The Mississippi Gulfport is an important economic artery of interstate highways such as Interstate 10 and U.S. Highway are crisscrossed by commercial shipping, day in and day out. These are the routes needed for regional trade, but the cohabitation of huge freight locomotives and normal passenger cars is the perfect recipe for devastating accidents. If a fully loaded commercial vehicle which can legally be 80,000 pounds and collides with a standard passenger car, physics dictates that the majority of the physical and financial damage will be done to the passengers of the smaller car.
When dealing with a commercial truck accident, the approach to legal strategies is quite different than in a typical auto accident. A multi layered and complex set of federal safety laws, multi jurisdictional corporate structures and highly aggressive quick thinking defense teams make trucking litigation a tangled web. Having a devoted and experienced Gulfport Motorcycle Accident Lawyer with a thorough grasp of the complex nature of trucking regulations can make all the difference in the world for those in southern Mississippi who have been injured in an accident with a commercial truck.
The Complexity of Multi-Defendant Liability in Commercial Claims
Typically, in a passenger vehicle accident case, one would expect the legal investigation to be limited to the conduct of the at fault party, the driver of the passenger car involved in the crash. Commercial vehicle accidents, however, can involve a myriad of potential defendants, quite different from the individual case. A serious personal injury attorney will perform a comprehensive investigation to locate and seek out multiple corporations in accordance with the different legal theories.
First, the liability is typically extended to the Trucking Carrier because it is the employer of the driver who is responsible for the negligent acts of the driver while working. Plus, a carrier could be held liable for corporate negligence if it didn't have adequate safety measures, disregarded the hours of service regulations, or neglected to hire, train, and keep competent workers.
Second, a Freight Broker can have civil liability under the doctrine of negligent selection. A broker may be held liable for the financial repercussions if they arrange a transport contract with a shipping company that has been cited for safety violations in the past, or don't have the proper federal licensing and insurance.
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Lastly, if the accident was due to mechanical failures, Third Parties can be engaged in the case. A truck's contribution to a wreck could be strictly attributed to an independent maintenance company that improperly maintained the truck's braking assembly and/or to a third-party cargo loading business that loaded the cargo improperly, causing the truck to roll over.
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Navigating The Federal Regulatory Framework
The Federal government has a strong set of legislation that regulates commercial transportation. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has stringent regulations that interstate trucking companies are required to follow. Any wrongdoing in connection to the federal requirements constitutes the evidence to support a personal injury claim.
One of the core aspects of FMCSA regulations is to avoid driver fatigue with its Hours of Service regulations. The rules contain a specific definition of the length of driving and rest periods that a commercial operator must get in between drives. Some drivers and carriers can circumvent these restrictions and provide faster delivery times by falsifying records. An experienced lawyer will carefully review fuel receipts, toll booth logs, GPS tracking records and digital logbooks, looking to find HOS non-compliance.
In addition, there are strict federal drug and physical testing requirements that must be followed regularly and random testing requirements for commercial driver's license holders. Comprehensive driver qualification files must be kept by carriers for legal requirements. Where the investigation shows that an operator has a disqualified medical card or has been found to be guilty of safety offences elsewhere in his or her business, it is clear and powerful evidence of corporate negligence that the company accepted them and allowed them to operate commercial vehicles.
Preserving and Spoliating Digital Evidence is a Decisive Battle
The who, how and what of a commercial truck accident is often determined in the days after the accident. Trucking companies and their insurance companies send teams of defense attorneys, forensic engineers, insurance adjustors known as Go Teams to the scene, often within hours of the truck accident, to investigate and determine the cause. They aim to manage the video, conduct witness statements and collect data to limit financial liability for the company.
An immediate reaction by the corporation will be the need to counter it with a strong defense from a plaintiff's attorney to secure and preserve the evidence. Federal law requires trucking companies to keep only a few types of records for a few months before they can lawfully destroy or overwrite.
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The Enormous Scale of Catastrophic Damages
The physical damage caused by a semi-truck crash is often extreme and, as such, it's important to perform careful forecasts in order to determine the full monetary worth of a claim. An injury claim should include all of the immediate economic losses, as well as the life changing non-economic losses of the injured party.
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A commercial truck accident can completely change the course of your life because of the physical pain, emotional shock and financial trauma you experience. Facing off with multi-million dollar shipping companies and their high-powered attorneys, when you're still recovering from an injury can be a bad deal for you. Having an advocate that understands commercial truck accidents and who is readily available will create a formidable opponent who will break apart corporate defense strategies and ensure your long-term safety.
