Los Angeles Truck Accident Attorneys

Helping Truck Accident Victims in Los Angeles, California

Commercial truck accidents remain a major problem in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, as well as throughout the state of California. According to the most recent traffic safety report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 275 fatal large truck accidents in California in the year 2014 alone. Tens of thousands more tractor trailer accidents led to serious, often life-altering, injuries. These victims deserve justice. If you were injured in a truck accident, you deserve justice, too. To get immediate professional legal help, please reach out to an experienced Los Angeles truck accident lawyer today. Your lawyer will be able to review your claim in detail and determine precisely what you need to do next.

Four Step Checklist to Protect Your Rights

Far too many accident victims are denied full and fair compensation because they make mistakes in the days and weeks immediately following their crash. You can avoid these mistakes. To protect yourself, please always remember to keep the following four things in mind:

1. You need to seek professional medical assistance as soon as possible. Without supporting medical documentation, you will not be able to bring a legal claim.
2. You need to take proactive steps to secure evidence. Successful injury claims rely on supporting evidence, and some types of evidence begin to disappear very rapidly. Remember to take pictures of the accident scene and pictures of your injuries, and to get contact information for any witnesses.
3. Never admit fault. Put simply, you are in no position to judge whether or not you were actually at fault for the accident. That is the job of a legal professional. Do not discuss fault with the other driver, the responding police officer or the insurance company.
4. Get yourself legal help. You need to get your case in front of an experienced truck accident attorney immediately following the crash. Do not start talking to the insurance company until after you hire an attorney.

Legal Time Limit to Take Action

California has a strict two-year statute of limitations for all truck accident injury claims. This means that you have two years from the date of your accident to initiate your legal claim. Your claim does not have to be resolved in two years, indeed, in many complicated cases, it will not be. Still, taking action within the time limit is critically important. If you fail to bring your case in time, you may lose out on your legal rights. There is a minor exception for injuries that were not reasonably apparent at the date of the accident. In those cases, you will have one year from the date at which you actually discovered, or should have reasonably discovered, the injury. Still, this is a limited exception. It does not apply to most cases. The bottom line is simple: Do not mess around with the statute of limitations. The last thing you want is to risk losing is your legal right to file a claim due to a technicality.

Federal Regulations and Commercial Truck Crashes

Personal injury claims, including truck accident claims, are governed by state law. That means that liability for Los Angeles truck accidents must be established under California’s negligence standard. That being said, federal regulations still play a crucial role in truck accident cases. Commercial trucking operations are regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The FMCSA produces many safety rules, from vehicle inspection requirements to truck driver qualification standards, that must always be followed. Sadly, the big companies too often try to cut corners on safety just to save themselves a little bit of money. This puts the health, safety and well-being of everyone else on the road at serious risk. You need to work with a Southern California truck accident attorney who fully understands the how federal regulations could impact your injury claim.

Who is Liable for an 18-Wheeler Wreck?

In California, many different parties may potentially be at-fault for your 18-wheeler accident. In fact, in some cases, multiple parties might even split the liability. Our attorneys always comprehensively investigate every case in order to determine exactly who can be held responsible. Parties that are frequently held liable include:

• The semi-truck driver;
• The driver’s employer;
• The company that owns or leases the truck; and
• Any manufacturer involved in the operation.

Compensation for Injured Victims

In Los Angeles, those who have been injured in tractor trailer accidents are entitled to compensation that accounts for the full value of their losses. In other words, the value of your truck accident claim will depend entirely on the unique circumstances of your individual case. Some common types of compensation that we can help you pursue include:

• Vehicle damage;
• Medical bills, including emergency room fees;
• Expenses associated with rehabilitation;
• Required mental health treatment, possibly including therapy;
• Short-term or long-term disability;
• Pain and suffering;
• Disfigurement;
• Loss of limb; and
• Loss of lifestyle enjoyment.

How Our Truck Accident Attorneys Can Help

California tractor trailer accident injury claims are extremely complex. You need to work with an attorney who has considerable experience handling these type of cases. Unfortunately, the big trucking firms and their insurance companies will do anything they can do limit your recovery or deny your claim altogether. We will do everything in our power to hold these parties accountable. This includes:

Documenting all evidence related to your accident, including gathering photographs, police reports, medical records and reports from crash scene recreation analysts;

Issuing subpoenas to obtain additional evidence and records held by the trucking company, including black box electronic data, driver safety history information and vehicle maintenance records; and

Handling all negotiations with the insurance company to ensure that you get a full and fair settlement offer.

Contact Our Team Today

To talk to an experienced Los Angeles truck accident attorney today, please call us at (313) 438-4357. Initial legal consultations are always free of charge. Further, we represent all truck accident victims using contingency fee agreements. We do not charge clients upfront fees, and we will not collect our legal fee at all unless we help you recover compensation for your injuries.