident. They investigate whether any of the drivers have violated a traffic law that had possibly caused the mishap.
Statements from witnesses, videos, and photographs of the accident also serve as great evidence to determine liability. A car accident attorney carefully analyses your case and helps you identify the liable parties for the claims process.
What happens if the truck driver’s negligence caused your injuries?
Many truck accidents take place because of the driver’s negligence. The driver may be traveling at night and may have fallen asleep or maybe driving under alcohol influence. Whatever reason there may be, if the driver is found guilty, they are responsible for paying for your damages. The driver’s vehicle insurance will be used to compensate for your injuries.
Truck company’s fault
Sometimes the driver’s negligence is considered as the reflection of the truck company’s carelessness of not hiring appropriately skilled drivers. Truck companies are required to conduct a thorough background check on drivers before hiring them, and it is their responsibility to provide them with adequate training. Hiring unskilled, inexperienced drivers with records of breaking traffic laws can result in legal consequences.
On the other hand, sometimes, the poor maintenance of the truck may cause the collision. A truck company is required to check regularly if all the parts of their vehicles are in working condition. Failure to do so can result in road accidents. For example, if a truck’s braking system is faulty, the company must fix it before letting it travel on the road.
