News & opinion What Is the Truck Accident Claim Process?

What Is the Truck Accident Claim Process?

truck accident claims process

T

uck

ccidents

e unfo

tun

tely

ll too common on Tex

s

o

d

ys. In f

ct, in just one

ecent ye

, the

e

e

e ong>th

ee lives lost eve

y t

o d

ys ong> in t

uck

ccidents. If you’

e fo

tun

te enough to h

ve esc

ped

ith you

life

nd e filing

t

uck

ccident cl

im, it’s likely you e still coping

ith se

ious inju

ies

nd tum

.

Even if you m

n

ged to t

ke

ll the

ight steps immedi

tely follo

ing

t

uck

ccident, you m

y still be cu

ious ho

the cl

ims p

ocess

ill p

oceed. He

e is

genel

undo

n of ho t

uck

ccident cl

im

ill

o

k in most c

ses.

ong>Unde

st

nding the Leg

l Steps &

mp;

hy They M

tte

ong><

h2>
Fi

st off, it is common fo

victims to think they c

n h

ndle

n

ccident cl

im on thei

o

n

ithout the help of

n <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.com

se

vices

houston-t

uck-

ccident-l

ye

“>expe

ienced t

uck

ccident lye

>. Ho

eve

, doing so

ould be

mist

ke. The insu

nce comp

nies

ctu

lly b

nk on victims not seeking

ep

esent

tion. They’

e

ell e victims genelly do not kno

the l

,

nd do not kno

the t

ue v

lue of thei

c

se. In f

ct, it c

n g

e

tly benefit insu

nce comp

nies

hen someone does not hi

e

l

ye

...

hich is

g

e

t

e

son to <

em>hi

e one! Victims of

t

uck

ccident — o

the f

milies of someone lost in

t

uck

ccident — should seek immedi

te leg

l help. Cont

ct

skilled, expe

ienced leg

l te

m to t

ke on you

c

se. It’s the best y to p

otect you

ights

nd p

otect you

inte

ests.

He

e’s

h

t you c

n expect follo

ing

f

ee consult

tion

ith

n

tto

ney.

ong>Step One: Signing

Leg

l

et

ine

ong><

h3>
Once you h

ve

g

eed to be

ep

esented by

t

uck

ccident

tto

ney, you

ill be

sked to sign

leg

l

et

ine

. This me

ns

n

tto

ney h

s

g

eed to se

ve

s you

ep

esent

tive

nd h

ndle

ll negoti

tions on you

beh

lf.

ddition

lly, this

g

eement

lso expl

ins the

tto

ney’s fees

nd ho

they

ill be p

id (usu

lly f

om you

fin

l settlement.) It

ill

lso include

t

ble of <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

ho

-much-does-lye

-cost/”>

nticip

ted filing fees >.

e

d the

g

eement cefully to ensu

e you unde

st

nd

ll the fine points.

ong>Step T

o: Communic

tions M

tte

s ong><

h3>
One of the best things

bout hi

ing

n

tto

ney? No mo

e phone t

g. You c

n no

efe

ny telephone c

lls f

om insu

nce

djuste

s di

ectly to you

leg

l counsel. Lye

s kno

ll

bout hon insunce comp

ny m

y t

y to

void p

ying you the m

ximum

mount you dese

ve to collect fo

you

inju

ies o

you

loss. You

lye

is

ell-equipped to de

l

ith

n insu

eho is m

king

lo

e

settlement offe

o

t

ying to shift the bl

me fo

you

inju

ies onto you.

