If you are in a truck accident, you probably have suffered serious injuries, lost income, and considerable pain and suffering. When the trucker, employer, or another party caused the accident, you should receive compensation for your losses.
Learn in this post about what you should do after a truck accident once you have left the scene. Then, have a truck accident attorney in your area review the case to determine your legal options. A contingency agreement pays most truck accident attorneys, so there are no upfront legal costs to pay.
Important Steps After A Truck Accident
Immediately after a truck accident, you must call first responders, talk to witnesses, and get seen at an ER or urgent care. But the things you do in the days and weeks after the truck accident are just as important to preserve your health and future legal options. Make sure that you take care of the following steps to ensure the best outcome for the case:
Get Medical Care
The most important thing to do in the immediate days after the truck accident is to get medical care. Truck crashes involve 80,000-pound vehicles slamming into much smaller vehicles, so injuries tend to be severe. You might have broken bones, head and neck injuries, organ damage, blood loss, cuts, scrapes, etc. The sooner you get medical treatment, the better your long-term prognosis.
Also, receiving prompt and thorough medical care after the accident ensures your legal options. If you file a truck accident claim or lawsuit, the responsible insurance company will check if you got medical treatment in the days after the accident. If not, they will question the seriousness of your injuries, which can negatively affect your settlement.
Follow Your Doctor’s Instructions
It isn’t enough to be seen by a doctor in the first few days after the truck accident. You also should attend all follow-up and specialist appointments. If you need surgical procedures, ensure you get there when you should and have them done as ordered. If you need prescriptions, fill them promptly and take them as instructed by your doctor.
The trucking company’s insurance provider will check if you follow your doctor’s orders. If you don’t do everything you are supposed to do, such as attending follow-up appointments, it can affect your case results. They might claim that your injuries aren’t serious, so you shouldn’t get as much money for your losses.
Be Careful What You Say To Insurance Companies
After the truck crash, don’t be surprised if the trucking company’s insurance provider calls you. They may couch the phone call in nice-sounding language, such as wanting to see how you are and if your injuries are improving. They may also ask if they can get your statement about the accident.
Don’t be fooled by anything the insurance adjuster says. The call aims to undermine a potential claim against them by getting you to say something that damages your case. They also may try to encourage you to take a small settlement, such as paying for your current medical bills. You should never speak in detail with the trucking company’s insurer and never take any settlement without getting legal advice.
The best option is to talk to a truck accident attorney, and if they think you have a case, have the attorney talk to the insurance company. Talking to the insurance company will do you no good and can hurt your case.
Never Accept a Quick Insurance Settlement Without Legal Advice
If you’ve suffered an injury in an accident and are dealing with a personal injury claim, you may have already encountered the push from the insurance company to accept a quick settlement. They may try to convince you that it’s in your best interest to accept their offer and avoid the hassle of going to court. However, it’s important to remember that insurance companies are not looking out for your best interests – they are primarily concerned with minimizing their own financial liability.
While a quick settlement may seem tempting, especially if you’re facing mounting medical bills and other expenses, always resist the urge and seek legal advice before making any decisions. An experienced personal injury attorney can assess the true value of your claim, negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf, and ensure that you receive fair compensation for your injuries and losses.
One of the main reasons you should never accept a quick settlement without legal advice is that insurance companies often undervalue claims in their initial offers. They have teams of skilled adjusters whose job is to minimize the amount they pay out on claims. Their goal is to settle for as little as possible, regardless of the severity of your injuries or their impact on your life.
By consulting with a personal injury attorney, you can better understand the true worth of your claim. Attorneys have experience evaluating similar cases and can determine the fair compensation you deserve based on medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and future damages. With their experience, they can negotiate with the insurance company to maximize your settlement and ensure you receive the compensation you’re entitled to.
Another important reason to seek legal advice before accepting a settlement is to protect yourself from potential long-term consequences. In some cases, injuries may have long-lasting effects that are not immediately apparent. Accepting a quick settlement without understanding the full extent of your injuries can leave you without the financial resources to cover future medical treatments or ongoing rehabilitation.
An attorney will thoroughly evaluate your case and consult with medical experts to determine the long-term consequences of your injuries. When negotiating your settlement, they can factor in any potential future medical expenses or treatment needs. By having legal representation, you can protect your best interests in the present and future.
Have Your Car Appraised
Your vehicle may only seem to have minor damage. But the damage can be impossible to see from the outside. Don’t just take the car to the local body shop and have it fixed, as the vehicle repair estimate should be part of the insurance claim.
