North Dakota Truck Accident Attorneys

North Dakota Truck Accident Attorneys

Many commercial trucks are traveling through the state of North Dakota at any given moment. When these large trucks travel alongside smaller vehicles, there is always a risk of a collision and severe injuries caused to any motorists in the passenger vehicles. The following is some brief information about truck accidents in North Dakota.

North Dakota Trucking Laws

The North Dakota Highway Patrol¹ enforces license and permit requirements for commercial motor carriers, as well as enforces basic traffic laws and federal commercial vehicle regulations.² Such laws can address the following topics and more:

• Size and weight of a tractor-trailer
• Permit and license requirements
• Hours of service for a driver
• Cargo securement
• Medical criteria
• Speeding, tailgating, and aggressive driving
• Truck inspection
• Impaired driving

Even though these regulations are all put in place to keep motorists safe, many trucking companies and truck drivers disregard such safety rules, often at the expenses of others.

Types of Truck Accidents

Violations of the above trucking laws or any other regulations can lead to extremely severe collisions. When a truck collides with a small vehicle, the damage can be great no matter what type of collision occurred. However, the following are some of the most dangerous types of trucking accidents:

• Underride or override
• Rollover trailer
• Runaway truck or trailer
• Head-on
• Jackknife

Causes of Truck Accidents

While truck accidents can occur for any number of reasons, the following are some of the most common causes of truck crashes and injuries in North Dakota:

• Driver negligence, including distracted driving, drunk driving, and violating traffic rules, among others.
• Trucking companies, for negligent hiring, failing to maintain trucks they own, or failure to properly supervise an employee.
• Truck manufacturers for selling a defective or dangerous truck part.
• Local governments for not keeping up with the state of the highways throughout North Dakota.

Not only is determining exactly what type of negligence caused your accident critical to your case but so is providing proof that they were engaging in that negligent activity. An experienced truck accident lawyer will have the resources to investigate the cause of your accident.

Truck Accident Checklist

Many truck accident must be rushed to the hospital as soon as possible. If this is true for you, never fight what paramedics want for you. If you are able to remain at the scene of the accident, however, you can do the following:

• Get names and contact numbers from all witnesses and others involved in the accident
• Take photos of the scene of the accident and any vehicles involved
• Take notes about what happened so you can later refresh your memory
• Talk to law enforcement about what happened when they arrive
• Determine whether the truck driver is insured or not
• Seek medical attention as soon as possible
• Call a truck accident lawyer to discuss your case

Why Hire an Attorney after Your Truck Accident

It is imperative to have a skilled truck accident lawyer handling your case because these cases can be complicated and adversarial. You deserve to recover for your medical bills, pain and suffering, and other losses, and an experienced truck accident attorney can help you recover financially after your truck crash.

¹https://www.nd.gov/ndhp/motor-carrier
²https://www.nd.gov/ndhp/sites/nd.gov.ndhp/files/docs/permits/Truckers_Handbook.pdf