Truck Accident Attorney in Florida
An accident involving a commercial truck can change your life in an instant. Thankfully, you do not have to go through the legal process of seeking compensation alone. The Law Offices of Wolf & Pravato have been fighting for victims’ right to compensation for the past 20 years. Our truck accident lawyer in Florida is there to help you deal with the legal drama, and the priority is proving the extent of your injuries. To claim compensation for damages, you must be able to prove the full extent of the damages caused by the trucking accident, and that’s a venue your semi-truck accident lawyer in Florida can assist you with.
Who’s at Fault in Florida Truck Accident Cases?
Florida truck accident legal experts who are familiar with accidents involving commercial carriers know that this may not be as straightforward as some people think. It’s easy to blame someone, like the truck driver for instance, but if that driver is not covered by enough insurance then it may make more sense to claim it from the commercial carrier itself. The negligence of the driver may be the cause of the accident, but since that driver was representing the trucking company while doing his job, then the carrier should also take responsibility.
There are times when it’s clear that it’s also the negligence of the trucking company that caused the accident. This will be true in cases when the company has failed to put proper safety measures in place, or when the driver hasn’t been screened properly.
Who Is Responsible for Commercial Carrier Accidents in Florida?
- Truck driver
- A truck company employing the truck driver – may or may not own the truck itself
- Truck owner
- Truck manufacturer
- Company leasing the truck
- Trailer owner – if the accident involves a trailer
- Company leasing the trailer
- Leasing company owner
- Trailer manufacturer
What Challenges Occurs with Commercial Carriers Truck in Florida?
Making sure that someone holds responsibility for what happened is part of your personal injury lawyer’s job. After a major accident especially involving a truck, the people involved with the accident are often still emotionally (and physically) traumatized. Having a good lawyer by your side will ensure that someone is fighting your legal battles for you and that you do get the compensation you deserve. Whether you’re in Fort Lauderdale or another city in Florida, we’re here to assist you in your case.
Many Types of Truck Accident Involve Commercial Carriers in Florida
Accidents happen left and right, but the gravity of the situation and the extent of the injuries are often affected by different variables. For instance, if the accident involves a commercial carrier like a humongous truck, chances are the accident is also ‘bigger’ compared to what happens if two cars collide. This is usually due to the sheer size and weight of the truck involved.
Our Florida Truck Accident Attorney Is Here For a Legal Battle
While trucking accidents are less commonplace than car crashes, they still happen throughout Florida (Click here to see all the communities we serve). Often, accidents involving trucks are more catastrophic because if a truck loses control on the road and hits vehicles that are much smaller, those vehicles are immediately at a disadvantage and the damage that occurs is usually worse. Whether you’re directly or indirectly (perhaps from flying debris on the road) involved in a crash involving any commercial carrier, you will need a Florida truck accident lawyer to help you sort through the complicated legal battle that follows.
Why Fatal Truck Accidents & Injuries Different From Other Collisions in Florida?
Accidents involving a commercial truck differ from the standard car crash because of the number of parties that can be held accountable. When filing a personal injury claim, a truck accident legal experts can pursue recoverable damages from the individual driver, the company the driver was working for, and/or the manufacturer of the truck itself. Because of how many parties can be found liable, this can add another layer of complexity to the legal process.
What Damages I can Claim After Semi-Truck Accident in Florida?
The damages that you can claim after a semi truck accident in Florida are similar to what you can claim after a car crash. However, the extent is usually bigger. These claims include past, current, and future medical expenses, loss of income or the ability to earn, pain and anguish, wrongful death (in the worst-case scenario), and other such losses that can be directly traced to the accident.
