What to Do After a Atlanta Commercial Truck Accident?
After any crash involving a commercial truck, the victims should immediately contact authorities to report the accident and seek medical treatment for their injuries. Even if a person feels fine, it is important to remember that many serious injuries do not always display immediate symptoms.
Victims should also take pictures or have somebody they know take photographs of the accident scene. Trucking companies will quickly make sure that key evidence is disposed of.
Perhaps most importantly, victims should be very careful with representatives that insurance companies for the truck will send to the scene of the crash. These agents will attempt to get victims to sign seemingly innocent paperwork that actually results in significant rights being forfeited.
As soon as a victim is able to, he or she should contact an experienced lawyer for assistance dealing with these trucking and insurance companies.
Causes of 18-Wheeler Negligence Accidents in Atlanta
The trucking industry is heavily regulated by both federal and state laws. Therefore, truck crashes are often more complex than passenger vehicle crashes. Depending on the facts, claims may be brought against several parties, including the driver and the trucking company.
Accidents involving commercial vehicles or 18-wheeler are commonly caused by the following:
- Violation of Federal Rules — Driver fatigue is a leading cause of truck accidents as hours of service regulations are often violated. Careful review of the records, including the driver’s logs, will assist in proving negligence. Trucking companies are required to keep such records for a short period of time and if the records are destroyed before obtaining copies, it can be quite difficult to prove a case. We promptly obtain the trucking company’s records for evidence of negligence.
- Truck Driver Error — Driving too fast for conditions, following too closely, illegal turning or passing, changing lanes into the path of a driver, failure to yield or crossing the center line.
- Maintenance and Loading — Bad brakes, tire blowout and overweight or shifting loads can lead the truck to violently veer, flip over, jackknife or rear-end another car or motorcycle. We obtain vehicle service logs, and, if necessary, hire trucking experts to inspect the rig and download information from the onboard “black box” data recorder and braking monitors.
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