In addition to the horror of a truck accident, the accident lawsuit is typically much more complex than your average personal injury lawsuit because of the evidence involved and the investigations required. For example, your Orlando truck accident lawyer must work through a variety of regulations, industry standards, company policies, and safety protocols to make sure your rights are protected.
If you or a loved one have been hurt in an accident involving a truck, semi, 18-wheeler, tractor-trailer, delivery vehicle, or any other type of commercial truck, you may be entitled to compensation. We recommend you speak to a personal injury attorney as soon as possible after your accident so that your attorneys have time to do a proper inspection and investigation.
Types of Injury Cases Our Orlando, Florida Truck Accident Lawyers Handle
In a Florida truck accident, the people
in the smaller vehicles are most likely to be seriously injured or killed because of the truck’s size and weight. Thus, there are many types of injuries you can suffer in a truck accident. Here are some of the more common types of injuries people suffer in Florida truck accidents.
Head & Brain Injuries
Head and brain injuries include things like concussions, traumatic brain injuries, brain bleeding, skull fractures, or disfiguring injuries that require plastic surgery. Unfortunately, traumatic brain injury is a common result of truck accidents.
Neck, Back & Spine Injuries
These types of injuries include things like whiplash, spinal cord damage, herniated discs, or strains and sprains. These are common injuries in a truck accident case.
Burn Injuries
Burn injuries from truck accidents include fatal or disfiguring burns that may require skin grafts and other surgeries. Serious burn injuries often cause disfigurement and can require multiple plastic surgeries to restore.
Soft Tissue Injuries
A soft tissue injury includes injuries to the skin, muscles, and tendons, which can often result in extreme and lasting pain.
Bone Injuries
A bone injury could include broken and bruised bones, which can require surgery to repair and lots of time to heal.
The injuries above are just a few of the types of injuries victims suffer in truck accidents. If you’ve experienced any of these injuries above as a result of a truck accident, you may be entitled to compensation. Therefore, we recommend you contact our Orlando truck accident lawyers for a free consultation as soon as possible after your truck accident.
Compensation After a Florida Truck Accident
Orlando Trucking accidents are horrifying because
truck accidents typically involve catastrophic impacts. Thus, the medical bills can be very high, and the pain and suffering can be severe. You may be entitled to compensation for the damages you suffered as a result of a truck accident. Here are some types of damages commonly associated with truck accidents:
Medical Bills. Medical bills include the costs of diagnosing and treating your injuries. Your medical bills also include your future medical bills and the costs, as well as the costs of transporting you to your appointments.
Lost Wages & Missed Work. This includes the paychecks you missed because your truck accident injuries prevented you from being able to go to work. This type of compensation could cover not only your current lost wages but also may cover your future lost wages.
Pain & Suffering. Pain and suffering is the conventional type of non-economic injury damage. It includes emotional and psychological damages, as well as things like loss of quality of life.
Property Damage. Property damage would include things like the replacement or repair of your vehicle.
Wrongful Death. In addition to the list above, you may have a viable wrongful death claim if you lost a loved one in a trucking accident. As a result, you may be entitled to compensation for the expenses associated with your loss. The Orlando attorneys at Spetsas Buist PLLC can help.
Common Causes of Florida Truck Accidents
As Florida’s economy continues to boom,
there will inevitably be an increase in commercial trucks on Florida roads. Thus, the number of truck accidents will likely increase. Below are some of the more common causes of truck accidents in Florida.
Distracted Driving
This is a leading cause of all kinds of traffic accidents. Unfortunately, people can’t seem to focus or stop looking at their phones, even when they’re driving massive trucks. Truck drivers that use a phone or eat while driving increase the chances of a truck accident dramatically because a brief lapse in focus can quickly turn into an accident.
Blind Spots
Commercial trucks like 18-wheelers have large blind spots around all four sides. Sometimes inexperienced or irresponsible truckers will turn or switch lanes without checking their blind spots. Thus, blind spots are the cause of a lot of truck accidents in Florida.
Speeding
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, a fully loaded truck traveling in good road conditions at normal highway speeds requires a distance of nearly two full football fields to stop. Thus, if a truck is speeding, it puts all the other vehicles on the road in danger because of how much space it needs to slow down.