Damages That you Can Claim
There are many damages that you can claim, but the hard part is proving that the truck company is at fault. When it comes to investigating the accident and proving this fault, your Florida truck accident attorney can help you and fight for your semi-truck accident settlements. Below are the tasks that semi-truck accident lawyer in Florida can typically help with:
Tasks Our Florida Truck Accident Lawyer can Handle:
- Obtaining and reviewing available camera footage
- Going through police reports of the accident in question
- Interviewing eye-witnesses
- Analyzing medical records
- Interviewing medical staff
- Working with experts to reconstruct or recreate the scene of the accident for better understanding
Florida Truck Accident Lawyer Fight For Your Case in Court
With personal injurycases resulting from accidents with a commercial carrier, things can be settled either outside the court or in it. Lawyers are good negotiators, and often the right settlement is reached outside of court. However, if a jury trial is necessary to ensure that you get the rightful compensation for the full extent of your damages, your Florida truck accident lawyers will certainly not hesitate to fight for your case in court as well. Contact the Law Offices of Wolf & Pravato today to find out how our truck accident attorneys in Florida can help you.
Get A Florida Truck Accident Lawyer To Cover Medical Treatment
You should also not discount the fact that these are larger-scale defendants you will be dealing with, and in there will be cases when your involvement is not direct (meaning the truck didn’t hit you full-on but you may have been still affected by the crash). It is not uncommon for commercial carriers to deny fault or liability, so it’s best if you have a Florida truck accident legal firm to help you every step of the way.
Unlike a car crash wherein the liability is more straightforward and you can usually just blame the other driver because this is a commercial carrier, finding fault in the other party is not as easy as that. To highlight the complexity of finding who’s at fault, below is a list of the possible parties that can be held liable when the accident involves something like a commercial carrier:
Florida Department of Transportation
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) sets out the statutes that govern the safe transportation and operation of trucks, including the width, length, and height of the vehicle. Florida Highway Patrol also published a commercial motor vehicle manual outlining these rules and regulations. Additionally, there are regulations governing the transportation of hazardous waste.
Truck Drivers and Their Employers Adhere to These Regulations
Truck drivers and their employers must adhere to these regulations for the safety of other drivers. For instance, if a truck exceeds its weight, then it may fail to slow down in time. If the truck driver does not transport hazardous materials under regulations, this could expose other motorists to the risk of truck accident injury in Florida. These are all factors that can determine the severity of an accident.
Truck drivers are also required to keep logs of all the truck’s maintenance, miles traveled, destinations reached, and breaks. These logbooks can be essential in assigning accident liability and can be used as evidence when seeking compensation in a truck accident.
How do Florida Truck Accident Attorney help in Gathering Evidence?
To establish a link between yourself and the truck accident, you will need to provide the insurance company with documentation proving your involvement.
This can include:
- The police report made at the scene
- Medical statements
- Witness statements
- Any available traffic surveillance footage
- Photos or videos of the damages
After a truck accident, many people seek out the advice of our legal experts, as they take on the responsibility of collecting all necessary evidence. Additionally, make sure that your case falls within Florida’s statute of limitations guidelines.
How do Florida Semi-Truck Accident Lawyers Help in Determining Liability?
Once a legal team has collected evidence and substantiated statements, it becomes easier to determine who is responsible. Several reasons can cause a truck driver to collide with another vehicle.
These can include:
- Distracted driving (such as texting or using a dispatch device)
- Driving under the influence of drugs, alcohol, or fatigue
- Speeding
- Exceeding the truck’s loading capacity
- Failing to break in time
- Misjudging the distance of a car when choosing to overtake
A Florida semi-truck accident attorney can determine what circumstances caused your accident and how that will affect your claim.
Take the Help of Florida Truck Accident Lawyer to learn about Safety Administration
Having a truck accident lawyer in Florida will also help you navigate the complicated legal landscape of dealing with commercial carriers. It’s not like a typical car crash and you will have to take note of a few more factors. For one, trucks or commercial carriers are typically used to transport goods from one state to another. The accident may have happened in Florida, but there’s a good chance that the trucking company is from another state. This out-of-state status of the defendant complicates the situation and you will need your lawyer to track the defendant, interface with the right insurance company, and file the Florida personal injury lawsuit in the appropriate court.