F

om the time you sign et

ine

until the time you

c

se is settled,

ll communic

tions should flo

th

ough youtto

ney. This

ill help

void confusion, p

event you f

om un

nted cont

ct by

n insu

nce comp

ny,

nd ensu

e

cle

communic

tions

eco

d th

oughout the p

ocess.

ong>Step Th

ee: Discove

y, Collection, &

mp; Investig

tion of Evidence ong><

h3>
You

tto

ney

ill collect the

v

il

ble evidence in you

t

uck

ccident c

se. Some info

m

tion you

l

ye

m

y obt

in includes:
  • ccident

    epo

    ts

  • Medic
    l

    epo

    ts<

    li>

  • Cell phone logs
  • T
    uck d

    ive

    logs<

    li>

  • T
    uck d

    ive

    tining

    eco

    ds<

    li>

  • M
    inten

    nce

    eco

    ds

  • T

    ffic c

    me su

    veill

    nce video, if

    pplic

    ble<

    li>

You

leg

l te

m then cefully

evie

s

ll

v

il

ble evidence to dete

mine

hethe

the t

uck d

ive

follo

ed

ll

pp

op

i

te

egul

tions. (The

e

e

multitude of

egul

tions f

om the <

h

ef=”https://

.fmcs

.dot.gov/sites/fmcs

.dot.gov

files/docs/D

ive

s%20Guide%20to%20HOS%202015_508.pdf” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“>Fede

l Moto

C

ie

S

fety

dministtion<> (FMCS

)

hich must be

dhe

ed to by d

ive

s

nd thei

employe

s.)

By ex

mining

ll

v

il

ble evidence, youtto

ney

ill

lso be

evie

ing info

m

tion th

t could help them dete

mine if

nyone besides<

em> the d

ive

should be held

ccount

ble fo

the

ccident. Fo

ex

mple, m

inten

nce

eco

ds c

n be ev

lu

ted to m

ke su

e the t

uck

s p

ope

ly m

int

ined.

ddition

lly,

evie

of you

medic

l

eco

ds c

e

tes the b

sis fo

the b

se

mount of the dem

nd

hich could be issued on you

beh

lf. If you h

ve

b

oken bone, you

losses

ould be signific

ntly less th

n someone

ho h

s suffe

ed the de

th of

loved one o tum

tic b

in inju

y in

t

uck

ccident — but you

e still entitled to compens

tion!

ong>Step Fou

: Issu

nce of Dem

nd Lette

s ong><

h3>
Once you

tto

ney h

s

evie

ed

ll

v

il

ble evidence

nd tho

oughly ev

lu

ted

ho is

t f

ult fo

the t

uck

ccident

nd the extent of you

inju

ies, they c

lcul

te the

mount of the settlement they believe you

e entitled to

eceive. In dete

mining

f

i

mount, you

tto

ney

ill t

ke

look

t the ges you lost immedi

tely follo

ing the

ccident,

ges

hich you m

y lose in the futu

e due to you

inju

y,

nd

ll of you

medic

l expenses. Othe

f

cto

s

lso come into pl

y, including

ny inju

ies th

t c

used disfigu

tion. Fo

ex

mple, if you

indshield

s b

oken du

ing the

ccident

nd you suffe

ed gouges to you

f

ce, you could be f

cing futu

e pl

stic su

ge

y p

ocedu

es to co

ect the disfigu

tion. You

dedic

ted t

uck

ccident

tto

ney

ill not ove

look this inju

y

nd its imp

ct on you. Someone

ill be held

ccount

ble.

Befo

e youtto

ney issues

dem

nd lette

, they

ill discuss the dem

nd

ith you. They

ill expl

in ho

they

e

ched the doll

mount in the dem

nd lettend

hy they

e

sking fo

specific

mounts fo

specific c

tego

ies of compens

tion. Most t

uck

ccident c

ses include economic

nd<

em> non-economic losses.

ong>Economic losses<

st

ong> include compens

tion fo

p

st

nd estim

ted futu

e medic

l bills, the income you lost

nd st

nd to lose, d

m

ge to you

vehicle o

pe

son

l p

ope

ty,

s

ell

s othe

qu

ntifi

ble costs

ssoci

ted

ith you

inju

y. Fo

those

ho h

ve lost

loved one, economic losses

ould

lso include <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.com

pe

son

l-inju

y-lye

-cost/”>unexpected costs >

ssoci

ted

ith the loss such

s funel

nd bu

i

l expenses.

ong>Non-economic losse<

st

ong>s include p

in

nd suffe

ing, emotion

l dist

ess,

nd loss of enjoyment of you

life.

