A truck accident can cause serious injuries, and you may consider suing the truck driver if they were negligent and caused that crash. Maybe the driver ran a red light. They T-boned your car as you drove through the intersection. The accident is clearly their fault, so you want compensation for lost wages, medical bills and things of this nature.
One thing to consider at this time is whether or not the trucking company was also negligent. If the driver was operating that vehicle on behalf of another company, the company may have influenced the accident in significant ways. If so, you can often then seek compensation from the company, which may have considerably more financial resources than the driver. Here are two examples of how this could happen, although every accident is unique.
Not carrying out proper maintenance
First of all, it may depend on who owns the truck and is responsible for the maintenance. If it’s the driver, then any negligent maintenance is still their fault. But if it’s the trucking company, the driver may claim that they couldn’t avoid the accident.
For instance, maybe the driver only ran the red light because the brakes failed. But the driver was assured that the truck was in perfect condition and had been maintained correctly. If maintenance records show that the company neglected the truck for months or years before the brake failure, the accident may be the company’s fault.
Encouraging drivers to break regulations
It’s also important to consider if the company encouraged the driver to violate any of the regulations they’re supposed to follow on the road. For instance, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration mandates that drivers can only use hands-free devices for communication. If a trucking company told their driver to violate that rule and use their cellphone anyway, leading to driver distraction, then both the driver and the company may be responsible.
As you can see, it’s very important to know exactly what legal options you have after suffering injuries.