Florissant Truck Accident Lawyer

Florissant Commercial Truck Accident Attorney

Large commercial trucks are essential to the supply chain of the United States, and drivers throughout the Florissant area encounter these vehicles while driving every day.  The vast majority of fatalities in large truck crashes involve the occupants in passenger vehicles. The main problem is the vulnerability of people traveling in smaller vehicles.  Large trucks often weigh 20-30 times as much as passenger vehicles. While less common than passenger vehicle accidents, commercial truck accidents often create more damage and more serious injuries due to their size. It is important to know what to expect in the aftermath of such an incident. An experienced Florissant truck accident lawyer can help you with your recovery efforts after this type of crash.

Experienced Legal Counsel in Florissant, MO

Large truck crashes operate very differently than crashes that just involved passenger vehicles.  Commercial trucking companies must follow state and federal regulations to decrease the likelihood of serious injuries and fatalities. Due to their size and the catastrophic nature of the crashes, the trucking industry is held to a higher standard of safety. When a large truck is involved in a crash that seriously or fatally injures others, discovering the cause or causes is imperative. Our attorneys begin gathering evidence immediately including crash reports completed by law enforcement, accident reconstruction among other types of evidence.

The team at The Cagle Law Firm has years of professional experience resolving all types of personal injury cases for our clients in the Florissant area  Having an experienced attorney that can immediately involve the appropriate experts is critical.

There are some legal challenges unique to commercial cases. As an individual, it is almost impossible to know the experts that you need to involve immediately. An experienced attorney has the resources and knows that spoilation of evidence and reconstruction experts in the first few days makes a huge difference in your case outcome. If you are hurt, this is the last thing you are capable of doing.  A challenge for many trying to handle their own commercial case is that they do realize that commercial insurance adjusters are different than minimum coverage policy adjusters. Often, adjusters have legal training or simply, the insurance carriers’ attorneys handle serious injury claims. This system is not set up to work for your financial benefit.

They will not offer to share any evidence and will feign lack of knowledge of such. Additionally, sharing your medical information and your medical progress is not helpful for you either.  Do not sign releases for the insurance adjuster.  Do not give them access to go rummaging through your entire medical history to find any possible related health condition or prior injury so they may devalue your claim. Do not sign any releases of any kind.

When you hire The Cagle Law Firm to represent you in a truck accident case, we will immediately begin an investigation to determine exactly how and why the accident happened. Because those involved in large truck crashes are often seriously injured, gathering evidence immediately through truck inspections and EMC downloads require the expertise of qualified accident reconstructionist. Insurance carriers will not volunteer any of this information to you nor will they share it without legal representation. Likewise, investigation into the transportation company including truck maintenance records, employee training and background safety checks prove essential when proving liability and negligence.

While you are focused on physically recovering from your injuries you need an expert that is going to be skillfully investigating your claim.  Our attorneys protect you from having to deal with insurance adjusters not vested in your best interest.  Commercial trucks and transportation companies that put the trucks on the road are subject to the regulations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. These regulations are in place to prevent fatalities and serious injuries caused by overworked, exhausted drivers, poor maintenance or negligent hiring practices. Due to their sheer size, we recognize commercial vehicles have an enormous responsibility to be safe.

Proving Liability for Your Truck Accident in Florissant

Missouri upholds the fault rule for all vehicle accidents, so proving fault for a truck accident will be an essential first step in your recovery process. Your Florissant truck accident lawyer will know how to gather the various forms of evidence you may require to prove how your accident happened, and they can also secure witness testimony from anyone who saw the accident happen firsthand.

Most truck accidents happen because of negligence, which can take the form of distracted driving, speeding or driving too fast for conditions, or moving violations. Truck accidents may also happen because of illegal misconduct like intoxicated driving or failure to follow trucking industry regulations. For example, fatigued driving may cause an accident when a driver does not follow hours of service rules.

Often drivers driving fatigued and over hours-of-service requirement result from unreasonable timelines pushed by the transportation company. Again, an experienced attorney investigates if the driver was negligent and if the transportation company was putting unreasonable, unsafe demands on the drivers. The only way such a thorough investigation occurs is if your attorney acts quickly, knows all of the Federal regulations and has experience in litigation against commercial transportation companies and their insurance carriers.

While an individual truck driver may hit another vehicle due to a negligent driving error, ultimately, your case is against the insurance carrier. Should it be discovered that the trucking company failed to maintain the vehicle according to state and federal regulations, you may be able to name the trucking company as well.  Again, each crash is different and consulting an expert commercial crash attorney is key.

Your Florissant truck accident lawyer investigates the crash to clarify liability for your accident, identifying the party or parties responsible for the collision and proving exactly how they are responsible. Most folks who are seriously injured are focused on their physical recovery and just want to know that our attorneys are doing everything in their power to gather all evidence possible to build their case.