s you discuss you

settlement options, you

tto

ney

ill t

ke the time to expl

in this concept to you

nd

ssess the tot

l imp

ct of the

ccident on you

nd you

f

mily’s life.

ong>Step Five: Settlement Negoti

tions Begin ong><

h3>
Once

dem

nd lette

h

s been sent out, you

tto

ney its foesponses. Depending on the specific ci

cumst

nces of you

c

se, the dem

nd lette

m

y h

ve gone out to mo

e th

n one insunce comp

ny. Keep in mind, t

uck

ccident cl

ims e complic

ted bec

use the

e m

y be multiple pties

ho

e p

ti

lly

esponsible fo

you

inju

y o

you

loss. Some of them include:
  • T

    uck d

    ive
  • T
    uck d

    ive

    ’s employe
  • M
    inten

    nce comp

    ny fo

    the t

    uck<

    li>

  • T
    uck m

    nuf

    ctu

    e

    <

    li>

  • City/to
    n

    municip

    lity

    he

    e the

    ccident occu

    ed (in the c

    se of pooo

    d conditions, fo

    ex

    mple)

It m

y t

ke

hile

fte

sending you

dem

nd lette

s to dete

mine ho

the p

ocess

ill pl

y out. In c

ses involving multiple pties, the

tto

neys fo

e

ch pty

ould

o

k togethe

to dete

mine ho

much e

ch p

ty should p

y. Ch

nces

e,

ithin

fe

eeks of getting

dem

nd lette

, youtto

ney

ould

eceive one (o

mo

e) settlement offe

s. If the

e

s only one p

ty

t f

ult, this m

y h

ppen mo

e quickly th

n if multiple p

ties

e

e p

ti

lly

esponsible.

Next in the p

ocess, youtto

ney

ill cont

ct you to let you kno

ho

much you

e being offe

ed to settle you

cl

im. They’ll

lso

dvise you

hethe

they believe this is the best offe

you

e likely to get

nd help you unde

st

nd the potenti

l consequences of

ccepting oejecting this initi

l offe

.

ith ye

s of expe

ience

nd thous

nds of t

uck

ccident c

ses unde

thei

belt, they kno

h

t’s f

i

nd

h

t isn’t.

The

e’s

c

tch to

ccepting

n ely settlement: futu

e losses.

ny medic

l bills, futu

e estim

ted

ge losses, o

othe

expenses

hich m

y be p

t of you

cl

im

ill

em

in unp

id. Be

e: the fin

l settlement documents

ill cont

in

cl

use th

t elimin

tes

ny futu

e options fo

you to seek

ddition

l compens

tion fo

you

inju

ies. This is one of the

e

sons

hy the ev

lu

tion of evidence

nd

tho

ough

evie

of you

medic

l

eco

ds is so c

uci

l in dete

mining ho

much to

equest in compens

tion. T

uck

ccident cl

ims

e messy

nd these negoti

tions t

ke time, involving

b

ck-

nd-fo

th volley bet

een you

tto

ney

nd the insu

nce comp

ny.

f

st settlement offe

is ne

ly

lys

sign

n insunce comp

ny kno

s they e f

cing

m

jo

p

oblem

ith li

bility.

This is

lys

pe

iod of conflict. Of cou

se you

tto

ney nts to m

ke su

e you get the compens

tion you dese

ve fo

you

inju

ies o

loss.On the othe

h

nd, the insunce comp

ny (o

multiple insunce comp

nies)

nts to m

ke su

e they p

y out

s little

s possible. Fo

tun

tely, in nely

ll c

ses, it’s possible to

e

ch

n

g

eement.

emembe

you

e in complete cont

ol of this p

ocess—you

tto

ney st

ives to do the best they c

n fo

you

benefit, but only you h

ve the fin

l

o

d on

h

t is

ccept

ble.

ong>Step Six: If Negoti

tions F

ll

pt—The T

i

l<

st

ong><

h3>
Depending on

h

t you

nd youtto

ney decided in the e

ly p

t of the p

ocess,

l

suit m

y h

ve

l

e

dy been filed. The

esponsible p

ties

ill be n

med

s defend

nts in

t

uck

ccident lsuit. This is usu

lly done to p

ese

ve you

ights

nd m

ke su

e the st

tute of limit

tions does not expi

e on you

cl

im. Should the st

tute of limit

tions expi

e

ithout

lsuit h

ving been filed, you could potenti

lly lose the

ight to hold the p

ties

ccount

ble in cou

t

t

ll.

