Truck Accident Lawyers in Raleigh

Experienced Injury Attorneys

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Having a Truck Accident Attorney for Any Situation

Miller Law Group is a truck accident law firm in Raleigh, North Carolina that’s ready to help with your accident claim and recovery. Whether the incident was caused by an overloaded truck, unsafe driving, or a fatigued semi-truck driver, we’ll fight to prove liability and get you the compensation you deserve.

Trucking Accident Facts in North Carolina

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Truck accidents in 2021
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Semi-trailer accidents in 2021

Having a truck accident attorney by your side when you need one the most is important. According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, there were 3,567 truck and trailer accidents in 2021, involving 772 injuries. Semi-trailer accidents amounted to 4,920 and caused 1,142 injuries. Large vehicles, such as commercial, dump, garbage, and logging trucks, may cause multiple vehicle pileups when they flip, jackknife, and lose cargo in the roadway. These trucks are particularly hazardous on rural roads. A truck accident can happen at any point on the road. Therefore, it’s important to know what to do and whom to call when you experience an injury from a truck accident.

When you’re injured in a truck accident in North Carolina, you want to know who can represent you when it comes time to face those responsible. A truck accident lawyer from Miller Law Group in Raleigh, NC will know how to pursue a claim so that you can get the compensation you deserve. Unfortunately, many trucking companies prioritize saving money and moving cargo as quickly as possible, overlooking safety concerns. When safety is placed on the back burner, catastrophic and fatal accidents can occur. Miller Law Group, PLLC, in Raleigh, North Carolina, is a law firm dedicated to helping victims of tractor-trailer truck accidents recover their losses.

Hear from Stacy Miller, a truck accident injury attorney at Miller Law Group in Raleigh. This law firm fights to get accident victims compensated.

Why Truck Accidents Are Dangerous

A fully loaded 18-wheeler can weigh up to 40 tons. A typical passenger vehicle, however, weighs only two tons. Considering this significant difference in size and weight, it is crucial that commercial truck drivers make safety their top priority. Collisions involving 18-wheelers are particularly dangerous and often lead to severe injuries or fatalities. Eighteen-wheeler accidents are hazardous due to their load capacity, size, the time required to brake, and significant blind spots.

Up to 176 feet in length, 18-wheeler vehicles are nearly 10 times longer than the typical car. Eighteen-wheeler trucks are so large, heavy, and long that stopping them generally takes around 40% longer than stopping a regular automobile. In addition, 18-wheelers, unlike many other types of vehicles, have significant blind spots. Large blind spots may easily contribute to an accident if the truck driver cannot spot a nearby vehicle.

Why You Need a Truck Accident Attorney

If you were involved in a truck accident, dealing with insurance companies and truck company representatives can be stressful while you try to heal. Balancing hospital visits and bills and trying to get your life back together can be difficult. That’s why it is essential to hire a truck accident attorney to help you navigate the legal system and receive the compensation you deserve.

Importance of a Tractor-Trailer Truck Accident Lawyer

Truck companies may try to avoid liability for an accident. Our truck accident attorneys in Raleigh have experience dealing with North Carolina insurance companies and complex accidents to help gather evidence and build a case against the trucking company or faulty party to ensure that they are held responsible for their actions.

The Benefits of Hiring a Truck Accident Attorney

Attorneys at a truck accident law firm in Raleigh know North Carolina, including roadway rules, semi policies, and case law, to get the best outcome for anyone injured in an accident with a commercial vehicle. When you have lawyers on your side who specialize in trucking accidents, you can benefit in the following ways:

After an accident, an insurance company will gather information about the crash and decide who is at fault and how much the other party should be compensated. They then send you a letter offering you a compensation amount they deem appropriate. However, before you sign that letter, you need to know your rights to file a lawsuit and fully understand the extent of your injuries to get the proper compensation you deserve. A truck accident attorney can help you achieve this.

