The City of Alexandria limits where trucks are allowed to travel, but that doesn’t mean it’s prevented accidents entirely. A truck accident can leave victims with catastrophic injuries. While compensation may be available to cover your injuries and other related losses, it can seem impossible to recover the compensation you need because truck accident claims require immediate attention, in-depth knowledge of the trucking industry, and the ability to negotiate with a large insurance company.
This is where an Alexandria personal injury lawyer can help. Jim Parrish started the Parrish Law Firm, PLLC to protect vulnerable accident victims from the tactics many insurance companies use to devalue or deny claims.
Schedule your FREE claim review with the Parrish Law Firm, PLLC today.
Truck Accident Claims Are Complex. A Lawyer Can Help You Navigate the Process
Truck accident cases tend to be more fact-intensive than other car accident cases due to the number of issues and potential volume of available data.
Because freight transportation often involves layers of relationships, pinpointing the responsible party (or parties) is the first challenge. It is possible that more than just the driver could be liable for the accident.
In fact, even if the driver is 100 percent responsible for the accident, he will likely not be your only liable party. This is due to vicarious liability laws which hold that employers are liable for their employee’s actions, so long as those actions occur in the scope of the employee’s duties.
Defective tires, brakes, and transmissions can also be culprits in an accident. Mechanical failures can leave manufacturers or suppliers liable in cases where the injury was a direct result of the failure.
Why You Want an Attorney from the Parrish Law Firm, PLLC for Your Case
Recovering compensation for a truck accident can be intimidating. You have to stand up against large, powerful trucking companies and their lawyers. However, you don’t need to do it alone. But you don’t want just any personal injury attorney in your corner.
You want Jim Parrish. In addition to decades of experience helping injured people across Virginia, he also has experience on the other side of the table. Before opening his firm, he represented insurance adjusters against injured people. Now, he uses that knowledge to protect clients from these tactics.
Proving Fault in an Alexandria Truck Accident Claim
Once we have determined who might be liable, we must establish how that party caused the accident.
While truck drivers must follow all typical traffic laws (e.g., speeding, obeying signs, etc.), they must also contend with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Regulations. We are very familiar with these laws and regulations and how they affect a truck accident case. Some common violations that could leave a truck driver and/or trucking company liable for an accident include:
- Hours of service violations: Truck drivers can only drive for a certain number of hours before they must take a break. If a driver violated this law and caused an accident, he and the trucking company may be liable for any losses you suffered.
- Cell phone use: Truck drivers cannot text behind the wheel or engage in cell phone use that requires holding a cell phone or pressing more than one button. If a driver was texting or otherwise engaging in prohibited cell phone use when your accident occurred, we can use that as evidence of negligence.
- Alcohol use: If a commercial truck driver has a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.04 or more, he is not permitted to drive. If he caused an accident, the driver and the trucking company may be liable.
We must gather various forms of evidence to prove the trucking company is liable for the accident. This may include:
- Hours of service logs
- Data from the truck’s electronic control module or event data recorder
- Camera footage (if the truck had a camera installed)
- Red light or surveillance camera footage
- Eyewitness testimony
- Photos
- Drug and alcohol test results
- The accident report
Much of this evidence is in the hands of the trucking company that can legally destroy much of it after a given period. To ensure the preservation of this evidence, we will send the trucking a spoliation letter. This notifies it of impending litigation and requires it to preserve all listed material.
Recovering the Damages You Deserve After a Trucking Accident
To recover compensation through a truck accident claim, we must prove, based upon a preponderance of admissible evidence, that another party was liable. To hold another party liable, we must establish the following:
- The party in question owed you a duty. For example, a truck driver owes all road users a duty to drive safely. A trucking company has a duty to do background checks on all potential drivers. A maintenance company has a duty to perform satisfactory maintenance. A manufacturer has a duty to produce safe products.
- The party breached that duty, e.g., the truck driver was texting behind the wheel, a trucking company hired a driver with a history of drunk driving, a manufacturer put faulty brakes on the market, or a maintenance company did not replace an obviously worn tire.
- This breach caused your accident and injuries, e.g., the texting driver swerved into your lane and sideswiped you, causing you to suffer a traumatic brain injury.
- You suffered damages, e.g., medical bills, lost wages, “pain and suffering” and inconvenience, etc.