Recovering Your Damages from a Truck Accident in Florissant

Every passenger driver in Florissant, Missouri must have auto insurance that meets the state’s minimum coverage requirements for property damage liability and bodily injury liability in order to be legally on the roadway.  Commercial vehicles must carry commercial vehicle insurance that usually has a minimum of a least a million dollars.  Depending on the type of commercial truck and the materials transported, policy limits vary.  Commercial vehicles such as gas trucks and those carrying hazardous materials require far higher policy coverage limits.

Not only should you anticipate that an insurance company will fight back against your claim however they can; it is a promise Insurance company adjusters will typically look for any way they can find to justify the lowest possible settlement offer or outright deny a claim. First, they look for any argument to deny fault or claim that you share fault.

If the crash report and evidence does not support that in any way, it is guaranteed they will argue that your injuries are not nearly as severe as you claim. Again, it does not actually matter how severe your injuries are, they will argue they are not that bad.   Some will even engage in bad-faith tactics in their attempts to do so. However, hiring an expert truck crash attorney at The Cagle Law Firm ensures an adjuster will not play games with your case at their insured’s peril.

Your Florissant truck accident lawyer ensures your claim or lawsuit is handled in good faith and you obtain the much-needed compensation after a serious injury. Missouri’s personal injury laws enable a plaintiff to seek full repayment of their economic and non-economic damages, and your attorney can help you accurately calculate these claimable damages.

Economic damages for your injury claim include your direct financial losses resulting from the incident, medical expenses, lost income, and lost future earning capacity if you have been left permanently disabled and will not be able to work in the future. Noneconomic damages include physical pain, emotional suffering, and psychological trauma you experienced because of the injury that resulted from the defendant’s actions.

Your claim may be worth more than you initially expect but resolving it efficiently and recovering a fair case award from the at-fault party can be more challenging than the average claimant is prepared to face alone. By hiring an experienced Florissant truck accident lawyer to represent you, you significantly increase both your chances of success with your recovery efforts and the chance of maximizing your recovery.

The team at The Cagle Law Firm develops an individualized approach for every client we represent. We know that no two clients face the same challenges in their cases and will each have different opportunities to maximize their recoveries. Our firm carefully reviews the details of your truck accident claim and do everything we can to resolve it as efficiently as possible, recovering as much compensation as possible.

Florissant Truck Accident Lawyers FAQs

Q: How Do You Prove Fault for a Truck Accident in Florissant?

A: Proving fault for a truck accident in Florissant is likely to require several forms of evidence beginning with the incident report completed by law enforcement. Photos of the accident scene, vehicle computer data, and traffic camera recordings, if available, can be very helpful in proving fault for any vehicle accident. When it comes to establishing liability for a truck accident, vehicle maintenance records, proof of trucking company regulatory compliance, and witness testimony could also prove invaluable to your case.

Q: What Is the Value of a Truck Accident Claim in Florissant?

A: The value of a truck accident claim in Florissant depends on the severity of the victim’s injuries. Truck accidents tend to be more damaging than most other types of vehicle accidents due to their size and speed. It is possible for an injured plaintiff to have grounds to seek compensation for medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. Your Florissant truck accident lawyer can help you accurately determine the full potential value of your claim.

Q: Why Should I Hire a Florissant Truck Accident Lawyer?

A: You should hire a Florissant truck accident lawyer to represent you because a truck accident case is likely to be more challenging to resolve than any other standard vehicle accident claim. Liability may fall to more than one party, and your case may require extensive review of applicable trucking industry regulations. You’re more likely to succeed with your recovery efforts and maximize your case award with a seasoned attorney’s help.

Q: What Happens if I Share Fault for My Recent Truck Accident in Missouri?

A: If you are found to share fault for your recent truck accident in Missouri, this will be reflected by a diminished recovery under the state’s pure comparative fault rule. This rule enables a plaintiff to still recover compensation for their damages if they are found partially liable for causing those damages, but they lose a percentage of their final case award equal to their percentage of fault for causing the accident. Hiring an experienced truck accident attorney is really important in this scenario depending on the severity of your injury.

Q: How Long Do I Have to File a Truck Accident Claim in Florissant?

A: The time you have to file your truck accident claim in Florissant is the statute of limitations. For most civil claims for damages in Missouri, the statute of limitations is five years from the date the injury occurred. It is generally prudent for any injured claimant to connect with an attorney and start building their case as soon as possible to ensure the greatest chance of success.

The Cagle Law Firm knows how devastating the aftermath of a truck accident can be and the various legal challenges you are likely to encounter if you experience such an accident. Our team is confident in our ability to resolve the most challenging accident claims for clients in Florissant, and we are ready to help you with your impending case. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation with our team and learn how a Florissant truck accident lawyer can help you recover.