Is It Worth Hiring a Truck Accident Lawyer?

In a 2020 report from the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, there were 11,344 heavy truck accidents across the state. These accidents resulted in 2,636 injuries to drivers and passengers of motor vehicles. Injuries from truck accidents frequently have devastating outcomes for accident victims. It could take months or years to heal, or injuries may cause permanent disability. Unfortunately, emotional suffering following an accident can be equally traumatic. You may find the psychological effects of the crash to be an overwhelming challenge in everyday life.

It is essential to have a truck accident lawyer to protect your rights and make sure you receive fair compensation. Accidents involving commercial motor vehicles are complex cases because of the various parties who could play a role in your injuries. Mike Morse Law Firm is a team of experienced Michigan attorneys who handle complicated personal injury cases. These are reasons it is worth hiring one of our attorneys when a truck crash causes you harm.

Provides Case Consultation

Since multiple actors are involved in the trucking industry network, insurance companies understand that other parties could share responsibility in a truck accident. You can bet that insurers will try to shift the blame and toss in every argument possible to either avoid paying a settlement or reduce the payout considerably. This is often a frustrating and time-consuming ordeal, especially if you are not working and medical expenses are piling up.

An attorney will review your case, consult with you about the merits, and tell you whether or how to proceed. An initial appointment can relieve a lot of pressure when an attorney takes your case. Your lawyer will handle the many details that go into a personal injury claim, allowing you to concentrate on the healing process.

If you end up in court, this is another essential reason to have a Michigan attorney by your side. In a personal injury lawsuit, the burden of proof is with the plaintiff to show that another party is the direct cause of injury. These are the four criteria that must be met before a suit is filed:

• Duty: Showing the defendant owed you a legal duty.
• Breach: Proving the defendant breached that legal duty.
• Causation: Proving the defendant was the direct cause of your injuries.
• Damages: Showing that you were injured (incurred damages) because the defendant breached a legal duty.

An experienced attorney knows how to handle the complications related to your claim and aggressively works to get you full compensation.

Assesses How a Truck Driver’s Liability Affects Your Claim

Liability is a significant issue when you are in a truck accident. In many cases, negligent actions of truck drivers cause crashes. As mandated by the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration, truckers have a duty to the public to always operate CMVs safely. The scope of these responsibilities is laid out clearly in the FMCSAs regulations. Truckers must also observe local and state traffic safety laws. Your attorney explores whether violations of federal regulations or other laws led to your injuries.

Determining who’s liable in a truck accident is critical to settling a claim for damages and reaching an award amount. It is never a good idea to handle these legal issues on your own. Insurance companies will try to wear you down. If you take a lowball offer, this could be a devastating decision if you have lifelong physical trauma and pain and suffering from the outcome of the accident. You need an attorney to determine how trucker liability factors support your claim and use that information to your legal advantage.

Determines Whether There Is Shared Liability

The trucking industry has many parties that work together to accomplish service delivery. These are some of the routine participants in trucking activities:

• Truck drivers
• Trucking companies
• Shipping companies
• Truck manufacturers
• Maintenance personnel

When a trucking accident occurs, it can be a convoluted process trying to determine who was responsible for your injuries. A tired truck driver could have violated safety protocols, or a trucking company may have pushed them to drive longer than scheduled to complete a delivery. If a semi rolls over, it could be a driver error, an improperly loaded truck, or a maintenance issue. There could be any number of mitigating circumstances that need to be considered. An attorney involves experts when situations are unclear to ensure that parties are held accountable and that your rights are protected.

Works To Prove Negligence in a Personal Injury Lawsuit

Almost 96% of personal injury claims settle before a case makes it to court. However, if you pursue damages in a personal injury lawsuit, an important Michigan law (600.2959) could affect your chances for a recovery. The modified comparative negligence law is designed to allow plaintiffs the opportunity to seek damages even when they are partially responsible for their injuries in an accident.

However, there is an important stipulation to the law: the 51% rule. If you are found to be more than 51% at fault for your injuries in an accident, you cannot recover any damages. A plaintiff that assumes more fault than the other party to the accident lacks the legal grounds necessary to receive compensation. Furthermore, your damages are reduced by your percentage of responsibility in the accident. With modified comparative negligence, each party is assigned a percentage of fault, so your compensatory damages are determined by this percentage.

Your attorney works to reduce the amount of fault that is assigned to you. This requires gathering facts to support your case and prove the other party’s negligence. We want to see you get the most compensation possible, so it’s essential to have an experienced attorney throughout your legal journey.

Helps Determine Damages You Can Recover

Michigan law gives you the right to seek damages due to another party’s negligence that causes you injury. An attorney will calculate your losses using two categories that most damages fall under: economic and non-economic.

Economic (Monetary) Damages

These are the main types of economic losses from a truck accident:

• Medical expenses (past and future)
• Lost wages (past and future)
• Lost earning capacity (usually related to permanent disability)
• Rehabilitation services (physical and occupational)
• Property damage (loss of vehicle or property)
• Out-of-pocket costs (expenses you paid because of an accident)

Knowing the potential future losses you may incur before reaching a damage settlement is imperative. An attorney knows how to determine the totality of your losses, so you get fair compensation.

Non-Economic (Non-Monetary) Damages

These are the primary non-economic losses that cover quality of life concerns:

• Pain and suffering (physical and mental trauma)
• Disfigurement (scars, burns, changes of appearance, lost limbs)
• Loss of enjoyment of life

In Michigan, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury suit is three years after the time of injury.

Hire a Truck Accident Lawyer To Represent You

Mike Morse Law Firm is the team you need to fight for you after a truck accident. We work to get the compensation you deserve so that you can reclaim your life. A truck accident can take years of healing time or be permanently debilitating. You need an attorney who listens to you and protects your rights.

We’re here to help. This is our promise to you: no fees until we win. We can let you know within two hours if you have a case. Please fill out this quick contact form to get started.