Truck Accident Lawyer Near Me
An Ohio truck accident can leave you with severe injuries that change your entire life. You may fight to recover during months of rehabilitation and therapy. You may require ongoing care for months or even years. Some people never return to their previous careers. All these things drastically impact your ability to earn a living, and your family’s ability to pay for your care plus their everyday expenses.
Fortunately, you may be entitled to compensation. The truck accident lawyers in Dublin, OH at Bressman Law have the experience and skill necessary to handle all aspects of your accident claim. If a trucker’s careless or negligent actions caused your accident, we can recover compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more. Call our office today at 877-707-1385 to make an appointment to discuss your case.
For a free legal consultation with a truck accidents lawyer serving Dublin, call (614) 538-1116
Who is liable for my truck accident damages?
If a truck driver makes a mistake, breaks the law, or acts carelessly behind the wheel, it can have devastating effects. When this occurs and leads to an accident, you have the right to file a claim for compensation. It is not always the truck driver who is responsible for your medical expenses, lost wages, and other losses, though.
A legal concept known as vicarious liability says the driver’s employer is liable for any injuries his/her employee causes while on the job. (This does not apply if the truck driver is self-employed. Self-employed drivers are liable for their own actions.) Trucking companies can also be directly liable if they did not complete a background check, allowed a driver to get back on the road after failing a drug test, or encouraged or forced drivers to falsify hours of service logs.
Being able to hold the trucking company liable is key in many truck accident cases, especially because severe injuries can quickly eclipse a small insurance policy. Trucking companies carry much larger policies, allowing victims to gain much more compensation with their claims. However, this also makes winning much more difficult. Inexperienced accident victims who try to take on trucking companies and their legal teams alone often end up with far less than they deserve, or nothing at all.
Occasionally, others may also be liable for injuries in a Dublin, OH truck crash. This typically occurs when something goes wrong with the truck itself, or one of its parts. Parties who might be liable in these cases include:
- Truck manufacturer
- Parts manufacturer
- Maintenance company
- Tire maker or distributor
- Others involved in the repair or upkeep of the truck
We will analyze the facts of your case and identify all potential liable parties. We collect the evidence necessary to prove who was at fault, and hold that party responsible for the damages it caused.
Dublin Truck Accidents Lawyer Near Me (614) 538-1116
What unusual issues arise in the truck accident claim process?
It pays to contact a truck accident lawyer in Dublin, OH as soon as possible after you suffer injuries in a crash. Unlike a minor car accident claim, this is not something you can handle without a knowledgeable lawyer. You do not want to take on a trucking company and its insurance company’s legal team on your own.
This is especially true because, without a truck accident attorney’s help, you might never gain access to the evidence you need to provide your case. Unfortunately, the trucking company holds most of the evidence we need to prove the driver caused the crash. This includes things like rest logs, maintenance logs, data from the truck’s onboard computer, the trucker’s driving records, drug and alcohol test results, and the driver’s personnel file.
To preserve and gain access to this evidence, we must send a special notice to the trucking company. Called a spoliation letter, this document serves notice of our forthcoming claim and demands the trucking company safeguard the evidence in the case. Without this letter and the evidence it protects, we may be unable to build a strong enough case against the driver to prove negligence and gain compensation.
Examples of evidence we might include in a spoliation letter include, but are not limited to:
- Driver’s hours of service logs/record of duty status
- Maintenance records
- Any documents referencing the accident (e.g., investigations)
- The results of any drug tests administered before or after the crash
- Truck inspection records
- Any information relating to the cargo the truck was carrying
- The driver’s payroll records
- The driver’s personnel file
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What can I expect from the Dublin, OH truck accident claims process?
To get you the compensation you deserve, we file a liability insurance claim against the trucking company’s insurer. This leaves the insurance company with three options:
- Approve your claim
- Deny your claim
- Attempt to negotiate a smaller settlement
Most choose the last option, and we enter negotiations to reach a fair settlement amount that covers your financial losses and provides for your future care. If we cannot reach a just settlement, we can file an injury lawsuit to recover the compensation you deserve.
Filing a lawsuit does not mean your case will go to court. Often, filing a lawsuit or threatening to do so encourages the trucking company to offer a higher payout or agree to negotiations. If necessary, however, we can represent you in court and present a strong and convincing case to the judge and jury.
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Can I recover compensation if I was partially at-fault?
You can expect the insurer to do what it can to assign at least a portion of the fault for the accident to you. So what happens if the insurer is successful? Can you still recover compensation?
Ohio’s negligence laws say you can — as long as the other party is more at-fault than you. However, it is important to note that your percentage of fault will reduce your settlement. For example, if the insurer found you 30 percent liable for the accident and you demanded $100,000 for your injuries, you can only recover $70,000.
How can I reach a truck accident lawyer near me?
The Dublin, OH truck accident lawyers at Bressman Law understand how confusing and stressful getting the compensation you need after a crash can be. Let us worry about your truck accident insurance claim while you focus on your recovery.
Call our office today at 877-707-1385 to schedule a free, no-obligation appointment with one of our truck accident lawyers.
Call or text (614) 538-1116 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
