Modesto Truck Accident Lawyer

Modesto Truck Accident Attorney

Getting injured in a truck accident is not fair. It can disrupt and even end a life in Modesto, CA. We wouldn’t suggest, either, that financial restitution could ever come close to fair in terms of trying to fully match what you’re dealing with. We don’t have the ability to fully restore everything that’s lost after a truck accident. The next option is a civil claim, and while money can’t restore everything, it can make your burden a little less to bear. We believe you should get every penny you deserve for what you’ve been through. If you work with us at the Law Offices of Carl D. Barnes, we will do everything we can to help make that happen.

After the Accident

The moments after a trucking accident can be of particular value to your case. While you can’t always follow every suggestion because of the circumstances, doing what you can could be very helpful to your case. After a truck accident, you should:

• Call 911 – Getting emergency services out quickly is essential for both getting anybody who is injured treatment and for your case, as the police will perform an initial investigation and write up a report. Be sure to honestly recount to the police, as clearly as you can, your perspective on how and why the accident happened.
• Get Pictures and Video – Good documentation of the accident scene can be tremendously helpful to your case. Even if you are unable to do so, if you have anyone who can document it on your behalf, that may help your case. The kinds of things you want pictures of are:
  • The vehicles and any damage
  • Injuries
  • A shot of the whole scene (if there are any skid marks, those should be included)
  • Any nearby traffic signs
  • Anything else that may have been a contributing factor to the accident
• Information – If you can, take the time to get the contact information from anyone else involved in the accident, as well as any witnesses. Full names, phone numbers, and email addresses can be helpful. From those involved in the accident, you will also want to get insurance info, driver’s licenses, and license plate numbers.
• Use Caution – Aside from the police, say as little detail about the circumstances of the accident as you can until you see your lawyer. This goes for your insurance company as well. Some people might try to get you to phrase things in a way that sounds like admitting fault.
• Visit a Doctor – You should get a full medical assessment as quickly as you can just to make sure there is nothing paramedics may have missed. The longer you wait, the more others might claim your injury happened in the intervening time.
• Call a Lawyer – Call someone like us as soon as you can. Having the right legal team can help you understand your next steps and where to take things from here.
• Have Someone Look at Your Car – Getting an appraisal for the damage to your vehicle can be helpful information when it comes time to ask for damages.

Why Accidents Happen

Truck accidents tend to be a little more complex than something like a car accident. Trucks are large, unwieldy vehicles with more parts that could possibly go wrong. At times, the familiar driver error or substances might be at fault. Other times, though, it may be something unique to the trucking dynamic. Experienced lawyers can help examine the situation for an understanding of where the fault might lie. Where there is fault is the most likely party with whom a claim needs to be filed. Some ways trucks get into accidents are:

• Speeding
• Driver Error
• Intoxication
• Distracted Driving
• Blind Spots
• Fatigue
• Unrealistic Schedules
• Improper Cargo Loading.

You Need More Than Insurance

Often, we think that insurance is enough to take care of us if we were ever to get in an accident with something like a truck. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Insurance companies are companies. That means they are concerned with making a profit first and foremost. Any money they pay out to you takes away from their profits, so it’s important to recognize that you may well need something beyond a basic insurance policy to rectify a truck accident.

Who May Be Liable

There are so many hands involved with the trucking process that it creates a lot of possibilities for who is and isn’t liable. Investigation of the accident is a vital part of assessing liability. An accomplished lawyer can help you understand if the driver was at fault or maybe if the company was for having unreasonable standards. It could also be the shipper for failing to load the cargo properly or the manufacturer if a part of the truck itself failing is what caused the accident. A lawyer’s investigation can turn up the most likely culprit.

Damages

A truck accident claim is a personal injury claim. That means that the potential damages follow the personal injury schedule of possible damages. The damages you might receive come in three different categories. Two kinds of compensatory damages (economic and non-economic) and punitive damages. These damages each cover a different facet of the accident:

• Economic damages are pretty easy to understand. If you can sell it and get a price on it, then that concern will be handled as part of the economic damages. This includes things like lost wages, medical bills, vehicle repairs, and lost earning capacity.
• Non-economic damages are a little hard to wrap your head around because they are unquantifiable. If you can’t buy and sell it, the price will have to be something a judge makes an educated assessment on and decides a ruling. Non-economic damages are things like emotional distress and pain and suffering.
• Punitive damages are designed to directly assess concerns with the defendant. They serve as a punishment for wrongdoing or negligence that a judge decides they should have known better than to do what they did. A large punitive sum may also be meant to act as a deterrent from others following the footsteps of the bad actor.

FAQs About Modesto, CA Truck Accident Law

How Long After a Trucking Accident Can You Sue in California?

There is no civil claim that is specific to truck accidents, so the claim would be filed under the personal injury law. That has a statute of limitations of two years from the date of the accident, after which a claim may no longer be filed. The only possibility of a claim after that time would be if the injury were discovered later. You have one year after any later discovered injuries to file a claim.

Who Can Be Sued for Truck Accidents?

You might think that only the driver, or even just the driver and trucking company, can be held liable in a truck accident, but that just scratches the surface. There tend to be a lot of parties involved in the trucking process, and any one of them could have made an error that led to the accident. Some of the parties who have been held liable in the past include:

• The Trucking Company
• The Truck Driver
• The Truck Manufacturer and/or Truck Parts Manufacturer
• The Shipper
• The Owner of the Vehicle
• The Owner of the Freight

What if My Spouse Died in a Truck Accident?

If your spouse was killed in a truck accident, then you may be eligible to file for a wrongful death claim. This would be similar to a personal injury suit. Similar damages could be involved, but it would account for things like:

• Funeral expenses
• Burial Expenses
• Lost future income that the deceased could have earned
• The loss of guidance, support, care, and nurturing as a result of the death

What Can a Lawyer Do for My Truck Accident Case?

A personal injury claim can be a complex process. A lawyer can help to navigate that process. Furthermore, the complexity of the process is exacerbated by the fact that it’s also adversarial. As much as you are trying to get what you deserve, there is another party trying to avoid paying that sum. If you find yourself in a fight for what you are owed, you’ll want someone on your side who understands how to fight that fight. That’s what a lawyer can do for you.

We’re Ready to Help

It’s not our first truck accident. We have experience dealing with these situations. Most people, thankfully, have never dealt with a truck accident before. If you are dealing with injuries from a truck accident now, it will hopefully be the only time you ever experience this. Sadly, we’ve been down this road with clients in your situation before. It’s not a fun part of the job, and we’ll gladly find something else to do in a world where no one is injured by a truck again. In the meantime, though, we can put our experience to good use, ensuring that victims in these situations get a fair shot at everything they are owed. If you want to put our experience to work for you, contact us today.