Louisville Truck Accident Attorneys

Thousands of semi-trucks are on the roads and highways of Louisville and throughout Kentucky. Because of this fact, hundreds of automobile crashes are caused by the negligence of 18-wheeler drivers.

Being in any type of automobile accident can be a horrible experience for all involved. But being in a crash caused by someone driving a big truck can be horrific. Imagine getting struck by a vehicle that can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, and think about the amount of damage and injury such a crash could cause. Big trucks make for big accidents.

There are varying causes of crashes that involve big trucks, but no matter the cause, these types of accidents are more complicated than crashes that involve regular cars. Why? Well, semi-truck crashes cause more damage and are more prone to involve many vehicles given their size and weight.

Because these types of accidents are more complicated, it is best to hire an experienced Louisville truck accident lawyer to fight for your rights and to get the compensation you deserve. The truck driver, his employer and their insurance company will have a team of attorneys, adjusters and investigators on their side fighting against you to make sure they pay as little as possible for your injuries. Get a team on your side that has successfully handled hundreds of crashes involving semi-trucks.

Hessig & Pohl worked hard to get the best possible results for me. I have and would recommend their firm to anybody in need of legal assistance.

- MARISSA

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Hiring an experienced Louisville truck accident attorney is the smartest thing to do

What Hessig & Pohl's truck accident lawyers can do for you

When you hire us, we will start working your case immediately in order to best protect your rights to fair and reasonable compensation for your injuries. The trucking company and its insurance provider will do everything in their power to defeat you, including sending their own investigators to the scene of the crash to take pictures, interview witnesses and even possibly destroy or hide evidence of their driver’s negligence. Your team needs to be in place as soon as possible in order to combat the people responsible.

After a crash with a semi-truck there are many things that have to be done as quickly as possible in order to preserve evidence so that the crash can be recreated and the cause determined. We may need to hire our own investigators and accident reconstruction experts to gather evidence, pinpoint the exact cause(s) of the accident and prove that the defendants were at fault.

Things we will immediately do when you hire for your semi-truck accident case include

Take detailed photographs and measurements at the scene of the crash, noting the lengths of any skid marks and locations of the vehicles.

Collect and maintain any evidence at the scene of the accident and oversee the chain of custody of evidence so it can be used in court without claims of evidence tampering. Some types of physical evidence could be pieces of vehicles involved or dash cam footage.

Find witnesses and get recorded statements as soon as possible so that the information provided is the most accurate and no one forgets important facts and impressions of the truck crash.

Acquire the police accident investigation report and any documentation, photos or measurements taken by the police while investigating the crash.

Obtain records from the trucking company about the driver, including driving log notes, which are required to be kept by Federal law, showing how long the driver has been on the road. Fatigue can play a part in truck crashes.

Obtain the truck’s “black box” and pull the data to preserve it. As with airplanes, 18-wheelers have a black box that records data about the truck, including speed, direction and breaking action. This is a wealth of information for accident reconstruction experts.

If necessary, hire our own crash reconstruction expert to look at all the evidence and the data from the black box and give an expert opinion on what caused the collision.

What should you do at the scene of crash with an 18-wheeler?

If you have been injured in an 18-wheeler crash, then there are certain things that you must do to protect yourself and protect your rights related to the crash.

The most important thing to do is to get yourself out of harm’s way for any possible subsequent injury, by removing yourself from your vehicle, if possible, just in case you get hit by another vehicle. The next thing to do is to call 911 as quickly as possible in order to report the crash and to ensure first responders get to scene as fast as possible. The quicker EMT’s and an ambulance can get to the scene of the accident, the better those injured will fare. Also, the police need to be there to direct traffic to make sure no secondary accidents occur and to begin an investigation of the cause of the crash.

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Additional things to do at the scene of a tractor-trailer accident

Note the activity of the driver to see whether they exhibit symptoms of intoxication like slurred speech or stumbling. Also note whether the truck driver is attempting to destroy evidence of being intoxicated by throwing away bottles or cans of alcohol. Police are trained at spotting drivers who are intoxicated and they can perform field sobriety tests and employ a breathalyzer test at the scene of the crash.

Talk to witnesses. Write down the contact information (name, phone number, address and email) of everyone who is a witness and saw the accident so that your attorney can better recreate the scene of the accident and be able to prove the cause of the crash at trial.

Take pictures. If you have a phone or other camera, take pictures to record the scene of the crash right after it happened. Take photos of the entire area so that your lawyer will be able to get a good sense of the circumstances of the crash. Also, make sure to take detailed photos of the damage to the vehicles and any skid marks that you can find. This can help an accident reconstruction expert recreate the crash and determine whether the driver was negligent.

Be cooperative and honest with the investigating police officer when they ask you to provide a statement of what happened. Do not exaggerate anything but also do not leave any facts out, even if you think it might not matter.

Notice whether the driver is writing anything down or changing things in their log book. Drivers have to keep detailed records of when and for how long they are driving. Federal law mandates that drivers are to take rest periods once they drive up to the limit. If the driver goes over these limits, fatigue can set in, which is a major cause of semi-truck accidents.

What can cause a tractor-trailer crash?

Not every truck accident is the same. There are many potential causes for a motor vehicle accident, no matter what type(s) of vehicles are involved. However, crashes caused by big trucks can be more complicated, and may require investigation by your attorney. Because of the way 18-wheelers are used, the amount of time drivers are on the road and the industry-specific regulation that governs them, there are many different ways a driver or trucking company can be negligent.

