Given the sheer size of a big rig, a wreck involving one can leave catastrophic devastation in its wake. Those who get tied up in one of these truck accidents are usually left with serious injuries, including some that result in permanent disability and death. Those who are lucky enough to survive often have a long road to recovery ahead of them, with extensive physical, emotional, psychological, and financial tolls taken on them.
Although all of that can be stressful and overwhelming, if you’ve been hurt in a truck accident, not all hope is lost. In fact, you can pursue a personal injury case in hopes of finding accountability, closure and much needed financial compensation. While most of these cases are focused on the negligent behaviors exhibited by the trucker leading up to the accident, that’s not the only evidence you can rely upon.
Where to look for evidence to support your truck accident personal injury case
Your first stop should always be the trucker’s actions. However, you should also assess the following matters, as they may give you additional evidence needed to build a strong case:
- Truck maintenance records: Federal regulations require that semi-trucks undergo routine inspection and maintenance to ensure safety. Truckers are supposed to inspect their rigs after each trip to identify any safety defects, and when issues are identified, the truck should be removed from the fleet until it’s appropriately repaired. Truck companies should also routinely inspect their trucks and fix them as needed. If you get your hands on maintenance records that show that a dangerous truck was allowed back out on the road, then you can use that to further support your claim.
- Hiring and training records: Semi-truck drivers require extensive training to ensure they can operate their rigs in a safe fashion. But all too often trucking companies, in an attempt to fill staffing shortages, hire unsafe drivers and give them inadequate training. If you can show that this was the case with the driver who caused your accident, then you’ll be in a stronger position to hold both the driver and their employer accountable for your accident injuries.
- Trucking logs: It can be hard to identify trucker fatigue after an accident, but federally mandated trucking logs can give you insight into the trucker’s compliance with hours-of-service regulations. If the trucker in question failed to take required breaks and drove too many hours in a given period of time, then it’ll be easier for you to demonstrate that the trucker who caused your wreck was fatigued and acted negligently leading up to your wreck.
- Improper cargo securement: The cargo carried by a semi-truck can came loose and cause significant damage and harm in an accident. Through a deposition of the trucker, training materials, and logs, you might learn that improper practices were utilized in securing the cargo in question. This can be another indication that the trucker in your case acted negligently.
Are you ready to advocate for accountability in your case?
It can be stressful to navigate a personal injury lawsuit, especially when you’re focusing on dealing with your physical, emotional and psychological pain and suffering. But you don’t have to figure out your legal claim on your own. Instead, you can learn as much as you can about the process and how to build a strong claim, wrapping yourself in support throughout the process. Hopefully then you can aggressively and successfully advocate for the outcome that sets you on course to the fullest recovery possible under your circumstances.