Start Working with the Law Offices of Wolf & Pravato Today
If you were involved in a truck accident, a truck accident lawyer in Florida can help you fight for the compensation you need. Truck accident expenses can add up quickly. You should not be responsible for the financial repercussions of someone else’s mistake.
According to the Florida Statutes § 95.11, you generally have up to four years to file a lawsuit after your truck accident. If you have been in a truck accident within the last four years, you can still file your case.
The Law Offices of Wolf & Pravato can determine the financial loss you suffered due to the truck accident. We can communicate with all other parties involved so that you can focus on your recovery. Call (954) 633-8270 today for a free consultation. You do not pay any attorney’s fees unless we can get compensation for you. The personal injury attorneys Florida can help you build your truck accident case as soon as you call.
FAQs about Florida Truck Accident Lawyer
Car accidents can cause severe damage and injury to all parties involved. According to Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, there were over 400,000 car accidents in Florida in 2019.
Truck accidents, especially, can be traumatic due to the size of the trucks. Large trucks can be challenging to drive due to their size and weight. Truck drivers are often carrying heavy loads. Rollover accidents are common with large trucks because of the momentum they carry with a heavy load in the back. When a truck takes a turn too quickly, the forward momentum of the weight pulls the rear end of the truck sideways while the truck’s front end continues forward.
If you were in a truck accident in Florida, you might be entitled to receive compensation for your damages. Most vehicle accidents result in damages, such as property damage or bodily injuries. If you were injured in a truck accident, you may be compensated for any medical expenses you incurred due to your accident. You may also be compensated for any damage done to your property, including your vehicle. A truck accident lawyer in Florida can help you fight for compensation for any financial losses you suffered due to a truck accident.
1. What to Do Next if I Am Involved in a Truck Accident in Florida?
After a truck accident, you should first get the medical attention you need. You also want to make sure to gather any evidence available to you, such as medical documents, photographs, and eyewitnesses’ contact information. Any evidence you collect may be used to support your claim. You can also hire a truck accident lawyer to help you retrieve other evidence that might not be readily available.
2. What Are the Most Common Causes of Truck Accidents in Florida?
There are many different causes of truck accidents in Florida. Large trucks can be difficult to drive. Accidents are often caused by driver error, which may involve distracted driving, driving too fast, improper loading, or a lack of experience. Other factors can come into play, such as road conditions, weather, and other drivers on the road.
3. What Can I Do to Protect My Rights After a Florida Truck Accident?
To protect your rights after a truck accident, you should avoid speaking with insurance companies and other lawyers without getting a truck accident lawyer for yourself. Anything you say after a truck accident can be used against you when fighting for compensation for damages.
4. Should I Contact an Attorney for a Truck Accident in Florida?
Contacting an attorney after a truck accident might help you prepare your case so that you can pursue compensation. A truck accident lawyer can help determine what damages you suffered due to the truck accident. A truck accident lawyer in Florida may also help you gather evidence to prove who was at fault for the accident.
5. What Do You Do if You Get Hit by an 18 Wheeler?
If you get hit by an 18-wheeler, you should get the medical attention you need. You can hire an 18-wheeler accident lawyer in Florida to help you handle communications with the truck driver, trucking company, or truck manufacturer. Accidents involving 18-wheelers often have multiple parties, so your lawyer can act as your representative.
Call Our Florida Truck Accident Attorney Today for a Free Consultation
Our truck accident lawyer Florida learns about the circumstances of your accident, we will get to work determining who is responsible for your damages and help you recover the cost of your losses. We work on a contingency fee basis meaning that we do not get paid until we win your case. If we cannot reach an agreement regarding a settlement amount, we are ready and willing to represent you in court.
Even when the truck company involved is located inside the state, the fact that it’s a commercial carrier complicates the legal repercussions and this is where your lawyer can come in to give you a hand.
Truck Accident Locations Served
- Fort Lauderdale Truck Accident
- Boynton Beach Truck Accident
- Fort Myers Truck Accident
- West Palm Beach Truck Accident
- Miami Truck Accident
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