Motorists encounter trucks on all types of roads in and around DeSoto, and it’s terrifying to consider just how frequently accidents can occur. When you are the victim of a collision, a truck accident lawyer in DeSoto could be a critical lifeline for ensuring the responsible party helps cover your losses.
At The Texas Law Dog, you can expect our DeSoto personal injury lawyer to aggressively pursue those who caused your injuries and losses. We negotiate on your behalf and force them to pay what they owe you.
Our team has been helping clients get the justice they deserve since 2018. Founder Matthew E. Aulsbrook uses his insurance background to get better results for you. We don’t just bark, we bite.
A Trusted Truck Accident Lawyer in DeSoto Gets Results
Support from a knowledgeable truck accident lawyer in DeSoto can make all the difference in the outcome of your case following a serious roadway collision with a tractor-trailer.
By working with our team, you can identify your crash-related losses and contest potential allegations that you may bear fault for your injuries.
Commercial truck drivers haul tens of thousands of pounds of cargo at a time across hundreds of miles. That said, even a small mistake or moment of carelessness by a trucker could lead to catastrophic accidents and severe injuries. Unfortunately, holding a truck driver or trucking company financially accountable after an incident like this can be complicated.
Truck accidents occur all too frequently in Texas. As noted by the National Safety Council’s large trucks data, there were 730 deaths on Texas roadways related specifically to large truck accidents. Without a doubt, every one of those individuals has suffered serious injury and loss as a result of that accident.
Truck Accidents in DeSoto Can Be the Result of Many Different Factors
Commercial truck accidents can be caused by many factors, each of which can have a different but no less profound effect on the outcome. These accidents can occur anywhere and at any angle.
Additionally, every accident has its own set of nuances that make the situation unique. However, some of the most common factors that contribute to truck collisions in DeSoto include:
- Driver fatigue
- Speeding
- Distractions
- Low visibility
- Poor road conditions
- Failing to accommodate for poor weather
- Traffic congestion
- Inadequate training
- Imbalance or unsecured cargo
- Mechanical issues
- Poor maintenance
- Defective parts or trucks
Truck accidents are often preventable events that could have been averted by a few simple steps. All parties involved in an accident are responsible for doing their part to be cautious, ensure safety, and avoid negligent activities.
When they fail to uphold and follow through on these responsibilities, they must answer for their actions. This negligence can have serious ramifications for all parties involved.
DeSoto Truck Accident Lawyer Near Me (817) 775-5364
Common Injuries Sustained in Truck Accidents in DeSoto
Trucks are significantly larger than passenger vehicles, weigh thousands of pounds, and have a limited capacity for avoiding hazards. Together, this makes commercial trucks a force to be reckoned with in an accident.
This means that smaller vehicles are much more likely to sustain serious injuries, especially since they absorb the full impact of a collision. Common injuries in these accidents may include:
- Whiplash
- Broken bones and soft tissue damage
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Neck injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Chest injuries
- Internal injuries and organ damage
- Burn injuries
- Paralysis, disability, and/or disfigurement
- Death
Medical attention is often a necessity after a truck accident. Even if injuries don’t seem life-threatening, it is still essential to have a doctor examine you.
Not all injuries are noticeable right away or visible, and a medical evaluation can make a big difference in your safety and overall prognosis. The journey to recovery may be long, but it’s essential to closely follow medical advice during this process.
Recoverable Damages in a Truck Accident
When a truck driver or trucking company causes injuries, you have the legal right to pursue compensation from them, usually through their liability insurance, to cover the losses you suffered.
Because of how severe tractor-trailer collisions are, it is vital to account for both the short-term and long-term negative effects the accident will have on you as you pursue a claim. Examples include:
- Emergency medical bills and the cost of expected future care, like physical therapy and pain management medications
- Physical pain and discomfort from injuries
- Vehicle replacement or repair costs, including expenses for rental cars
- Emotional anguish and psychological trauma
- Income loss and diminished ability to work
- Lost enjoyment of life
- Costs of services related to long-term disability, like home modifications and in-home assistance
During a consultation, an experienced attorney can discuss recoverable damages after a truck accident that might be available to injured victims following a semi-crash in more detail.