Drunk Driving
The danger of drunk driving is multiplied when the driver is behind the wheel of a huge and complex commercial truck. So, the DUI rules for CDL holders are more stringent because operating a commercial vehicle requires more skill and control than operating a normal automobile. For that reason, CDL holders with a blood alcohol content of over .04 percent are considered over the limit.
Driver Fatigue
Truckers work long hours, and it’s easy for truckers to get fatigued while driving. Regardless of the type of vehicle, drivers are not able to focus or react as quickly when they’re tired. Thus, the Florida Statutes limit the amount of time truckers can spend on the road, and the FLHSMV elegantly explains the interstate hours of service rules.
Improper Turns
Big commercial vehicles require more time and space to make a turn than other vehicles. Accordingly, because commercial vehicle turns are complex, they are the cause of a lot of truck accidents. For example, truck drivers can easily miscalculate and make a wide left-hand turn right in front of a speeding vehicle and cause an accident. They can also turn too fast and throw cargo onto the road, which also causes accidents.
Who Is Liable in a Florida Trucking Accident?
Depending on the circumstances, there may be several liable defendants in a truck accident case because the driver is often an employee. This brings in the legal doctrine, respondeat superior. Essentially, this just means that an employer is liable for the damages caused by actions or omissions of an employee working within the scope of his or her employment.
Truck Driver
There are several ways the truck driver may be held liable for a truck accident. For example, if the driver was intoxicated or distracted by a cell phone, that driver could be held liable. Also, the driver may be liable for driving too many hours or driving while drowsy. Thus, a truck driver can be held liable for many reasons.
Trucking Company
The trucking company could be held liable for its employee’s truck accident. For example, the company could have cut corners on safety equipment, or it could have pushed its employees too hard and for too many hours. The trucking company may also incur liability if it negligently hires someone who is clearly a danger to the community. Therefore, a trucking company often bears responsibility for truck accidents, but uncovering that liability can require a thorough investigation.
Semi Truck Owner
There may be situations where the trucking company does not own the commercial vehicle but instead leases the commercial vehicle. In that situation, the truck owner may have the responsibility to inspect the commercial vehicle and make sure it’s safe. The owner, for example, may be required to maintain the brakes, fluids, tires, etc. Like the trucking company, a truck owner can bear responsibility for truck accidents, but it often requires a bit of investigation to uncover this liability.
Big Rig Manufacturer
Some truck accidents occur because of defective parts or faulty equipment. Manufacturers have a duty to ensure their products are safe and function properly. If a truck accident is caused by a defective part, the truck’s manufacturer may be held liable or partially liable for the damages caused by the truck accident. Uncovering this type of defect typically requires a thorough investigation.
Cargo Loader
Some truck accidents are caused by improperly secured cargo. As you can imagine, if cargo becomes loose and falls from a tractor-trailer on a busy road, the resulting accident can be horrifying.
Florida Commercial Vehicle Accident Statistics
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) compiles traffic accident data for Florida every year. Below are some of the most relevant truck accident statistics in Florida from 2018 and 2019.
Commercial Vehicle Accidents in Florida. The FLHSMV defines a “crash” as the operation of a motor vehicle in Florida that results in property damage, complaint of bodily injury, bodily injury, or death to any person.
- 2018 / 45,353 Commercial Vehicle Crashes
- 2019 / 45,636 Commercial Vehicle Crashes
Injuries From Commercial Vehicle Accidents in Florida. In this context, the FLHSMV defines an “injury” as the total number of people who sustained bodily hurt or damage or complained of bodily hurt or damage as a result of a traffic crash.
- 2018 / 11,971 Injuries from Commercial Vehicle Crashes
- 2019 / 12,271 Injuries from Commercial Vehicle Crashes
Fatalities From Commercial Vehicle Accidents in Florida. In this context, a “fatality” is a death that results from a traffic crash, and only fatalities that occurred within 30 days of the crash are considered traffic-related.
- 2018 / 293 Fatalities from Commercial Vehicle Crashes
- 2019 / 316 Fatalities from Commercial Vehicle Crashes
Do You Need to Speak to an Experienced Truck Accident Attorney?
When you’re facing a financial burden caused by another party’s negligence, you need an attorney who will fight for you like family. Spetsas Buist is based in Orlando but serves clients in all of Florida, as well as in South Carolina and North Carolina. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation.
