Why Should I Hire an Experienced Savannah Truck Accident Lawyer?

Truck accident cases are very different than car accident cases. If you were injured in an accident involving a tractor-trailer, semi, rig, 18-wheeler, box truck, or any other type of commercial truck, you need an experienced truck accident lawyer on your side. The key difference is that truck accidents often happen in different ways than car accidents. Truck crashes in Atlanta normally involve more than just the driver of the truck. There are federal and state regulations that govern truck accidents. There are also industry standards that your lawyer needs to understand. The injuries are normally more serious because of the weight and mass of the truck.

At Harris Lowry Manton LLP, our lawyers have the experience and resources to represent victims and families of decedents when truck accidents occur on the highways and streets of Atlanta. We work with investigators, traffic reconstruction experts, and product safety experts who are skilled in examining how the truck accident happened and who is responsible. We work with your doctors and our network doctors when serious injuries such as traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, traumatic amputation, burn injuries, broken bones, and other injuries occur.

We’ve secured hundreds of millions of dollars for our injured clients. Some of our verdicts and settlements include:

• $6,100,000. Wrongful death – heavy truck accident
• $3,000,000. Wrongful death – trucking accident
• $2,050,000. Back injury – trucking accident
• $2,000,000. Serious injuries – trucking accident

If you hire an inexperienced lawyer or a lawyer that primarily handles car accidents and slip and fall cases, the odds are that lawyer will fail to include crucial evidence or make critical arguments. An attorney with little experience in commercial truck accident cases may be inclined to make a quick and small settlement instead of arguing your case before a jury. Insurance companies generally only negotiate high settlements if they know your lawyer is ready to try your case before a jury.

How do truck accidents differ from car accidents?

While some truck accidents happen in the same way car accidents do (head-on crashes, broadsides, and rear-end collisions), many Savannah truck accidents are unique. These include jackknives, rollovers, wide-turn accidents, blind-spot accidents, underride accidents, cargo spills, and back-up accidents. Truck accidents may also happen because truck parts such as hydraulic systems, electrical systems, and truck tires are defective.

Our truck accident lawyers understand what precautions the truck driver and trucking companies should have taken to prevent an accident from occurring. If a truck defect caused your accident, we work with engineers and other professionals who can explain why the truck part was defective; for example, poor design or manufacturing.

Who is responsible for a truck accident?

In most car accidents, the defendant is just the driver. In some cases, the owner of the car if different from the driver may also be liable. However, in truck accidents, the possible defendants include the driver, the owner of the truck, the broker who arranged the shipment, the company making the shipment, the company receiving the commitment, a truck parts manufacturer, and other companies.

In truck accident cases, some of the defendants may be based in other states. Our experienced Atlanta truck accident lawyers understand where your case is tried, how to question out-of-state companies, and how all the insurance policies of each defendant apply to your claim for compensation.

What laws and regulations govern truck accidents in Savannah?

There are numerous federal and state laws that govern proper and safe truck operations.

Some of the key federal laws involve the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) which regulates the hours of service of truck drivers (and the logs that drivers and trucking companies must keep) so that truck drivers aren’t tired when they drive. The FMCSA also regulates when and how trucking companies should conduct inspections of their trucks.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) also regulates many aspects of truck driving, including how to properly load and unload cargo so the cargo doesn’t shift or spill during the journey.

Our attorneys also review other relevant laws and regulations, including the requirements for obtaining and keeping a commercial driver’s license, the traffic laws that govern how fast trucks can drive and other rules of the road, and rules that address truck’s safety equipment, like rear guards so small cars cannot slide under the truck.

Our truck accident lawyers also understand the standard safety protocols for operating each type of truck, such as how to properly back up into traffic and how to manage blind spots.

How do we investigate truck accidents in Savannah?

Our seasoned truck accident lawyers work with many people and use many different strategies to help show how your accident happened and why the defendants are responsible. These strategies include:

• Hiring investigators who examine the accident site, examine the damage to the vehicles involved in the crash, and speak to any eyewitnesses.
• Speaking with the police and any other government officials who investigate the accident immediately after the accident happens. We examine any reports that the police wrote about the accident.
• Reviewing any surveillance videos and photos. We speak with residents or businesses near the crash site who might have video of the accident. Our lawyers also demand that the owners of the truck provide any video and photos that the truck cameras may have captured or that the truck driver may have taken with his/her smartphone. Some intersections also have cameras that could provide valuable information.

We review any commercial truck black boxes that can provide information about the truck’s route and its movements before the accident occurred. Black boxes can reveal how fast the truck was traveling and other valuable information. Generally, commercial trucks are required to keep hours of service logs to show when the truck was in operation and whether the driver might have been fatigued at the time of the accident.

Our lawyers also conduct extensive discovery. Discovery includes submitting written detailed questions to the defendants about the accident. We request all relevant documents, such as the maintenance and repair records of the truck prior to the crash. Our lawyers are skilled at conducting oral questions (depositions) of the defendants and any witnesses who may have important information about the truck accident.

Why is securing compensation for my injuries so important?

Truck accidents often cause catastrophic and permanent injuries. Many survivors live with chronic pain. Tragically, many truck accidents are fatal.

We work with your doctors to verify your injuries and explain what treatment you will need for the rest of your life, your daily pain and suffering, the loss of function of any body part, any scarring or disfigurement, and the cost of all your treatments.

Experience matters in all walks of life. In law, it matters that your lawyer has tried numerous cases and has a track record of impressive results. It matters that your lawyer understands the trucking industry so your lawyer can explain why the trucking defendants are liable and can anticipate the arguments the defense lawyers will make. It matters that your lawyer understands the laws that regulate trucking and the facts that can prove fault. Harris Lowry Manton LLP has the experience you need and the experience to make things right.

To discuss your right to compensation after a truck accident in Savannah, call us or complete our contact form to schedule a free consultation.