Establishing Damages in a Texas Trucking Accident
When dealing with trucking accidents, it is important to remember that they are much more complicated than regular car accidents. For one thing, trucking accidents typically involve more victims than car accident. It can also be difficult to find who is at fault in a trucking accident depending on if the truck was owned by an individual or a company and the circumstances around the accident.
Determining Fault in Trucking Accidents
Determining who is at fault in a trucking accident can prove difficult. Whether or not you can press charges after a trucking accident depends on a few different factors:
- Which driver caused the accident
- Who the owner of the truck is
- If the driver was employed with a bad driving record
If the trucker did cause the accident, whether you can press charges or not depends on their employer, ownership of the truck, and driving history. If they own the truck themselves, it might be as simple as pressing charges against the individual driver. If the driver is employed by a company and the company is the owner of the truck, things get a little more tricky. If the driver was hired by the company and they knew the driver had a bad driving record in their past, the company is most likely liable for the accident. An attorney that specializes in trucking accidents is needed in this decision as they know the full length of the law and what options there are after an accident of this nature.
Establishing Damages
Like determining fault, establishing damages also are highly dependent on the nature of the accident. If the truck driver is at fault, you and your attorney can begin assessing the damages. In most accident cases like these, the damages factored in include:
- Medical bills (both past and future)
- Income lost (both past and future)
- Vehicle damages
There can be more damages that are factored in, but the above 3 are usually the starting points when determining damages in a trucking accident. The attorney will assess your medical bills that you experienced due to the accident, both those that occurred right after the accident, and those that may occur due to long-term injuries sustained. The same idea is behind determining income lost. The attorney will assess the income you lost due to missing work after the accident and any work you may miss due to long-term injuries. As with any vehicle accident, vehicle damages will be factored in also. Other damages established depend on the particular case and what occurred during the accident.
Trucking accidents, although they may seem rare, are quite common. To read more about trucking accident incidents in the U.S. visit the Federal Carrier Safety Administration’s website here. Again, an attorney experienced in trucking accident cases can help establish the damages that resulted due to the accident. Give us a call today to discuss your case.
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia by ScottDavis.
