Miami Truck and Tractor-Trailer Accident Attorneys
Despite advances in safety technology and driver training, truck accidents and fatal truck crashes have been increasing each year. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the number of trucks involved in fatal crashes increased 10 percent from 2016 to 2017. During that same time period, Florida reported 43,923 commercial vehicle crashes, an annual increase of 6.4%.
While truck accidents do not occur as frequently as automobile accidents, they usually have much more serious consequences. A commercial truck typically weighs at least 25 times as much as an automobile and is not as responsive. As a result, truck collisions can cause serious, life-threatening or fatal injuries.
If you or a family member has been injured in a truck accident, you should get help from an experienced Florida truck and tractor-trailer accident attorney. The skilled litigators and trial lawyers at Boyers Law Group have helped numerous victims of truck accidents and their families obtain substantial monetary awards for their injuries and want to help you obtain the compensation that you deserve.
Causes of Florida Truck Accidents
A main cause of truck accidents is driver negligence. This negligence often occurs when truck drivers are overtired, distracted, or not adequately trained. With systems of compensation and schedules that reward speed and long hours of driving, trucking companies can contribute to the problems caused when drivers are not well trained or well rested.
Safety violations can also occur if a driver is under pressure to meet unrealistic travel goals or if he uses drugs or alcohol while on the job. The number of hours drivers are allowed to drive per day and per week is established by federal regulations, as are requirements for rest breaks and regular drug testing. By disregarding any of these regulations, drivers put themselves at risk of driving unsafely and possibly causing an accident.
Defective parts can also cause truck accidents. A truck that hasn’t been properly maintained may, for example, have defective brakes or tires, which can cause serious accidents. Similarly, if windshield wipers and lights are not replaced or if truck loads are not adequately secured, serious accidents can occur.
Other automobile drivers can also cause truck crashes, typically by changing lanes or merging into traffic too close to an oncoming truck, driving erratically between large trucks, or not adequately controlling their speed when a truck is changing lanes.
Florida Truck Accident Claims
When a truck accident occurs, the trucking company and its insurer will usually investigate the crash and attempt to minimize the financial compensation paid to those who were injured. Insurance companies typically try to protect their clients by deflecting liability away from the driver and the trucking company, beginning at the scene of the accident. That’s why it is very important to work with an experienced truck accident attorney before speaking with investigators or insurers who contact you on behalf of the trucking company. Their goal is to undermine your claim and either minimize the compensation that you are paid or to avoid paying you altogether.
The attorneys of the Boyers Law Group have a long track records of success in litigating and trying tractor-trailer crash cases in order to achieve the substantial compensation to which you may be entitled. We can help determine liability for your truck accident, gather the critical evidence needed to bolster your claim, and help you obtain just compensation from the responsible party or parties.
Florida Truck Accident Lawsuits
The legal theories advanced in truck accident lawsuits can vary, depending on what caused the accident and the extent of the injuries you sustained. Many lawsuits claim negligence on the part of the driver or the trucking company that employs him or her. This negligence can arise from driver inattention or distraction, excessive speed, failure to follow traffic laws or fatigue from driving for too many hours, among other acts or omissions. It might also include the trucking company’s failure to monitor the driver’s hours spent on the road, failure to properly train the driver, hiring an inexperienced or unfit driver, overloading trucks, or not maintaining the vehicle appropriately.
Some catastrophic truck crash cases result from dangerous and defective trucks or a combination of a defective product with negligence on the part of the owner or operator of the truck. In such cases, our experienced product defect attorneys prove that the truck or one of its component parts was defective and unreasonably dangerous and caused or contributed to the crash. In a case where a defective product leads to an accident resulting in injuries, the product manufacturer and its distributors can be found strictly or absolutely liable for the harm that their product caused to you or your loved ones.
When trucking negligence or product defects cause fatal injuries, Boyers Law Group will pursue a wrongful death claim on behalf of its clients. In such cases, family members may be entitled to recover for their mental pain and suffering and lost support among other damages that are recoverable under Florida law. Hiring an experienced wrongful death attorney is essential in order to receive the substantial compensation to which family members who have lost a loved one – due to a tragic trucking accident – are entitled.
Compensation in Florida Truck and Tractor Trailer Accident Cases
Compensation for injuries and damages from a truck accident can be economic, non-economic and, in special cases, punitive. Economic damages are given to compensate an accident victim and/or family for their monetary losses. These losses can include existing as well as future medical expenses, wages lost between the time of the injury and the end of the lawsuit and the loss of earning capacity in the future.
Non-economic damages are intended to compensate truck accident victims for non-financial losses. Compensation for non-economic damages usually includes payment for the physical and emotional pain endured because of the truck accident injuries. In addition, the victim’s family might be awarded compensation for the loss of their loved one’s services, assistance, society and companionship.
Punitive damages are supposed to punish the owner or operator of the truck that caused the serious truck accident injuries when the crash resulted from intentional misconduct or gross negligence.