Truck accident cases can be very complicated, involving multiple parties and complex legal processes. If you find more than one party responsible for the crash, you may need to fight each of them simultaneously to get rightful compensation. A truck accident injury attorney in Raleigh, North Carolina can help you navigate these complicated procedures and ensure all your rights are protected throughout the process. They can help you make informed decisions and understand the specific terminology involved in the case.

Your chances of getting severely injured in a truck accident are much higher due to the size of commercial vehicles and the force of impact. These crashes can cause significant injuries that may make fighting on your behalf impossible. Rather than agreeing to low compensation, consult with a truck accident law firm in Raleigh to learn your options. If you decide to sue the trucking company that employed the driver who hit your car, you will need someone knowledgeable to take on such a large company. Hiring an accident lawyer can help level the playing field when taking on big companies that have money to spend on legal representation. You’re less likely to feel overwhelmed with a truck accident lawyer on your side.

Truck Accident Attorneys Know NC State Laws

Not everyone knows North Carolina laws for truck driver hours of service and other state regulations, but an experienced Raleigh truck accident attorney will. This information can help prove your liability in your case and help you recover from the injuries the other driver’s actions caused.

What Do Commercial Vehicle Laws Say?

North Carolina law requires that every driver use reasonable care when operating commercial trucks and tractor-trailers. A driver who fails to use proper care is considered negligent. When a driver’s negligence causes a crash and a resulting injury or death, the negligent party is obligated to compensate an injured person for their losses.

What To Do After a Truck Accident

The moments after a collision with a large truck can be hectic and scary. You may be injured or not thinking clearly. Our truck accident law firm in Raleigh has seen insurance companies take advantage of victims’ confusion in these situations. Protect yourself by contacting a truck accident lawyer right away.

Contacting A Truck Accident Attorney Helps

If you’ve experienced a truck accident in the Raleigh, NC area, figuring out your next steps can be stressful and overwhelming without legal help. Dealing with an insurance company alone can be a hassle when you need to focus on healing, so hiring a truck accident attorney can save you a headache in the long run. It is safe to assume the trucking company is already collecting evidence to refute your story. A law firm can investigate the crash on your behalf and help protect your claim.

If You Have Experienced a Truck Accident, Follow These Steps:

The most essential thing you can do after an accident is to ensure that you receive proper medical care. You should seek medical attention immediately, even if you don’t think you have been injured. Often, the pain caused by an accident surfaces only after the adrenaline of the event has passed, sometimes taking days to materialize.

While still at the accident site, collect as much information as possible from the other driver, the trucking company, and any witnesses. Take photos of the scene and the vehicles involved in the crash.

At Miller Law Group, PLLC, our team of truck accident injury attorneys in Raleigh will walk you through the legal process and treat your case attentively and urgently. It is critical to consult with an attorney early in the process due to North Carolina’s statute of limitations. This is essentially a time limit for an injured party to file a lawsuit. A personal injury claim must be filed within three years of the date of the injury, and a wrongful death claim must be filed within two years of death.

It is essential to write a description of the accident while the events are still fresh in your mind. As time passes, your memory may fade, making it more challenging to recount details. Also record injuries you suffered even if they seemed minor, and any other details you observed following the event.

Keep all bills and records from any medical treatment, car repairs, and lost wages if you have been out of work.

As your truck accident lawyer, we’ll advise you to avoid talking to others about the particulars of your accident, especially through email or social media. The trucking company or insurer of the commercial driver may use these statements against you and interfere with your chances of just compensation.

Don’t sign anything without first talking to a truck accident attorney in Raleigh or a nearby area. Trucking companies will often pressure an injured party into accepting a much lower settlement offer than they deserve. Our law firm can review your claim and the offer to determine whether we can improve the outcome of your case.

Truck accident involving a car on the highway

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Truck accident aerial view

Overcoming Challenges in Truck Accidents

In addition to the complexities of your injury recovery process and healing over time, commercial truck accidents are far more complex than other motor vehicle accidents. As a result, determining who is liable for the accident can be challenging. If you’ve been involved in a collision with a commercial vehicle or truck in Raleigh or a surrounding town in North Carolina, seek help from Miller Law Group.

