Don’t Go It Alone, Call McGlone
Don’t Go It Alone, Call McGlone
If you have been involved in a collision with a big rig, you most likely are still trying to recover from your truck accident injuries, as well as deal with emotional distress as you worry about how you will provide for yourself and your family.
One of the best steps to protect yourself after being involved in a truck accident case is to hire a knowledgeable attorney. You need a truck accident lawyer who is not afraid to stand up to the insurance company and will fight to recover a settlement in your best interests.
Contact McGlone Law of Terre Haute, Indiana to learn how we can assist you with a truck accident lawsuit.
Remain calm and call the police
Take photos of the scene and save dashcam videos
Exchange insurance information with involved parties
Collect witness statements and contact information
Do not admit fault
Seek medical attention
Contact an attorney
It’s important to call the police right away after a truck accident. Getting a police report filed will help you recover the compensation you deserve. While at the scene, remain calm. Arguing or otherwise becoming aggressive with another driver might turn into a disastrous situation. Things could escalate quickly, and even someone not previously at fault could end up in legal jeopardy.
You should always collect the driver’s license, proof of insurance and contact details for all parties involved in the accident.
Even if you made an error while driving, you may not be entirely at fault. It’s important not to admit fault in the heat of an accident because it can hurt you in court later. You may end up admitting fault when you weren’t entirely at fault or even when you weren’t at fault at all.
Photographic and video evidence of the damage to both vehicles, the positioning of the vehicles, skid marks, will help with reconstructing the accident, proving fault, and recovering the compensation you deserve.
Witness statements can add credibility to your statements about what happened. If possible, talk to those who witnessed the accident and get their contact information so they can be contacted later if needed.
Even if you don’t think you are seriously injured, you should always seek medical attention after an accident. You may have injuries that haven’t presented yet because of the adrenaline from the accident. If you wait, the insurance company will use your decision to not seek medical attention against you, claiming that you must not be injured badly if you didn’t seek help. This also goes for follow up visits. You should see your doctor every 30 days while your case is ongoing.
The best way to get the compensation you deserve is by contacting an attorney who specializes in truck accident cases. Using an attorney will ensure that you’ve got someone in your corner who knows all the ways the insurance companies are going to try to devalue your claim and who won’t let that happen to you. When looking for an attorney, look for one trained in accident reconstruction and skilled in truck accident personal injury cases. This kind of attorney will have the knowledge and experience with these kinds of cases that will best position them to advocate for you and the compensation you deserve.
Remain calm and call the police
Take photos of the scene and save dashcam videos
Exchange insurance information with involved parties
Collect witness statements and contact information
Do not admit fault
Seek medical attention
Contact an attorney
It’s important to call the police right away after a truck accident. Getting a police report filed will help you recover the compensation you deserve. While at the scene, remain calm. Arguing or otherwise becoming aggressive with another driver might turn into a disastrous situation. Things could escalate quickly, and even someone not previously at fault could end up in legal jeopardy.
You should always collect the driver’s license, proof of insurance and contact details for all parties involved in the accident.
Even if you made an error while driving, you may not be entirely at fault. It’s important not to admit fault in the heat of an accident because it can hurt you in court later. You may end up admitting fault when you weren’t entirely at fault or even when you weren’t at fault at all.
Photographic and video evidence of the damage to both vehicles, the positioning of the vehicles, skid marks, will help with reconstructing the accident, proving fault, and recovering the compensation you deserve.
Witness statements can add credibility to your statements about what happened. If possible, talk to those who witnessed the accident and get their contact information so they can be contacted later if needed.
Even if you don’t think you are seriously injured, you should always seek medical attention after an accident. You may have injuries that haven’t presented yet because of the adrenaline from the accident. If you wait, the insurance company will use your decision to not seek medical attention against you, claiming that you must not be injured badly if you didn’t seek help. This also goes for follow up visits. You should see your doctor every 30 days while your case is ongoing.
The best way to get the compensation you deserve is by contacting an attorney who specializes in truck accident cases. Using an attorney will ensure that you’ve got someone in your corner who knows all the ways the insurance companies are going to try to devalue your claim and who won’t let that happen to you. When looking for an attorney, look for one trained in accident reconstruction and skilled in truck accident personal injury cases. This kind of attorney will have the knowledge and experience with these kinds of cases that will best position them to advocate for you and the compensation you deserve.
Out-of-pocket expenses you have because of the accident. These include: past and future medical bills, lost wages, loss of future earning capacity, and property damage.
Intangible losses that don’t have a fixed dollar amount and are subjective. These include: pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of companionship, and permanent disfigurement and scarring.
Punitive damages are awarded to punish the defendant for wrongdoing and to discourage others from repeating the behavior. These may be awarded when the defendant has acted intentionally recklessly or with gross negligence.
Our law firm is uniquely qualified to help personal injury victims recover damages that may be appropriate for their particular case. For example, Indiana law is stringent regarding allowing plaintiffs to try and recover punitive damages. In most instances, the injury victim is not entitled to file a claim for punitive damages simply because the defendant in the case acted negligently but not with willful intent to cause harm.
Nevertheless, an injury victim may recover punitive damages if it can be demonstrated that the other party knowingly acted in a manner that any reasonable person would believe had a probability of causing harm or injury.
If you feel that your case qualifies for punitive damages, you need to consult with a personal injury lawyer immediately. At McGlone Law, our lawyers have the experience to determine if your case qualifies for punitive damages and what amount would be appropriate to request in a settlement.