Distracted driving

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Distracted driving

Being distracted by phones has become a national epidemic, and this epidemic has not spared truck drivers. Truck drivers can be distracted by looking at their cell phones or radio or any other items in the cab. Since they are on the road for hours at a time without taking breaks, it is very easy for a driver to become distracted and cause an accident.

Negligent or reckless driving

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Negligent or reckless driving

Common negligent or reckless driving includes sudden lane changes, driving too close behind vehicles or driving too fast for the conditions of the roadway.

Speeding

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Speeding

A semi-truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds and cannot be stopped easily when necessary. If the truck driver is faced with a sudden emergency and cannot stop in time due to driving speed or being too close to other vehicles, then the driver would be considered responsible for the crash and any injuries that occurred.

Being overly tired

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Being overly tired

Federal laws restrict the amount of time drivers can be on the road in a 24-hour period. Once drivers reach the maximum, they must to pull over and rest for at least 10 hours. This law is in place to protect the truck drivers and other vehicles. Without these rules, tired drivers may be on the roads given profit incentives. In fact, some drivers and trucking companies skirt the rules and falsify their log books in order to stay on the road longer.

Poor training

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Poor training

Every state has requirements for people to get a specialized license to drive big trucks. Many times, the trucking companies themselves hire and train drivers. Sometimes there are ill-trained drivers on the road who cannot handle the big rigs properly. Given how lethal these vehicles can be when involved in a crash, it is imperative that trucking companies only hire highly skilled and experienced drivers.

Mechanical failures

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Mechanical failures

Trucks are driven day in and day out, hundreds of thousands of miles per year. This much wear and tear is bound to cause mechanical failures or tire blowouts. Even though federal law requires trucks to be periodically inspected for possible problems, often trucking companies fail in their duty and put dangerous semi-trucks on the road that could cause serious accidents.

Overloaded or improperly loaded trailers

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Overloaded or poorly loaded trailers

Sometimes semi-truck crashes are caused by the negligence of the people loading the rig. Too much weight can be dangerous and cause a crash. If the cargo is loaded into the rig in an unsafe manner without properly being strapped down, the cargo could shift during transit, causing the vehicle to become unstable or out of control. In some instances, the people loading cargo work for a different company than the truck driver. In this case, another defendant might be added to the case, providing more resources to compensate you for your injuries.

Driving under the influence

There are many ways a driver or trucking company can be found negligent

Driving under the influence

A surprising number of big truck accidents are caused by drivers intoxicated by alcohol or under the influence of drugs. Obviously, being legally drunk while driving a semi-tractor trailer is an extremely dangerous combination. Also, many drivers take other types of drugs in order to stay awake due to the long hours of being on the road. These drugs can impair a driver’s reflexes and cause a crash.

Common Semi-Truck Accident Injuries

Truck accidents can be uniquely destructive

Due to the mere size of these big trucks, injuries caused by a truck crash can be much more severe than those in regular car accidents. Often, semi-truck accidents cause multi-vehicle collisions, affecting more people.

Here are some common semi-truck injuries:

Brain injuries: Although newer vehicles are equipped with more and better airbags, there is still a high chance of brain injury caused by a big truck crash.

Spinal cord injuries: Accidents involving 18-wheelers are particularly destructive due to their size, causing more spinal cord injuries.

Loss of limbs (amputations): When a smaller vehicle is struck by a semi-truck, the smaller vehicle may flip, causing the driver or passengers to be thrown from the car. In the process arms and legs can be severed.

Burns and death by fire: Cars do not often catch on fire. But a crash caused by an 18-wheeler can ignite the gas tank or fuel lines, causing an explosion.

Fatal truck crashes: Again, due to the size speed of trucks, accidents involving 18-wheelers cause a higher percentage of fatalities.

Damages that can be recovered in a truck accident case

Economic damages

Every person who is seriously injured due to the negligence of a semi-truck driver has the right to be compensated for their injuries. These crashes can be extremely violent, can cause gruesome injuries or death and can rip a family apart. If you have been seriously injured in a tractor-trailer crash, you should contact an truck accident attorney with experience handling large truck accident cases so that, if necessary, a civil lawsuit can be filed against the driver and the trucking company.

Economic damage that can be recovered are:

  • Property damage to your car and any items you may have had in the vehicle
  • Unpaid medical bills and expenses related to your treatment and recovery
  • Lost wages due to an inability to work while healing from your injuries
  • Future lost wages due to a long term disability affecting your future earning capacity.

Non-economic damages

The non-economic damages that you may be able to recover are more difficult to discern because your lawyer is not just adding up numbers. Non-economic damages involve changes to your life, including:

  • Pain and suffering from your injuries
  • Emotional distress, post-traumatic stress disorder and mental suffering
  • Humiliation and damage to your reputation

Unlike semi-truck crashes that involve just mere negligence of the driver, if the driver was intoxicated these types of accidents offer an ability to seek money from the drunk truck driver and the trucking company that are called punitive damages. Punitive damages can be awarded to the injured plaintiff not to compensate the plaintiff for any injuries, but to punish the drunk truck driver and the trucking company for their outrageous and reckless behavior.

You need experienced, effective help from the injury attorneys at Hessig & Pohl

Damages that can be recovered in a truck accident case

The importance of hiring a Louisville truck accident lawyer

This is why contacting an experienced truck accident lawyer is very important in order to protect your rights. If you have been injured in a collision with a large truck, please do not hesitate to contact the lawyers at Hessig & Pohl at (502) 777-1111. We can answer your questions and help you recover the damages to compensate you for your injuries. The initial consultation is free.