The key is to allow your attorney to work closely with you to accurately estimate the value of each of your losses. Our DeSoto big rig accident lawyer provides you with the confidence you need to file a strong claim.
Wrongful Death is a Real Concern
There is an elevated risk for fatalities when it comes to truck accidents. If your family member lost their life as a result of the negligence and recklessness of a truck company or driver, you need a strong advocate by your side. Let us guide you throughout that process.
You may be able to seek damages such as the following:
- Financial costs for medical care provided after the truck accident, prior to the individual’s death, including emergency care, hospital support, surgeries, and other end-of-life support received
- Lost wages if the individual was unable to work for a period of time between the accident and their death
- End-of-life financial losses for burials and funeral costs
- Pain and suffering the individual had at the time of the accident and prior to their death
- Your own pain and suffering, loss of companionship, loss of consortium, and emotional stress due to the loss of your loved one
- For dependents, loss of income to meet their day-to-day needs if the individual contributed to the household
- Loss of inheritance and retirement benefits
Once you have established that a wrongful death occurred and have shown exactly how the accident led to their death, you then must determine the value of the claim.
There is no monetary amount that seems fair, but there are factors to consider when estimating the losses you have as a result of a truck accident wrongful death.
Insurance Companies are Not Going to Treat You Fairly
One of the mistakes so commonly made when dealing with a truck accident claim involving serious losses is believing the insurance company will provide fair compensation. The insurance company isn’t responsible for estimating all of your losses or understanding all the ways this accident will impact you. In many cases, they will offer settlements that are less than what you’re owed to try to reduce their costs.
Insurance companies are for-profit organizations, and even if the people working for them seem nice, they are not advocates for your best interests.
Turn to our legal team for the real support you need to navigate your rights in these accidents. A DeSoto truck accident attorney is a resource when you’re faced with financial, physical, and emotional loss after these types of accidents.
Our team can handle every aspect of this process for you, including calculating loss, determining fault, and creating a comprehensive, maximized claim to submit to the insurance company. If the insurance company has questions, we can answer them and negotiate on your behalf. Trust our DeSoto truck accident lawyers to fight for your right to full compensation.
How to Prove Negligence for a Tractor-Trailer Accident
Establishing fault for a semi-truck wreck is generally a matter of showing that someone else—a trucker, a trucking company, or a third party like a mechanic or cargo supplier—did something reckless or careless that directly caused a crash. Injured individuals must also establish that the incident wouldn’t have happened if not for another party’s negligence.
However, it’s also important to show that they were not negligent in any way that contributed to causing or unnecessarily worsening their injuries.
Any percentage of fault a court assigns to a plaintiff could result in a proportional reduction in awarded compensation, per Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 33.
Unfortunately, some claimants cannot collect any compensation. Representation from a knowledgeable truck accident attorney in DeSoto can be key to effectively fighting back against allegations of this nature after a truck wreck in DeSoto.
As your legal team, a core component of the work we do is to provide you with clarity on your rights. To do that, we analyze your case, look at all of the evidence available, and carefully create a claim that is accurate and backed by authentic evidence. Let our legal team help you prove that you were not at fault and deserve compensation for your losses.
Establishing Who is at Fault
One of the steps we’ll take is to investigate the details of your case to fully understand each party’s level of liability in truck accidents.
It’s very common for more than one person to be at fault for the losses that occur in a disastrous accident like this, but again, it’s up to your attorney to identify those parties. Consider the following examples of when other parties may be responsible for your losses:
- The truck driver: Often the most obvious at-fault party, the driver may be at fault for reckless driving, such as speeding or illegal lane changes, impairment, as well as distraction while driving, such as eating or texting.