Although a semi-truck accident may be attributed to several factors, one of the most common is driver error. Federal Motor Carrier Safety (FMCSA) regulations are meant to keep drivers from operating commercial trucks while fatigued. Unfortunately, trucking companies often push drivers to ignore safety regulations and exceed the specified amount of time they are allowed to drive. This results in large trucks being involved in serious accidents with smaller vehicles that could have been prevented.
Other causes of commercial vehicle accidents include:
In some instances, it can be challenging to determine who is at fault for accidents involving commercial vehicles. For example, often multiple liability issues involve an independent contractor who operates a privately owned vehicle but is leased to a trucking company. Some parties that you may not have considered may also be liable, such as the vehicle’s owner, the truck’s manufacturer or auto parts used on the vehicle, and, in some cases, the cargo shipper or loader of the items transported in the commercial vehicle.
Why would the employer be liable for an accident one of their employees caused? Employers may be responsible if they have failed to inspect the vehicle properly, if they have failed to require their employee to complete driver training, and more.
Employers are held to the standard of Motor Carrier Service, a branch of the Indiana Department of Revenue that regulates motor carrier companies, commercial vehicles, and more.
Our semi-truck accident attorneys are passionately committed to assisting injury victims to recover justice and peace of mind after an accident and will stand by your side throughout the legal process. Our attorneys have the knowledge and skill to determine who is at fault and who should be held accountable for their negligent actions or inactions.
Commercial vehicle employers must adhere to the regulations set forth by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, FMCSA.
The FMCSA has many requirements for commercial vehicles, such as inspection tests, adequate driver’s training, background checks, limits on drive time, physical examinations, and more. Due to the strict regulations set in place by the FMCSA, if a driver is in an accident and is found to violate one or more of the regulations, this can contribute to their negligence in the personal injury case.
Suppose the driver is under pressure from their employer to meet deadlines, speeding to the next location or driving more hours than legally allowed by the FMCSA. In that case, this can typically be determined, and the employer would share in liability for the accident.
For example, to help avoid driver fatigue that can lead to accidents, the FMCSA has set drive time limits. These limits vary based on how many hours the truck is in operation and how many rest hours are included between shifts. The drivers must also document their hours in a drive log that can be inspected for safety concerns and to ensure they abide by the drive time limits.
Indiana requires minimum limits of $750,000 of auto liability coverage, but most truckers opt for $1 million or more in coverage. The reason the coverage minimum is so much higher than for individuals is because semi-trucks are capable of causing much more damage than a car.
According to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Indiana Law states a person may not operate a motor vehicle in Indiana if financial responsibility is not in effect with respect to the motor vehicle operated, or the person is not otherwise insured to operate the motor vehicle. All motorists that operate a motor vehicle on Indiana roadways are required to maintain the state’s minimum amount of liability insurance coverage for the vehicle they operate. The state of Indiana has a 25/50/25 minimum liability insurance requirement. This required minimum coverage includes $25,000 for bodily injury to or the death of one (1) individual, $50,000 for bodily injury to or the death of two (2) or more individuals in any one (1) accident, and $25,000 for damage to or the destruction of property in one (1) accident.
Many benefits come with hiring a semi-truck accident lawyer to represent you in filing an insurance claim or a lawsuit. At first, some injury victims try to hang things on their own but quickly realize they do not have enough understanding of semi-truck accident law to proceed. An experienced semi-truck accident lawyer can act as your legal advocate and help ensure all legal paperwork is filled out correctly and turned in on time.
You may have a great deal of physical and emotional damage from being involved in an accident. You may need extensive medical treatment to recover from your injuries. It can be difficult for individuals lacking legal training to determine what damages they may be able to recover and what amount they should request in a settlement. A knowledgeable semi-truck attorney can review your case and determine what is right.
In addition, if the insurer is unwilling to negotiate or tries to offer you a settlement that is not in your best interests, you need an experienced attorney on your side who will fight for your rights. Insurance companies will often deny or undervalue a claim by asserting that the victim is partially to blame for the accident.
One such method involves the insurance provider having an adjuster contact you soon after the accident occurs to try and have you make a recorded statement on the pretext of detailing the facts of the accident. However, an insurer has the legal right to use any statement you make about the accident against you to try and lower the amount of compensation they are willing to pay you.
We handle any semi-truck accident case where you are not at fault. If you are partially at fault, we can still take your case as long as the other party is 51% or more at fault. Sometimes fault is unclear, so if you’ve been in a semi-truck accident call us at (812) 247-8416 today for a free, no-obligation consultation.
Yes, you can. Multiple parties can be liable for the accident, and you shouldn’t assume that because you may have done something wrong, you are 100% at fault. Indiana follows a comparative negligence law. This law can mean that each party involved in an accident is assigned a percentage of fault, depending upon what they did or failed to do that helped to cause the accident. If you are assigned more than 51%, you are unable to pursue damages.
Several factors work together to establish fault after a semi-truck accident. Evidence includes pictures or videos of the scene and vehicles, police records, witness statements, and more. Read our blog to learn more about comparative negligence and partial fault.
The statute of limitations for most personal injury cases, including semi-truck accidents, is two years. If you are under 18 years of age at the time of the accident, the two year time window starts on your 18th birthday.
According to Indiana Statute 25-1-9.1-4, an emergency medical condition (EMC) is a medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity, which may include severe pain, such that the absence of immediate medical attention could reasonably be expected to result in any of the following:
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