Special Damages After a Truck Crash
The term “special damages,” also known as economic damages, refers to those losses that relate to a precise dollar amount. Medical bills and other out-of-pocket expenses that followed directly from the accident are included. Lost wages and loss of earning potential are other examples of special damages. Again, a victim can establish these losses with specific numbers.
Even future losses constitute special damages. Though they may require an expert witness to establish, the expert will describe them in terms of specific dollar amounts.
Both the loss of future income and future medical expenses are important factors in arriving at a special damages figure. There are ways a lawyer can establish these losses, even without invoices or receipts.
General Damages After a Truck Crash
Unlike special damages, there are some damages that neither a victim nor a witness can place a specific dollar on. These are “general damages.”
General damages, also known as non-economic damages, can be past or future physical “pain and suffering” and mental anguish. Non-economic damages also compensate victims for the inconvenience (past and future) and the embarrassment or humiliation that may accompany permanent scarring or other physical disfigurement.
Punitive Damages
You may also be wondering whether you can collect punitive damages in your Alexandria truck accident lawsuit. While an award of punitive damages could dramatically increase the amount of your compensation, it is important to keep in mind that punitive damages are only awarded in instances where the judge finds the actions of the defendant to be egregious or reprehensible in some way. Gross negligence may also warrant an award of punitive damages.
However, punitive damages are not an entitlement. They are awarded when the court finds it necessary to punish the defendant and send a message to the public that similar actions will not be tolerated by the Alexandria civil court system.
Damages for a Wrongful Death
In wrongful death cases, an administrator or executor can file a lawsuit to recover damages on behalf of the decedent’s beneficiaries (typically the person’s spouse, children, grandchildren, or parents). Recoverable damages could include:
- Lost income
- Medical expenses for care the decedent required before their passing
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Sorrow and mental anguish
- Loss of advice, comfort, companionship, guidance, and society
- Loss of assistance, care, and protection
Learn more about what you might be able to recover during a FREE claim review.
Liability for Truck Accidents in Alexandria
Establishing fault in your Alexandria truck accident claim will be instrumental if you hope to recover compensation for your damages.
A number of parties could be responsible for causing your truck accident injuries. In many truck accident cases, the truck driver is found liable. This is especially true in instances where they were engaging in some type of unsafe driving practice, such as:
- Speeding
- Following too closely
- Distracted driving
- Drunk driving
- Drugged driving
- Failing to stop
- Failing to use a turn signal
- Failing to yield
- Failing to check blind spots
- Driver fatigue
However, there are also other parties that could be at fault for your truck accident. For example, if the truck driver was drunk at the time of the accident, the trucking company could share fault for your severe injuries.
The trucking company could also share liability if drowsy driving caused the accident when the commercial driver was working more hours than they are legally allowed under federal regulations. Additional parties that could share liability for your truck accident injuries include:
- Truck parts manufacturers
- Truck parts distributors
- Commercial truck dealerships
- The owner of the truck
- Government agencies
- Municipalities
- Safety inspectors
- Cargo loaders
- Other third parties
An in-depth investigation into the cause of your truck accident will determine who is responsible for your injuries and compensate you for your damages accordingly.
Statute of Limitations for Truck Accidents in Alexandria
If you are hoping to obtain financial compensation in your truck accident case, you need to take action before the statute of limitations expires. Per Va. Code § 8.01-243, personal injury lawsuits, including truck accident lawsuits, must be filed before the two-year statute of limitations runs out. If this deadline passes and your lawsuit has not been filed, you will no longer have the opportunity to have your case heard in the Alexandria civil court system.
You have the opportunity to continue to negotiate; however, without leverage, you will likely end up accepting much less than you deserve.
Fortunately, you can avoid issues like this by retaining a powerful legal advocate who will ensure your lawsuit is filed in a timely manner. The sooner you get a Alexandria truck accident lawyer on your case, the sooner we can gather the time-sensitive evidence needed to prove liability in your truck accident claim.
Get a FREE Claim Review for Your Alexandria Truck Accident Case
The best time to start this process is now. Learn more about your case, and find out how we can help you get the results you deserve. Call Parrish Law Firm, PLLC to schedule your FREE claim review. And because our Alexandria truck accident attorneys handle cases on a contingency basis, you do not pay us until you win fair compensation.