- The trucking company: The trucking company is responsible for the driver’s actions in some situations, especially if that driver is an employee. This includes examples such as violations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration laws on hours of service (HOS), vehicle maintenance, or cargo management.
- The cargo loading company: The company loading the cargo must secure it and balance the load, and if they fail to do that and cargo shifting causes an accident, you can expect the cargo company to be at least partially at fault for the losses.
- Vehicle maintenance teams: In some situations, failures by the maintenance team could be the core cause of an accident, such as improper maintenance, lack of use of the proper tools, or simply forgetting to tighten a bolt.
- Truck manufacturers: If your attorney can demonstrate that the accident was due to a faulty part on a truck or the truck’s unsafe design, it may be possible to pursue legal action against the manufacturer of the vehicle.
It isn’t easy to gather this information, but your attorney has the tools and resources to do so. They’re also committed to fighting for your full and fair compensation by holding each party accountable for their contribution, which could increase your claim value.
Each party will have an aggressive attorney working against you, but with a skilled legal team from The Texas Law Dog, you don’t have to worry.
We have the Tools to Gather Evidence
One of the many ways our truck accident lawyers provide value is to use our wealth of resources to help with collecting evidence after a truck accident and building a strong case.
We recognize the dominant role insurance companies often have in these organizations, and we counter that with the dedication to gathering evidence. Some of the strategies we use to help get that valuable data include:
- Commercial truck logs: These black boxes record the actions of the truck and driver prior to the accident. The role of logbooks in a truck accident claim may help demonstrate swerving, speed, and distraction that could be the cause of the accident.
- Driver medical records: Drivers must be fit for the road, and any documentation that they are not, such as in their medical records, could be a factor in your accident and losses. Additionally, if there is any indication that the driver was impaired, seeking medical documentation could help demonstrate this.
- Vehicle safety and upkeep records: The law requires truck owners to maintain vehicles and keep documentation of that type of work. Failure to do so could contribute to fault.
- Expert witnesses: Our legal team will bring in expert witnesses to help document the potential causes of the accident when we believe there is more to your accident, such as faulty vehicle components.
- Accident reconstruction services: Our legal team can also provide a wealth of resources to help rebuild the accident, documenting what had to happen to cause the injuries and losses you had.
Not every case warrants this type of extensive research and investigation, but knowing we can provide this legal support to you is critical. We do not settle for good enough, but fight for full recovery of the losses owed to you. That makes a difference in your future and your overall ability to move forward with your life.
There is No Risk in Speaking to Our DeSoto Truck Accident Attorney
Our team works on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing to us for our attorney fees upfront, and you only pay for losses if we recover damages in your case.
This alleviates any risk that you have expensive legal fees without receiving a settlement, and it means no matter what your current financial state is, you can have a trusted advocate by your side.
Understanding the Statute of Limitations for Filing a Truck Accident Lawsuit
In Texas, the statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit after a commercial truck accident is generally two years from the date of the accident, as outlined in Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003. This means you have a limited time to take legal action against the responsible parties.
If you miss this deadline, you may lose your right to pursue compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages caused by the accident. However, certain circumstances, such as cases involving minors or delayed discovery of injuries, could potentially affect this timeframe.
At The Texas Law Dog, our commercial truck accident lawyers in DeSoto act quickly to preserve evidence, gather key documents, and file lawsuits within the required timeframe. Contact us as soon as possible to protect your rights and begin building your case.
Seek Help from a Truck Accident Attorney in DeSoto Today
Even at low speeds, truck collisions tend to have devastating outcomes for everyone involved. When you want to hold a truck driver or their employer legally liable for an accident, you will almost certainly need help from a legal representative experienced with handling similar cases successfully in the past.
Guidance from a capable DeSoto truck accident lawyer at The Texas Law Dog could dramatically boost your chances of securing a favorable result from your lawsuit or settlement.
To learn more and get started with your claim, call us today to schedule a free consultation with our team