Sorting Through The Aftermath

The driver, the truck’s owner, the cargo loaders, the truck manufacturer, and the dispatching company may share responsibility. For this reason, it may be prudent to hire a truck accident attorney to sort out how to file claims against multiple guilty parties.

Truck Accident Claims Are Complex

From the laws governing truck drivers to the realities of insurance policies, bringing a claim for compensation after a truck accident injury is almost always complex. But that doesn’t mean that achieving real justice is impossible. Partnering with a seasoned truck accident law firm makes sure all the elements of your claim are carefully considered and investigated so you receive fair compensation.

What Makes Truck Claims Different?

Truck accidents can cause severe injuries and involve complex insurance issues and multiple claims. However, an experienced truck accident attorney can make a difference in sorting through the complexities.

Challenges of Truck Accidents

Several factors at play in truck accidents simply wouldn’t arise in other auto accidents. These distinctions are what make filing claims and getting compensation for injuries, property damage, and other losses challenging. The main reasons truck accidents are challenging include:

Truck accidents can cause more severe injuries than other auto accidents, from spinal cord injuries and internal organ damage to paralysis and more. It is not uncommon for survivors to deal with the effects of a truck accident for decades. The stakes in a truck accident insurance claim can therefore be high. Consequently, it’s important to work with a truck accident attorney who understands these complexities and is comfortable handling disputes that involve severe injury, complicated facts, and medical evidence.

Vehicles of such tremendous size can cause catastrophic damage when handled negligently. For that reason, the federal government enacts special regulations that govern the operation of semi-trailer trucks and other large vehicles. Truck drivers are also subject to special licensing requirements and other various rules and regulations. Therefore, choosing an attorney who understands truck accident laws in North Carolina is essential to navigating these complex situations.

Semi-trailer trucks and other large trucks are complicated vehicles. The complex designs mean more opportunities for something to go wrong with the mechanics. Tractor-trailer accidents often involve a problem in the mechanics that causes engine failure, connection failure, or another system issue. Mechanical problems may be the fault of the truck manufacturer or the trucking company. This would make either of those parties negligent for vehicle maintenance instead of the driver. Our team of trucking accident injury attorneys in Raleigh has seen crashes resulting from mechanical failures and knows how to gather evidence to prove responsibility.

Aside from liability for negligent maintenance, truck operators may also be liable for negligent hiring, training, supervision, or other forms of carelessness. Truck accidents in North Carolina can often involve instances of driver negligence that may not be readily apparent at the scene, including driver fatigue, hours of service violations, driving under the influence, and distracted or aggressive driving. These instances may go undocumented in initial reports and can be difficult to prove after the fact.

Experienced Attorneys Handle Multi-Claim Cases

Truck accidents are more likely than others to involve multiple parties, more than one of which may be a large corporate entity. For example, a truck accident claim might involve the truck driver, the driver’s employer, the company that owns the truck, the truck’s manufacturer, companies that manufacture parts and accessories for the truck, the insurance companies for these, and other corporate parties, plus your insurance provider. Multiple claims can be confusing and the time and resources to investigate these can add up without a truck accident attorney. For this reason, it is important to work with a firm like Miller Law Group in Raleigh that has a record of successfully resolving truck accident claims involving large and resourceful corporate entities and major insurance companies.

Who Is at Fault for a Truck Accident?

Truckers and trucking companies will routinely ignore special training and safety regulations for when and how commercial truck drivers may drive in order to meet delivery dates. Sometimes, this leads to reckless or dangerous driving by truckers piloting 10-ton vehicles. This in turn can lead to serious danger on the road. Additionally, trucking companies may fail to maintain the brakes, tires, lights, and other equipment, which can put their own drivers and everyone around them at risk of an accident. Large trucks can be dangerous when not cared for or operated safely. Shortcuts in trucking companies and unsafe driving habits can lead to severe injury or even death.

