If you were injured in a truck crash in Florida, read these 8 frequently asked truck accident questions. Then, contact our Orlando attorneys.
1) How Do I Choose the Best a Truck Accident Attorney?
The most important thing to do is to pick someone who you have sat down with and spoken with, and you can get a sense from them that they have the experience, that they have the knowledge, that they have the resources on how to handle a trucking accident.
Trucking accidents are very different than automobile accidents in the sense that they involve federal regulations. They involved many moving parts that are very different than a regular auto accident case. We would say the most important thing is to pick someone with experience in those types of cases. Just having experience in auto cases is simply not enough. There are many things that need to be done for a trucking accident case that only an attorney experienced in those cases is going to know how to handle.
2) What are the Common Mistakes To Avoid After a Truck Accident?
Some of the most common mistakes that individuals make when they have a truck accident case in Orlando, Florida, is not getting an attorney that is experienced in that type of law. Many attorneys in the personal injury field practice many types of injury cases such as auto accidents or slip and falls, or things of that nature, but trucking accidents – ones that involve commercial motor vehicles – those are a different animal, and people need to hire someone who is experienced in that field.
When you’re interviewing an attorney, make sure that you ask them, “Have you had any of these cases? Have you litigated any of these cases?” Those are going to be critical for the long-term viability of your case and the compensation that you might get. Sometimes we have attorneys that will just get these cases, may not have handled these cases, but since they’ve done car accidents before they’ll take it on. Maybe they’ll get a decent settlement or resolution for the client, but if you need an attorney to get you the top dollar for your commercial motor vehicle case, then you need to meet with an attorney and hire an attorney that has handled these types of cases personally. That is one of the most important things.
Also, if you’re involved in the accident, try to take some documentation yourself. Take photographs. Take pictures. Take videos. Once that accident day is gone, then some of those items might be lost forever. You can help yourself by, one, getting an attorney that’s experienced in this type of law and, two, making sure you document the scene of the accident as best you can.
3) How Do I Determine the Case Value of my Truck Accident?
One of the most important ways that we can determine the value in a trucking accident here in Florida is making sure that you are prepared. Once you are involved in a trucking accident in Orlando, Florida, the most important thing you need to do is hire an attorney that is experienced in handling those types of cases. The reason why we say that is because these attorneys, an attorney that is knowledgeable in those areas, they’re going to best prepare your case for the ultimate resolution, and to be able to get you the best compensation, and the compensation that you deserve in these types of cases.
Now, in particular, your compensation and the value of your case is going to be dependent on several things. First and foremost, it’s going to depend on the actual injuries, it’s going to depend on your medical treatment, and it’s going to depend also on the evidence that’s gathered, the ability to gather all this evidence and put it together in a cohesive unit, that way we can show the jury, we can show the insurance company, hey, this is what you’ve lost. This is what you need to be compensated. Aside from the medical expenses and the injuries, we also have what’s called pain and suffering. You can be compensated for pain and suffering. You can be compensated for loss of enjoyment of life. Also, you can be compensated for lost wages.
All of these things are put together so that we can determine the value of your case. Again, the most important thing is to make sure that you hire an attorney that is knowledgeable with trucking cases because they know exactly where to look, how to gather that evidence and to put it all together to benefit you the most.
4) How Long is it Going to Take to Resolve my Truck Accident Case?
The length of time it takes to resolve a truck accident case in Orlando, Florida, depends on the unique facts and circumstances of each case. In our experience, we have cases that can be resolved quickly, in a matter of months or less than a year, but we also have cases that can drag on for at least a year or more. It really depends on the unique facts and circumstances of the actual accident or crash and also the individual insurance company or trucking company that is involved in the crash. You have some smaller trucking companies that have little or no insurance, and those cases may be resolved quicker, as opposed to trucking cases where the trucking company has large amounts of insurance and is a big company. Oftentimes, those cases will be fought tooth and nail and they can drag on for an extended period of time.
The most important thing to know and the best way to get an answer to that is to interview and hire an attorney that is familiar with trucking accident cases, in particular here in Orlando, Florida. Any other region might be dependent on the particular facts and circumstances of the court systems there, but here in Orlando, Florida, we have the experience to handle those types of cases.
5) Should I Take the Initial Offer From the Insurance Company After a Truck Accident?