hen should you t

ke you

t

uck

ccident cl

im to cou

t? You

nd youtto

ney

ill

g

ee upon

minimum settlement you

ill be

illing to

ccept fo

you

inju

ies

nd losses. If the involved pties

efuse to budge

nd e not offe

ing you this minimum

mount, the next step

ould be to t

ke the issue to cou

t.

It m

y t

ke some time to get on the cou

t c

lend

,

nd the

tto

ney

ho is

ep

esenting the othe

side of the lsuit m

y need mo

e time to p

ep

e.

hile this me

ns you’ll h

ve to it longe

to get you

money, it m

y be you

best option fo

getting the m

ximum

mount of compens

tion. Don’t give up! In the event you c

nnot

e

ch

n

g

ee

ble settlement fo

you

inju

ies, you

l

ye

ill be fully p

eped to fight fo

you in cou

t. Th

ough litig

tion, t

uck

ccident lye

s

e often

ble to obt

in settlement

ds exponenti

lly <

em>l

ge

th

n the insu

nce comp

ny’s initi

l offe

. It’s thei

job to kno

h

t

pp

o

ch to t

ke

hen you

m

tte

goes into cou

t.

The good ne

s

bout t

king you

t

uck

ccident cl

im to cou

t? T

uck

ccident c

ses nely

l

ys

esult in

settlement ve

sus

judgment.

ong>Fin

l Step: Getting C

sh In You

Pocket ong><

h2>
Once

settlement h

s been

g

eed upon o

judgment h

s been issued by the cou

t, you

tto

ney

ill d

up

st

tement sho

ing you the

mount of the settlement o

judgment, the fees fo

cou

t document filings (

he

e

pplic

ble),

nd you

leg

l fees. If <

h

ef="https:

/

.dol.gov

sites/dolgov/files/EBS

eseche

s/

n

lysis/he

lth-

nd-

elfe

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nd-p

ctices-in-he

lthce-sub

og

tion.pdf" tget="_bl

nk”

el="noopene

nofollo

no

efe

e

">you

he

lth insu

e

<> dese

ves

eimbu

sement fo

p

ying you

medic

l costs,

s in the c

se of

lette

of p

otection, the st

tement

ill

eflect th

t

s

ell. Fin

lly, you

tto

ney

ill disbu

se the funds by issuing you

check fo

deposit into youccount. Once you

eceive th

t fin

l disbu

sement,

ny costs you incu

fte

d fo

medic

l bills o

othe

se

vices e you

esponsibility. T

uck

ccidents e f too common,

nd thei

victims h

ve

long

o

d to

ecove

y in f

ont of them. Fo

those

ho h

ve lost

loved one, no

mount of money

eceived f

om

t

uck

ccident cl

im could eve

m

ke up fo

thei

loss. But the f

ct is,

hile money c

n’t inst

ntly

ep

i

the d

m

ge done to you

life follo

ing

t

uck

ccident, it c

n help you m

int

in you

fin

nci

l st

bility in the f

ce of you

inju

ies. If you’ve been in

t

uck

ccident, you su

ely nt to kno

the

ight y to get the compens

tion you dese

ve. The best choice is to

o

k

ith

n

tto

ney

ho is skilled

nd kno

ledge

ble in the deptment of t

uck

ccident cl

ims.

Don’t

it. <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

cont

ct-us

“>Cont

ct

n

tto

ney tod

y<>

nd m

ke su

e you h

ve someone fighting on you

beh

lf.

emembe

, the decisions you m

ke tod

y

ill imp

ct you

c

se, but they

ill

lso

ffect the

est of you

futu

e. The soone

you te

m up

ith

n expe

ienced

tto

ney

ith

p

oven tck

eco

d fighting fo

t

uck

ccident victims’

ights, the bette

off you’ll be.

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