When it comes to road safety, semi-truck accidents pose one of the most significant threats on Missouri’s highways. The enormous weight and sometimes unwieldy structure of these colossal vehicles can all too often lead to catastrophic damage and life-altering injuries in the case of an accident. For individuals who have been injured in semi-truck accidents in this great state, the expertise of a Missouri semi-truck accident lawyer can in many cases prove to be an invaluable resource.
At Steelman Gaunt Crowley, our team has significant experience in dealing with the common truck accidents that occur on our state’s many long-haul highways, as well as in the generally slower, but more congested, traffic of city streets. We work tirelessly to ensure that individuals injured in these tragic events receive the compensation they deserve so that they can focus on their personal recovery. Reach out to our office in Rolla, Missouri by calling (573) 341-8336 today to schedule your free case evaluation with an experienced and dedicated semi-truck accident lawyer.
Prevalence of Semi Truck Accidents
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) reports that the number of accidents involving commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) like semi trucks increased dramatically from 2009 to 2022. The discouraging reality is reflected in the large number of injured individuals who show up in the offices of semi-truck accident lawyers each year, seeking assistance with navigating complicated insurance systems involving multiple parties, often while struggling to recover from devastating physical injuries and the loss of their primary means of transportation. In many cases, even highly independent and self-reliant individuals seek professional representation after a semi-truck accident due to the widely acknowledged complexities that frequently characterize these cases.
The Unique Challenges of Semi-Truck Accident Cases
The motor vehicle accidents resulting from collisions with large semi-trucks often involve a higher degree of complexity than crashes that involve passenger vehicles exclusively. There are several factors that can contribute to making truck accident cases more complicated than many other types of accidents:
- Multiple parties: Besides the truck driver and the driver and occupants of the passenger vehicle(s) actually impacted in the crash, a semi-truck accident can in many cases involve a number of other parties, including the freight company that has hired the driver (or contracted the driver and his or her truck), third-party maintenance providers responsible for various aspects of upkeep on the commercial vehicle, and potentially even the manufacturers of parts used in the regular semi-truck maintenance or necessary repairs.
- Federal and state regulators: At the national level, the trucking industry in the United States is regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). However, the FMCSA coordinates with a number of state and federal agencies to ensure continuity of implementation throughout numerous sub-industries and business structures and across state lines. Broadly speaking, the commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) that truck drivers will need to operate CMVs are typically issued by the appropriate regulatory agency (often a Department of Motor Vehicles) in the state where the driver is licensed, while industry guidelines governing hours of service to minimize truck driver fatigue and maintenance standards applied to the vehicles themselves tend to fall under federal purview. The Federal Highway Administration (FHA) has laid out a policy agenda for streamlining the multifarious regulatory networks that currently overlay the freight industry over the next several years, but the current picture is, while detailed, often difficult for the layperson to navigate – yet adept navigation can be key to recognizing potentially liable parties and placing the legal responsibility for a semi-truck accident where it rightfully belongs.
- Severity of damages: The extraordinary size and weight of semi-trucks, especially when loaded with cargo, can often result in a greater severity of injuries to the occupants of passenger vehicles compared with those likely in a crash between two vehicles of similar size. These catastrophic injuries can easily lead in turn to correspondingly astronomical medical costs – when they do not lead to actual loss of life. As a result, the computations necessary to arrive at accurate estimates of long-term medical expenses in order to present a fair request for compensation can be more complex than many accident victims are prepared to deal with, especially during a challenging physical and emotional recovery.
- Insurance providers: If the semi-truck involved in the accident is owned and operated by a freight company, the cargo business will likely hold a substantial commercial auto insurance liability policy. While this can in some ways be good news for truck accident victims, as robust insurance policies are better prepared to cover the high costs often associated with truck accident liability, it can also lead to frustrations, as the adjusters employed by commercial auto insurance providers are often highly skilled in finding ways to lower their employers’ total costs, both in the number of claims paid and in the amount paid for each truck accident settlement.
How a Personal Injury Lawyer May Assist in a Semi-Truck Accident Case
Semi-truck accident lawyers practice within an area of the legal field known as personal injury law. Cases in this type of law deal with situations in which one party alleges that they have been harmed by another party’s wrongful actions, or wrongful failures to act. They belong to the broader category of civil torts law, for which “torts” are the wrongs committed and “civil” is a reference to the fact that these cases, if and when they result in formal legal action, are handled through the civil courts, rather than prosecuted as crimes.
Truck Accident Lawyer Contingency Fees
Personal injury attorneys who take on truck accident cases will typically do so on what is known as a “contingency” basis – the truck accident lawyer will not receive his or her fee unless the client either achieves a satisfactory settlement out of court (usually from the trucking company’s insurance provider) or is awarded compensation (known as “damages”) at trial. This system serves to protect truck accident victims from the potential intimidation of high up-front expenses, which might otherwise make seeking professional legal assistance cost-prohibitive, regardless of how much the accident victim might want the services of a trained and licensed attorney. At the same time, contingency fees also contribute to a system of “checks and balances” that is intended to discourage so-called “frivolous” lawsuits that might otherwise tie up the court system: A personal injury attorney working on a contingency basis has very little incentive to take a truck accident case unless he or she thinks the client’s case has a strong chance of success, whether at court or through a negotiated settlement.
Many personal injury attorneys handling truck accident cases offer free case evaluations. These consultations with prospective clients incur no obligation on either side, but allow the attorney to get a good sense of whether the accident victim’s case is actually strong enough to prevail in court, and allow the potential client to develop a feel for what working with a specific lawyer might be like. Missourians in and around Rolla can schedule their own case evaluations with a semi-truck lawyer at Steelman Gaunt Crowley to discuss the details surrounding their accident and gain some perspective on their legal options based on the information they share.
The Premise of Truck Accident Settlements
The reality is that a majority of personal injury matters are settled outside of court. Most accident victims simply want fair compensation to cover the costs of their medical expenses and property damage; most insurance companies are aware of this, and liability insurance policies are designed to account for the fact that sometimes the flawed individuals who drive cars or operate businesses will make careless mistakes that lead to someone getting hurt. The premise behind compensation when a personal injury case does make it to trial is to make things right, as much as possible, by providing the injured party with the means to get back to the condition they were in prior to the accident. The same basic principle also operates in most truck accident settlement negotiations.
Preparing for Legal Action and Insurance Settlements
A semi-truck accident lawyer will in most cases not know from the outset whether the case is destined to end up in court. However, court battles are costly and usually time-consuming and in many courts the judge will order the parties to attempt negotiation before proceeding with hearings, even after an initial complaint has been filed – so generally speaking, a personal injury attorney who takes on this type of case will expect to begin with insurance company negotiations, and lay the groundwork for proceeding to legal action if negotiations stall.
Learn How a Missouri Truck Accident Lawyer Can Help Protect Your Legal and Financial Rights
A Missouri semi-truck accident lawyer can often provide truck accident victims with invaluable assistance, helping them to seek adequate compensation for their injuries and losses. Personal injury attorneys familiar with the complexities of semi-truck accident cases can be ideally positioned to take over the arduous task of investigating the causes and circumstances of truck accidents and pursuing negotiations with insurance companies or navigating the formalities associated with filing legal actions to seek justice through the courts, if necessary. The semi-truck accident lawyers with Steelman Gaunt Crowley offer free personalized case evaluations, so call our Rolla office today to schedule your conversation to walk through your Missouri semi-truck accident case with one of our experienced attorneys and gain perspective on your legal options for moving forward.