The answer to that is no. In our experience, unless they’re offering full policy limits – which they rarely do – then it is never a good idea to accept the initial offer from the insurance company. There are many reasons to that.
One, even if they do offer the insurance limits, there could be other sources of liability. There could be other insurance sources. If you resolve your claim, you could be signing away your rights to getting that other compensation. Also, if it’s a larger insurance policy and they have not tendered their policy limits, accepting the lesser amount could bar you in the future from getting anymore for your claim. Usually, for the most part, at the beginning of a claim, if an insurance company or the attorney offers you an amount to settle the case, it’s never a good idea to accept that, only in the rarest of circumstances where you do have them offering you the policy limits and there’s no other way to get any other compensation in the case.
You really need to be careful of that. If any time you’re in a commercial motor vehicle accident here in Orlando, Florida, make sure you contact an attorney. Sometimes, the insurance representatives or an attorney for the company will reach out to you that same day or the day after the accident, and you may not have an attorney by then. We would, again, always recommend, one, getting an attorney that’s knowledgeable in these types of cases and, two, don’t accept any initial offer without first consulting your attorney in these types of cases. Many times, these insurance companies are obviously trying to protect their claim, they’re trying to protect their clients, and they’re not out there to help you.
6) Is it a Good Idea to Talk to the Insurance Company?
Our simple response was, no, that’s not a good idea.
The reason why is because any representative from the insurance company or an attorney that’s representing the trucking company, they’re trained in special ways to be able to gather evidence and statements from you that they will use, in turn, to fight your case or to deny your claim. We’ve seen this many times in the past, and we let our client know that unless you speak to us or you have an attorney on the phone with you when you’re being interviewed by the insurance company or an attorney, it’s never a good idea to speak to them on your own. Many times these tactics are used, and the client is unaware, and they give away information that, again, will be used against them and could affect their case in the future.
7) What are the Differences Between Truck Accident and Car Accident Cases?
First and foremost, trucking cases are different because they’re governed by federal regulations. Any trucking or commercial motor vehicle has to follow certain federal regulations, which could have an effect on the case in the sense that you need to find an attorney who’s familiar with these federal regulations. We have to look into whether these federal regulations were complied with. We have to make sure that the driver of the commercial motor vehicle was trained properly. There are many different things that go into a commercial motor vehicle case, as opposed to a regular auto case.
Auto cases don’t involve the proper training of a driver, for example; that’s just everyday drivers who drive a motor vehicle. Commercial motor vehicle drivers have to get a special license, and we have to make sure they’re in compliance with that. Commercial motor vehicles deal with heavy equipment. That equipment needs to be maintained properly; it needs to be updated as often as possible. Trucking accident cases also often deal with severe injuries and greater property damage than regular cases. Many times you’ll see a large semi-truck or a truck versus an automobile. Most of the times, the commercial motor vehicle truck is going to win and you’re going to have substantial injury or property damage.
You need to make sure that whatever attorney you hire is familiar with dealing with those types of things, with dealing with the federal regulations, with dealing with accidents that involve serious injuries and serious property damage, as well as someone who’s familiar with dealing with all the other training issues or the additional issues that come along with commercial motor vehicle cases.
8) What Should I Do if I was Injured in a Commercial Truck Accident?
The first step you need to take after being injured in a commercial motor vehicle accident is to make sure you contact the authorities, if you’re able to. Also, contact your loved ones. Make sure you let them know that you’re okay. The most critical thing, in terms of your case, is to please contact an attorney that is experienced in these types of case.
One of the most important things in these types of cases and a key that’s critical to the resolution of your case and to make sure you get the most compensation for this type of accident is to make sure that you hire that attorney that is knowledgeable in these types of cases. The reason why we say that is because the attorneys that have this kind of knowledge know that these cases are built with evidence. One of the most important things to do is to get someone involved in your case right away. They can get a team of experts out to the scene of the accident. They can document everything. They can preserve this evidence because once that day is gone, that scene is gone forever and that could affect your case in the future.
The most important thing, again, really is to get someone involved who knows how to handle these cases, and make sure that you preserve the evidence. Make sure that you document everything, that way you can get the compensation that you deserve.
Have you suffered a serious injury during a truck accident in Florida due to someone else’s negligence and carelessness and have questions? After reading these 8 frequently asked truck accident questions, contact our experienced Orlando truck accident lawyers today for a free consultation and case evaluation.
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