Arbutus, MD Truck Accident Lawyer

Truck accidents happen with surprising frequency and are very dangerous. They can result in very nasty injuries that put victims in the hospital for long periods of time. It is also not unusual for there to be a lengthy recovery period after a truck accident. The cost of all that medical care can easily add up, truck accident victims often look to the legal system to get justice for the wrong done to them.

If you were injured in a truck accident and are looking to take legal action, our lawyers are ready for your case. We will fight hard for you all the way through the whole legal process so that you are treated fairly in court and have a good chance of getting the financial compensation you need after a truck accident.

Rice, Murtha & Psoras’s truck accident lawyers can be reached for free case reviews when you call us at (410) 694-7291.

Causes of Truck Accidents in Arbutus, MD

There is no one reason that truck accidents happen. There are a lot of different factors that come into play that can potentially result in a truck accident taking place. It is, however, very important to have our truck accident attorneys investigate the cause or causes of your particular truck accident. This is because, in truck accident lawsuits, you can only get damages if you can prove that the defendant was the cause of your injuries. Below, we have detailed some of the more frequent causes of truck accidents in and around Arbutus.

Tired Driving

Truck drivers are on the road for very long periods of time. 18-wheelers, in particular, often have to travel very long distances to get their cargo where it needs to go. Additionally, there is an incentive for truckers to get their goods to where they need to be sooner rather than later, if not to get paid more, then to get done with work faster so they can go back to living their lives. All of this put together makes it so that truckers are incentivized to keep driving for longer than may be safe.

Tired driving is about as dangerous as drunk driving because it lowers reaction time and compromises decision-making. Because there are pressures for truckers to stay on the road, there are actually rules published by the FMCSA that lay out how long truckers are allowed to stay driving in one session. If a trucker drives beyond what is allowed and gets in an accident, either the driver or their trucking company can be liable for your injuries in the truck accident.

Distracted Driving

Since truckers are on the road for long periods of time, they have to, on occasion, find ways to pass the time and amuse themselves. Most people know about amateur/“ham” radios truckers frequently use to talk to each other over long journeys. In the present day and age, there are more distractions than ever available to truckers. Text messages, phone games, and even television sets in truck cabins are available to truck drivers and are prone to creating distractions from the road. If a truck driver is engrossed in something else at a crucial moment, they could easily cause an accident.

Overloading

Another culprit of truck accidents is overloading the vehicle. Trucks are already large and somewhat unwieldy. Overloading a trailer or other rear compartment of a truck can cause the vehicle to move in a way that is even more sluggish and unpredictable, making it difficult to control the truck for even an experienced, qualified trucker. Notably, overloading can make it more likely for oversteering – where a vehicle turns more than the driver intends it to – and, subsequently, a jackknife accident, where the truck trailer collapses in on the cab like a folding knife.

Improper Cargo Securement

In addition to overloading, sometimes improperly secured cargo can cause truck accidents. Improperly secured cargo can move around while the truck is moving, causing the center of gravity to change and the truck to behave differently. This can throw the driver off and result in an accident. Additionally, improperly secured cargo could be jettisoned from the truck and hit an unsuspecting vehicle nearby.

Sometimes, the truckers themselves are tasked with loading and securing their own cargo. Other times, truckers merely receive a pre-loaded and secured trailer section that is then hitched to their vehicle. It is important to our lawyers to figure out which situation is relevant to your accident because it can inform who the right parties are to sue in your lawsuit. For example, if a third party provided the trailer and it was improperly loaded, they could be liable for your injuries along with the trucker, trucking company, and other potential defendants.

Calculating Damages in Arbutus, MD Truck Accident Lawsuits

There are two main ways of calculating damages in truck accident lawsuits: the multiplier method and the “per diem” method.

The multiplier method takes damages for things like medical bills and multiplies them by a given factor to represent non-economic damages. This method is often used when the plaintiff is not expected to make a full recovery from their injuries.

The other method is called the “per diem” method. This method comes up with an amount that symbolizes your struggle with your injuries each day and adds together all the days that you deal with the injuries you received in your truck accident. This method is preferred when the plaintiff is expected to make a full recovery from their injuries at some point in time.

Talk to Our Truck Accident Attorneys from Arbutus, MD Right Away

Our truck accident attorneys from Rice, Murtha & Psoras are only a phone call away at the number (410) 694-7291.