As a general rule in civil lawsuits, employers are responsible for the actions of their employees who are actively working.
Nashville, TN – When a driver causes an accident, they will usually pay out losses to others involved through their own insurance coverage. However, when commercial vehicles such as semi trucks, tankers, or buses cause an accident, there are some different rules that govern these situations. This is because many individuals and businesses are often involved in the operation and maintenance of the vehicle, and there are rules in personal injury cases that cause certain parties aside from the driver to be liable for deviations from the proper standard of care.
The individual driver
It is possible that a commercial driver can be named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit. In cases where the driver is not employed by any company and they have their own insurance, it is likely that their insurance company will have to cover the losses for any accident that they cause. Commercial drivers who work as independent contractors are required to carry their own separate coverage, and this policy is capable of covering fairly large amounts as most other policies on commercial vehicles.
The trucker’s employer
As a general rule in civil lawsuits, employers are responsible for the actions of their employees who are actively working. This means that trucking companies take on significant risk by having many drivers on the road at once, as they will have to pay for any damage that they cause, and they need special insurance that is capable of covering accidents that can result in hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars worth of damage. There are Nashville truck accident lawyers who have significant experience in all aspects of bringing lawsuits against companies that own and operate fleets of commercial vehicles.
Vehicle and part manufacturers
Some motor vehicle collisions are caused by defects in the design or manufacture of the vehicle. In these cases, there are products liability principles that come into play, and the company that made a truck or certain parts can be named as a defendant in a lawsuit rather than the driver or their employer. One of the reasons that recalls are common in the auto industry is that vehicle manufacturers attempt to limit their liability for having multiple lawsuits filed against them based on a known problem with a vehicle’s design. Because products liability is a distinct area of tort law, victims should contact Nashville accident lawyers who have prior success in this field of practice.
Getting additional advice about truck accident issues
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