Every auto insurance company has various requirements to pay for the damages. Ensure you follow the appropriate appraisal process with the insurance company so your vehicle gets the repairs it needs. If the other party’s insurance company handles your vehicle repairs, your truck accident attorney can coordinate with them.
Speak To A Truck Accident Attorney
You should have any truck accident case reviewed by a competent attorney, especially when you believe you weren’t at fault. Even if you aren’t sure about liability, having an attorney review your case is still wise. You probably have injuries and other damages, and having an attorney negotiating for you is always better than doing it yourself. Big trucking company insurance providers will try to pay you as little as possible. But your truck crash attorney knows their tactics and will ensure you get the most money.
Provide Your Truck Accident Attorney With Evidence
After the truck crash, you may have taken videos or photographs of the accident scene. Hopefully, you also have images of the vehicle damages and your injuries. Perhaps you obtained the contact information and statements from eyewitnesses. Provide all of this information to your truck accident attorney. They can gather additional evidence through investigations, but the more you provide upfront, the faster the case may proceed.
Work With Your Truck Accident Attorney
Getting the best case outcome requires working closely with your attorney for at least a few weeks or months. You need to be in regular contact with your attorney and be attentive to any requests they make of you. The sooner you get any information or documents to them, the faster your case can proceed. Working well with your attorney can speed up the case and put more money in your pocket.
How A Truck Accident Attorney Can Benefit Your Case
One of the most important things to do after a truck accident is to have the case reviewed by an experienced attorney. There are many critical things that your truck accident attorney can do to benefit your case:
Investigate The Truck Crash
You may be sure the accident was the truck driver’s fault, but their insurance company won’t take your word for it. In fact, the trucking company’s insurance adjuster will look for any way they can avoid liability.
Your truck accident attorney will review the crash evidence and look for proof of fault. They will review police reports, eyewitness statements, truck black box information, cell phone records, video and photo evidence, physical evidence, and more. They also may conduct their own interviews of witnesses and get convincing proof of who was at fault. Your attorney also will find out if the trucker or employer violated the hours-of-service rules, allowing the driver to be on the road for too long. At-fault parties can be the truck driver, the employer, the maintenance team, the truck or parts manufacturer, etc.
Handle Accident Legal Paperwork
Any personal injury claim or lawsuit involves copious paperwork. A skilled attorney must complete it correctly, or it can affect your claim. Your attorney will ensure all paperwork is done properly and filed on time.
Ensure You Get Appropriate Medical Care
Your attorney may also help you address your much-needed medical care. It’s common for insurance companies to attempt to limit your doctor visits, surgeries, rehabilitation, etc. The attorney might connect you with skilled medical professionals to treat you on a medical lien. Plus, they can work with the insurance company to encourage them to pay for required care.
Investigate The Trucking Company
The driver’s or company’s negligence caused the crash in many truck crashes. For instance, the trucking company may have a long record of not correctly maintaining their rigs’ brakes. An attorney can access relevant records and use them as important evidence for your case. They also can subpoena driver training and hiring records to determine if any violations in this area contributed to the accident.
Negotiate With The Insurance Company
The trucking company’s insurance provider will want to minimize what they pay you. Your attorney will aggressively negotiate with the insurance company to get you more. They can always file a lawsuit that might result in bigger damages, so this possibility can encourage a fair settlement. Juries tend to look unfavorably on big trucking companies for underpaying people they injured.
Properly Value Your Claim
Truck accidents are complex and severe and can lead to major injuries. Most truck crash victims don’t fully understand the value of their claims. For example, you might think you are only entitled to medical payments for your broken arm and hip. But those injuries might turn out to be more severe than you thought. You might need more surgery and therapy later.
Your attorney will work with medical experts to determine your future medical needs. If you cannot work for months or have a long-term disability, the attorney will work with economic and vocational experts to understand all the lost income compensation you should receive. They will also work with your doctor to understand your pain and suffering so you can seek appropriate compensation.
File A Lawsuit, If Needed
Your attorney will take the case to court if the insurance company doesn’t offer a fair settlement. You should choose an attorney with an excellent litigation record and plenty of favorable jury verdicts. Most truck accident cases end in settlement, but your attorney will be ready to fight for you in court if needed.
Speak To A Truck Accident Attorney Today
You need to focus on and do many things after a truck accident, which we covered in this post. The last thing you should do is speak to a truck accident attorney as soon as possible. Anyone with serious truck accident injuries and damages needs an experienced legal advocate fighting for the most compensation. Contact an experienced personal injury lawyer near you to determine if you have a case.
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