A Big Truck Rear-Ended Me in Florida. What Should I Do?
If you suffer injuries after being rear-ended by a large commercial truck in South Florida, what do you do next? Who is liable for your injuries, and do you need to file a lawsuit for your medical treatment or property damage to your vehicle? Hiring a Florida truck accident lawyer as soon as possible after an accident can help your case against the driver or trucking company.
Who Is Liable for a Truck Accident in Florida?
If a truck strikes you from behind on the highway, they are presumed to be at-fault and will receive a ticket. That being said, crash reports (and accompanying tickets) are inadmissible in your civil case for damages. Trucking companies ROUTINELY deny claims claiming that our client (or a 3rd party) was comparatively at-fault. Also, trucking companies, and their teams of lawyers, will start defending the case from the second after the crash.
Your attorney needs to be on the offensive before evidence gets erased and/or witnesses disappear.
Our attorneys routinely hire an expert to survey the crash site following a crash and to download the truck’s EDR/black box to determine their speed and breaking history. We aso hire an investigator to take witness statements and locate video surveillance.
If your attorney finds that the interstate driver’s employer pushed the driver beyond the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) hours-of-service regulations, the trucking company may share fault. For intrastate drivers, the state of Florida has more lenient hours-of-service regulations for how many hours a driver may be on duty before requiring rest.
Whether a driver acted negligently themselves or made a mistake due to their employer breaching hours-of-service regulations, several factors could have contributed to the accident, including:
- The driver was going too fast for the road and weather conditions
- The driver was inebriated or distracted while driving
- The driver fled the accident scene without waiting to file a police report
- The driver was following too closely and not leaving enough stopping distance
- The driver failed to maintain control of the truck or the trailer and jackknifed, skidded, or rolled
- A truck parts manufacturer sold a faulty part
- An employee at a loading facility improperly loaded the truck
Seeking Compensation for Your Injuries
Sadly, in our experience a large number of trucking cases do not resolve pre-suit as the defense throws out a number of reasons (mostly unjustified) to low-ball the claim. You may likely need to file a personal injury lawsuit to pursue economic and non-economic damages against a commercial truck driver or trucking company. An experienced South Florida truck accident lawyer can help you pursue the appropriate compensation for your injuries and lingering pain, such as:
- Medical treatment
- Property damage to your vehicle
- Ongoing rehabilitation therapy
- Diminished earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Emotional distress
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Loss of quality of life
Contact an Experienced South Florida Truck Accident Lawyer
If you suffered injuries after being struck from behind by a commercial truck in Florida, contact a South Florida truck accident lawyer at Lyons & Snyder. Call us today at 954-833-1178 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation at our offices in Key West, Delray Beach, or Plantation, FL.
