A truck accident can leave victims with devastating or even fatal injuries, as well as staggering medical bills and other debt. Texas law allows you to file for compensation if the truck driver caused the crash, collecting money to cover the full range of your losses. We help victims of accidents involving 18-wheelers, delivery trucks, box trucks, and other large trucks.
The truck accident team from D. Miller & Associates, PLLC, knows what it takes to win these cases in Texas. We can evaluate your situation, identify the liable parties, and explain your legal options. We can build a strong case for compensation for you, and fight for the full value of your claim. If you were the victim of a truck accident, call us today at 713-850-8600. You can speak to a truck accident lawyer in Sugar Land for free about your case.
Who Is Responsible When a Truck Driver Causes a Sugar Land Crash?
Determining who is liable after a truck accident is not always clear-cut, but we can help. Identifying the responsible parties after an accident is one of the first things we do as we begin to build your case. The issue here lies in the fact that many trucks are not privately owned. Instead, they are rental trucks, tractor trailers operating for a large trucking company, or other vehicles under the ownership of a corporation. Workers drive the majority of trucks on the road. This is an important difference between a truck accident and a typical car crash.
Because of a legal doctrine known as vicarious liability, a corporation is financially responsible for most truck accidents. This doctrine states that employers are liable for the actions of employees while they are on-the-job. This includes truckers, wrecker drivers, and plumbers in work vans.
By holding the company liable instead of the individual driver, we usually file your claim based on a much larger liability policy, which gives us access to higher coverage limits. While this can be a great advantage if you suffered serious injuries, such as a brain injury, and require ongoing care, it also makes handling your case more difficult because we need to take on a team of corporate lawyers.
How Will a Truck Accident Lawyer Prove Liability in My Case?
In some ways, pursuing a truck accident claim is similar to a typical car accident. We investigate what caused the crash using many of the same methods. We contact local law enforcement for the police report, we set up interviews with witnesses, and we partner with a team of accident reconstruction experts. We build a strong case on your behalf as we gain an understanding of how the truck driver caused the crash.
Truck accident cases, however, typically have much more evidence than other types of crashes. Federal and state agencies require truck drivers and their employers to keep strict records of rest time, maintenance procedures, safety checks, as well as a number of other business-related details. These requirements create a large amount of evidence we may be able to use to prove liability in your case. This includes:
- Driver’s logs;
- Data from the onboard computer;
- Mandatory drug and alcohol test results;
- Truck maintenance records;
- The driver’s employment records; and
- Truck leasing contracts.
We need to gain access to this evidence if it exists in your case. Most of it lies in the hands of the trucking company, though. This means we have to take quick action to demand the company preserves and shares this evidence. We will handle this process for you, and ensure the trucking company does not destroy any potentially important evidence in your case.
How Can an Attorney Determine How Much My Claim Is Worth?
Our goal is to recover the maximum amount of compensation available for every client. Knowing what fair compensation looks like in any given case is more complicated than just adding up some receipts, however. We collect evidence to document all your economic and non-economic losses, and fight for a fair settlement based on this proof. Some of the documentation we will use to understand the value of your claim may include:
- Medical bills;
- Bills from inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation and therapy;
- Expert estimates of your future medical needs;
- Estimates of ongoing care costs;
- Documentation showing your current lost wages;
- Expert estimates of your long-term reduced earning capacity, if you cannot return to work;
- Receipts or estimates showing your property damage;
- Receipts from any out-of-pocket costs; and
- Notes documenting your pain and suffering.
Only once we have this evidence can we calculate what a fair settlement might look like in your case. We can often identify damages that our clients overlooked when they tried to determine the value of their claim on their own. This is one reason we highly encourage all truck accident victims to talk to an attorney before they reach any agreement with the insurance company. In our experience, clients who do not seek professional advice from a lawyer leave a lot of money on the table and end up paying for their future care themselves.
Can a Truck Accident Lawyer in Sugar Land Help Me Win My Case?
Truck accident claims are complex. You do not want to try to navigate them—or take on the trucking company’s team of corporate lawyers—on your own. To recover the most compensation possible, you need a skilled truck accident lawyer on your side. At D. Miller & Associates, PLLC, we have helped hundreds of Texas truck accident victims recover fair compensation for their injuries. We take on large corporations to win the payouts our clients need. While we can usually negotiate a settlement with the insurance company and avoid court, we are not afraid to take your case in front of a judge, if necessary. We will represent you in court, filing a personal injury lawsuit and fighting for the payout you deserve.
We pursue the money you need and deserve after a Sugar Land truck accident. Call us at 713-850-8600 for a complimentary case evaluation. We can offer free advice and explain your legal options.
Related Frequently Asked Questions
- Are Trucking Companies Required By Texas Law To Have Full Coverage Insurance?
- How Do You Afford a Lifetime of Medical Bills After a Spinal Cord Injury In An Accident?
- What Happens If You Were Breaking a Texas Bicycle Law During Your Accident Injury?
- I Was Just Injured In A Truck Accident, What Should I Do?
- What Are Damages and Why Do Personal Injury Lawyers Fight to Recover Them?