It is worth hiring a truck accident lawyer if you were the victim of an accident and suffered injuries as a result. Having an attorney on your side is the best way to make certain that a professional will protect your rights and advocate for your best interests. This offers you the opportunity to focus on your treatment and healing, getting back to work, or spending time with loved ones while someone else worries about and addresses all the details of your legal case and your financial recovery.
Since a truck accident attorney knows how New York laws apply to commercial vehicle accidents, they can navigate the process on your behalf. They will know how to build a strong case and secure compensation, which you may struggle to do on your own.
- Your Attorney Will Handle the Insurance Claims Process for You
- Your Lawyer Will Represent Your Best Interests
- Pursuing Compensation Following a Truck Accident
- Discuss Your Case with a Team Member for Free Today
Your Attorney Will Handle the Insurance Claims Process for You
One of the many important reasons it is worth hiring a truck accident lawyer is because of their knowledge of the claims process and their ability to handle your case. They may even uncover additional losses and expenses you overlooked. They will:
Keep You Updated on Your Case
Your law firm should help you understand your case every step of the way, answering questions and addressing your concerns. They will also provide updates according to your preferences, keeping you as informed as you want to be throughout the claims process.
Identify Liable Parties
Assigning liability in truck accident cases can sometimes be a complex process. Special legal doctrines may apply, allowing victims to hold the driver’s employer vicariously liable. This means it is not as simple as filing a claim based on the driver’s insurance policy. Instead, the driver’s employer will serve as the primarily liable party in most cases. Depending upon the unique facts and circumstances of your truck accident, other parties besides the truck driver and the truck driver’s employer may be liable. Parties ranging from the truck manufacturer to a truck broker to a municipality that built and maintained the road, as well as other parties, can be liable. Making sure to identify and pursue a claim again every liable party is one reason why thorough investigation and analysis are so important.
Gather Evidence
Attorneys investigate truck accidents to understand what happened and the role each party played. This may include preserving evidence from the trucking company via a spoliation letter, enlisting the help of accident reconstruction experts, and more.
Communicate with All Parties for You
As a part of protecting the rights of accident victims, attorneys generally manage all communication with involved parties. Insurance companies are businesses that do not want to pay out any more than necessary, so they could try to use your own words against you. For this reason, your attorney will handle all phone calls and other communication on your behalf.
Determine a Value for Your Case
Your attorney will work to identify and document your accident-related expenses and losses, both current and in the future. This could include gathering paperwork and working with expert witnesses, such as medical experts, vocational rehabilitation specialists, economists, and life care planners.
For a free legal consultation, call (516) 932-0400
Your Lawyer Will Represent Your Best Interests
In many truck accident cases, your lawyer will go toe-to-toe with a corporate legal team who wants to reduce or eliminate the payout you receive, no matter the facts of your case. This is thanks to a legal doctrine, respondeat superior. This doctrine assigns vicarious liability to employers for any personal injuries their employees cause during the course of their duties.
Since driving a truck is a part of a trucker’s job and benefits their employer, that employer is commonly vicariously liable for any accident the driver causes in their truck or another commercial vehicle. This means you will likely file your insurance claim based on the trucking company’s corporate liability policy and need to deal with their lawyers to negotiate your settlement.
When you work with an attorney, they handle every step of the claims process for you, meaning you will not have to face the insurer, trucking company representatives, or their lawyers without legal representation.
Pursuing Compensation Following a Truck Accident
If you were the victim of a truck accident on Long Island, in New York City, or in another nearby area, you will likely be able to take action to try to hold the liable party responsible and seek compensation for your damages. This will include:
- Any medical care costs related to your accident injuries
- Care and support expenses
- Lost wages, benefits, and other income
- Reduced earning capacity if you have permanent injuries
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Pain and suffering losses
- Other tangible and intangible losses
It is important you act as soon as possible to enlist an attorney’s help and move forward with your case. Not only does New York Civil Practice Laws & Rules (CVP) §214 set a deadline for filing a lawsuit in a truck accident case, but evidence, such as surveillance or dash-cam video and witnesses who may be able to provide a supportive statement, can also disappear quickly. If we have the privilege to represent you, we want to ensure we have all the relevant evidence necessary to build the strongest case possible on your behalf.
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Discuss Your Case with a Team Member for Free Today
At Friedman & Simon, L.L.P., our team provides truck accident victims on Long Island or elsewhere in metropolitan New York with complimentary case consultations. Our passionate advocates for the injured will help you understand your options for seeking a payout. We represent clients based on a contingency fee, with no upfront costs.
Call Friedman & Simon, L.L.P. now at (516) 932-0400 to learn more.
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