Were you injured in a truck accident in the Phoenix area? Do you believe that someone else was to blame for your Phoenix truck accident? If so, you could be entitled to financial compensation for your medical bills, lost income, damaged vehicle, pain and suffering, and other losses. You shouldn’t have to pay the price for someone else’s negligent behavior. Our Phoenix truck accident lawyers can help you fight for the full payment you need to recover from your personal injuries.
At Silkman Law Firm Injury & Accident Lawyer, we focus exclusively on helping people who have been injured in Phoenix. This gives us particular insight and experience in dealing with aggressive local insurance companies, trucking companies, and defense attorneys. We fight fiercely for our personal injury clients because we see them as real people with real concerns, not just claim numbers. Our goal is to make things right for our clients.
Contact our firm today for a free consultation with our Phoenix truck accident lawyers. Our truck accident attorneys will answer all your questions and help you understand your options for pursuing the payment you need to move forward with your life.
Why Tractor-Trailer Truck Accidents Are More Complicated
Our Phoenix truck accident lawyers know that trucking accident claims are often more complex than those involving other motor vehicle collisions because they typically involve:
- More serious injuries. The size of commercial trucks means that they impart much greater forces in the event of a collision. This increases the likelihood that someone is going to be seriously injured as a result. In addition to the initial pain and trauma, serious injuries typically require more intensive medical treatment, including surgery or rehabilitative therapy. Furthermore, serious injuries are more likely to result in chronic or long-term conditions that have debilitating effects of their own.
- More liable parties. In most passenger vehicle collisions, legal liability is assigned to one or more of the truck drivers involved. In truck accidents, however, truck drivers are just one of the parties who could be held liable for causing the collision. The trucking industry involves many interrelated companies, each of which might share responsibility for a given truck accident as a result of their own negligence or recklessness. These may include whoever owns the truck, whoever operates the truck, whoever manufactured the truck, whoever maintains the truck, and whoever loads the truck. If multiple parties bear responsibility for a truck crash, a resulting injury claim must assign shares of fault to each liable party.
- More evidence. A truck accident may be the result of a number of different causes. State and federal regulations require trucking companies to produce extensive documentation, including maintenance logs, driver logs, and onboard computer logs. These documents can provide evidence of the true cause of a truck crash. As a result, any thorough investigation of a truck accident will require collecting and reviewing this evidence.
- Complex corporate/insurance structures. Many trucking companies have complicated corporate structures or layered insurance policies that can make it difficult to determine which company can be held liable for an accident, or how much insurance coverage may be available to compensate the injured truck accident victims.
Never try to manage a truck accident injury claim on your own. You better believe that the trucking companies will have experienced attorneys on their side fighting for their best interests. You should, too. Remember, our Phoenix truck accident attorney, Alex Silkman, is available for a free consultation anytime and can inform you of your legal options.
Who Can Be Held Liable After a Phoenix Truck Crash?
While fault for most traffic accidents usually falls on one of the motorists involved, the complex nature of the trucking industry means that other parties may share responsibility for an 18-wheeler accident.
Examples of parties that may be held liable for a truck accident include:
- The truck driver
- The trucking company
- The truck’s owner (if not the truck driver or trucking company)
- The freight company or broker responsible for the cargo
- The truck’s manufacturer, or manufacturers of truck parts
- The truck’s mechanics
An in-depth investigation is needed to identify every potentially liable party after a crash. The best Phoenix truck accident lawyers can also sort through the layers of insurance coverage to determine all possible sources of compensation for you and your family.
Evidence Our Phoenix Truck Accident Attorney May Use in Truck Accident Claims
Truck accident cases often require the investigation and review of many kinds of evidence to determine the true cause of the wreck and the party or parties that may be legally liable.
Some types of evidence that our personal injury lawyers may employ in truck accident cases include:
- The truck driver’s logs, which show how long the driver had been on duty and driving
- Logs from the truck’s electronic data recorder, or “black box,” which typically records information about the truck’s performance, the driver’s actions, and in-cab camera or dashcam footage
- The truck driver’s employment and driving records
- Results from the truck driver’s alcohol/drug screen, if one is performed after the accident
- The load manifest, which shows what cargo was loaded onto the truck
- Inspection and maintenance records for the truck
- Post-accident vehicle inspection/repair reports, which may reveal defective parts
- Accident scene photos
- Police accident reports
- Internal investigation reports conducted by the trucking company
- Surveillance or traffic camera footage
- Eyewitness testimony
Our dedicated Phoenix truck accident attorneys will work quickly to preserve evidence before it is lost or destroyed. We will use this evidence, as well as expert analysis, to paint a clear picture of what happened in your crash.
Demanding Full Compensation for Truck Accident Victims in Phoenix, AZ
Our Phoenix truck accident attorneys believe that you deserve full compensation for all the losses and personal injuries that you have suffered because of your Phoenix truck accident.
Compensation for your Phoenix truck accident injury claim may include:
- Costs of medical treatment and rehabilitation of injuries, including surgery, physical/occupational therapy, or prescription medications
- Costs of long-term care for permanent disabilities caused by injuries
- Loss of wages or income from work missed while recovering from a truck accident
- Loss of earning capacity when permanent disabilities affect your ability to work
- Repair bills for vehicle damage, or the pre-accident value of a totaled vehicle
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of quality of life from visible scarring/disfigurement or permanent disabilities interfering with daily activities or enjoyment of life
Never accept a quick settlement offer from a trucking company or insurer. It is impossible to know the full value of your claim right at the outset. A skilled truck accident attorney can help you evaluate the true extent of your injuries and what fair compensation should be.