Parties That May Be Liable in a Truck Accident

Anyone involved in a vehicle crash with a truck must examine all elements of the accident to decide which party or parties were responsible. Corporations will go to great lengths to escape responsibility, and your claim may not hold up if you do not have the responsible party correctly identified. That’s where a truck accident law firm in Raleigh can prove to be an invaluable resource for identifying liable parties, which might include:

The truck driver may have violated “hours of service” regulations, ignored North Carolina traffic laws, or driven while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. This is negligent driving, and if it results in a crash, the driver can be found liable for the incident.

In certain situations, a trucking company may be held liable in a truck accident, such as when the carrier pressures a driver to violate “hours of service” laws. Trucking companies will often take dangerous shortcuts by pressuring drivers to meet deadlines.

An accident resulting from a faulty truck part or system failure can cause liability to fall on the maker of the vehicle, or the manufacturer of certain parts of the truck as well. When a Miller Law truck accident injury attorney discovers a faulty part caused the crash, we pursue any related parties to resolve the claim.

Ignoring maintenance on large trucks can cause severe issues with the vehicle itself. If a maintenance company is found to have acted negligently and overlooked regular upkeep on the truck, they may be held liable in the accident.

If the cargo itself contributed to the accident, the owner of the cargo may be held responsible for the crash. For example, flammable cargo that was improperly secured on a truck could be cargo that may cause a more significant truck accident.

Governments or contractors responsible for highway design and maintenance could also be found liable. If the design or condition of the roadway contributed to the truck accident, the local, state, or federal government or its contractors may be determined to be at fault.

Raleigh truck accident lawyers at Miller Law understand how devastating collisions involving commercial trucks can be and are experienced at investigating these crashes to identify the responsible parties.

Know Before You Accept a Settlement

What Is My Truck Accident Claim Worth?

Learning what your truck accident claim might be worth before settling with an insurance company is important. Once you accept a settlement, you generally cannot reopen your case or seek a greater amount. You must be sure that the amount offered to you by an insurance company fairly and adequately compensates you for your injury or losses. The best way to handle this is through a truck accident attorney.

Although there is no average truck accident settlement amount for claims in Raleigh, North Carolina, a truck accident attorney can personally evaluate your case. These factors may include the severity of your injuries and property damage, the extent of other losses you suffered, the number of defendants, and insurance coverage available. Our experienced lawyers have achieved life-changing results in commercial truck accident cases in the past through our legal strategies and negotiation tactics.

Other Personal Injury Practice Areas To Explore

Car Accidents

Nursing Home Negligence

Bicycle Accidents

Pedestrian Accidents

Dog Bite Injury

Premises Liability

Body, Brain, and Mental

Sexual Harassment

Trucking Company Responsibilities

Trucking companies have certain responsibilities when it comes to hiring, maintenance, and training procedures. A trucking company can be found liable for someone’s injuries under specific circumstances if its trucker causes a collision.

How a Trucking Company Can Uphold Safety

A trucking company can meet North Carolina’s safety standards by keeping all vehicle maintenance up to date, ensuring the hiring of qualified professionals, evaluating the employees regularly to determine eligibility for continued employment, and providing an amount of insurance coverage before putting trucks on the road. These responsibilities are essential to uphold the safety of truck drivers and others on the road.

Hear from a North Carolina personal injury law firm about their team’s commitment to their clients.

Miller Law Group Fights for You

Our team of lawyers in Raleigh, North Carolina are experienced at investigating and pursuing truck accident claims. Our clients receive the best care from dedicated lawyers, from the first consultation until compensation is awarded.

Your Raleigh Truck Accident Attorney

Miller Law Group offers free, no-obligation initial consultations for accident victims. We have the skills, resources, and experience to take on a truck accident case to ensure you receive all compensation you deserve. Our personal injury lawyers are here to discuss your case and how we can help you hold a negligent party accountable.

At Miller Law Group, PLLC, we are guided by the principle of attaining justice for people who have been wronged or injured in a truck accident. The best way to get guidance on your specific truck accident claim is to contact a lawyer. To learn more about our services, or to schedule a free consultation, contact us today. We look forward to making you a part of our team.