Don’t try to negotiate with the insurance company on your own and don’t ever accept their initial offer.
The trucking industry is vital to Oklahoma’s economy, but this comes at a high cost. Each year there are 2,000 truck accidents on average, causing approximately 115 deaths and leaving over 1,300 people with serious or life-changing injuries. If you or a loved one were recently involved in such a crash, you need to look up the best truck accident lawyers in Oklahoma. A wrongful death or a serious injury claim is not something that you can deal with on your own.
Don’t try to negotiate with the insurance company on your own and don’t ever accept their initial offer, no matter how much you might need that money. There are two very important reasons why you shouldn’t settle early.
First of all, you don’t know how well you’ll recover from your injuries. The doctors might be optimistic and tell you that you’ll be up and about in no time. You don’t know what complications may appear or when you’ll be able to go back to work. It’s better to be cautious and wait until you know what your medical bills and lost wages add up to.
The second reason you shouldn’t hurry into a settlement is that you want to talk to some experienced Oklahoma City truck accident lawyers and have them conduct their own investigation into the crash.
Your lawyers will start by investigating the truck driver. They’ll want to know whether he had a valid commercial driver’s license and had received proper training. Also, they’ll check the guy’s schedule. The electronic monitoring device on the truck contains information on the number of hours the driver had been on the road prior to the accident. According to federal road safety regulations, a commercial driver cannot work for more than 11 hours in one shift, which must be followed by a 10-hour break. The company may be held accountable if the driver was forced to work more than a regular shift or even if they failed to monitor his activity. Driver fatigue is one of the most common causes of truck accidents. Also, if the driver was on any kind of drugs, legal or illegal, the company could be blamed for not being aware of that.
Another part of your accident lawyers’ investigation concerns the state of the truck. If the accident was caused by a defective tire or a mechanical problem, once again it’s the trucking company that should be held accountable.
Many truck accidents are caused by shifting or unbalanced loads. The shipping company or whoever was responsible for loading the truck should pay for the consequences of their negligence.
Once your truck accident lawyers determine the true cause of the crash they will advise you who you should file a claim against. If the truck driver was solely to blame for what happened, their insurance only carries limited liability, but if you go after the trucking company or the manufacturer of a defective part you have a better chance of recovering all the damages you are entitled to.
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