Cowen Edwards Trial Lawyers represents truck accident victims in the Fort Lauderdale area. Our Fort Lauderdale truck accident lawyers offer free consultations to all injured victims. Contact our offices to find out what your case may be worth and how to hold careless truck drivers and their employers fully responsible for what you’ve been through.
Do I Need a Lawyer After an Accident Involving a Truck?
After an accident caused by a truck driver that involves a serious injury, you may need to defend yourself against unfair insurance tactics. If the truck driver’s employer also bears responsibility, you could also find yourself in a battle with corporate lawyers who are bent on robbing you of injury compensation.
A broken arm or neck injury could leave you in need of weeks or months of medical care. Those bills make insurance companies and lawyers for companies like Amazon or Publix nervous. They may try to shift blame in an accident to you. They may downplay how serious your injuries are, simply to be get away with offering you nothing in compensation or much less than you’ll need to recover.
Your accident lawyer fully investigates your accident and builds a strong case backed by evidence. This makes it much harder for insurance adjusters and corporate lawyers to worm their way out of accepting financial responsibility for a truck driver’s mistake. Your lawyer also takes that evidence and negotiates from a strong position to demand the maximum in truck accident settlement money on your behalf.
Truck Accident Dangers on Fort Lauderdale Roads
Drivers on busy Fort Lauderdale routes like University Drive or I-595 already know the obstacle a big rig can pose. Those giant, heavy vehicles can stick out into the lanes beside them. Drivers in big delivery vans can speed through neighborhoods, putting local residents at risk.
Semi-trucks and delivery vans can be hard to avoid as they sway across a roadway. The increased weight of a fully loaded truck will carry more force into an impact. Tractor-trailers also sit up higher, and smaller vehicles become stuck underneath in a high-speed collision.
The other hazards that semi-trucks and vans pose are caused by careless truck drivers. These drivers might be staring at a cell phone screen when a light ahead turns red. A professional driver may not look up until they’ve got too little distance to hit the brakes and bring their heavy loads to a full stop. A devastating rear-end accident could be the result. A drowsy driver may have worked too many hours and can’t stay focused enough to avoid drifting into an oncoming lane and causing a scary head-on impact.
The combination of heavy trucks and careless drivers causes collisions and leads to traumatic injuries for victims in smaller cars and SUVs. A truck accident lawyer with Cowen Edwards Trial Lawyers takes on insurance companies and corporate lawyers for shipping businesses like Walmart and FedEx to earn victims the most possible for their injuries.
Semi truck and 18-wheeler traffic is heaviest on I-95, I-595, and the roads into Port Everglades, where tractor-trailers merge, brake, and turn in tight spaces. Jackknife crashes, underride collisions, and shifting cargo loads cause some of the most serious truck accidents we see.
Florida Truck Accident Statistics
According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV), around 48,035 people were involved in accidents involving medium and large trucks, cargo vans, and farm worker vehicles in 2023.
The data shows that at least 40 people lost their lives in Florida accidents involving trucks, vans, and farm vehicles. That on top of hundreds of people who suffered minor injuries, serious injuries, and life-threatening injuries.
Who Is Responsible After a Fort Lauderdale Truck Accident?
Truck accident liability can be very different than in an accident that involves two cars. In a truck crash, a truck driver will have commercial truck insurance for victims to draw from. But in some cases, there may be other parties that would be legally responsible for what happened and for the victim’s recovery costs.
These are just a few other parties that may have to pay towards your compensation after a Fort Lauderdale truck crash:
- A Trucking Company. If a driver isn’t an owner/operator and is on the road for themselves, they likely work for a local or national trucking or delivery company. That business could be liable for an accident caused by a driver in several instances. If a company like Amazon or Publix didn’t train its drivers properly, they could be shown liable. If a trucking corporation didn’t do proper background checks on its hires and hired an employee with a bad driving history. It’s possible a company didn’t uphold certain drug and alcohol testing standards and that negligence led to a crash. A delivery company may also fail in the maintenance of safe vehicles. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) rules limit how many hours a driver can stay behind the wheel and require most trucks to use an electronic logging device. A driver’s logs and the truck’s data recorder often show whether fatigue or speed played a role. Your Fort Lauderdale Truck Accident Attorney takes on shipping companies and their lawyers to make sure you receive a settlement check that covers your recovery.
- Local Farms – Produce trucks and big farming equipment can end up on rural roads, causing accident risks. A local farm owner or an agricultural company may be shown liable for the recklessness of their workers.
- Truck Manufacturers – If a part malfunction or a design flaw leads to an accident, the truck’s maker will share in liability. A blown-out tire may be the cause of an accident, leaving a tire maker accountable. Your lawyer would be investigating all of these possibilities and checking for recalls to earn you the most in an injury claim possible.
What Can I Seek Compensation for After a Truck Accident?
Your Fort Lauderdale truck accident lawyer seeks support from every at-fault party possible because it’s the best chance of making sure you aren’t left with some hospital bills to pay yourself.
Companies will usually have more insurance money to draw from. Victims must seek compensation from businesses involved in these collisions because truck drivers will likely have far lower limits on what their commercial insurance policies will pay victims. This can leave patients and family members paying for medical care out of pocket.
Your lawyer demands a truck accident settlement check that covers every hardship you and your family face. Your lawyer will also seek support for some factors you may not have known could earn you additional compensation:
- Totals on current medical bills and estimates on the cost of care in the future.
- Long-term costs associated with a permanent physical disability.
- Pain and suffering. This includes the physical pain you endure and the emotional trauma you are put through.
- Loss of enjoyment of life.
- Loss of consortium. Dealing with the loss of intimacy with a partner.
- Travel costs as you must find ways to get to and from doctor appointments while you’re injured.
- Money for car repairs or car replacement.
- Income and benefits you’ve lost while missing work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my family seek support if a truck driver claims a loved one’s life in an accident?
Yes. Florida empowers families who have lost a loved one in a truck accident to file a wrongful death claim. This claim seeks help with funeral expenses and leftover medical bills. The claim should seek to replace the income the victim can no longer provide the family in the future.
How long do I have to file an injury claim after a Fort Lauderdale truck accident?
For most truck accident injury claims, the Florida statute of limitations is two years from the date of the accident. You shouldn’t wait to file. Evidence can be harder to find the longer you delay.
What if I can’t afford to pay for an attorney after a truck accident?
You can secure powerful representation even if you aren’t left with any extra money at such a vulnerable time. Cowen Edwards Law doesn’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then our attorney’s fee comes out of the settlement money insurance companies pay you.
Who can be held liable for a semi truck or 18-wheeler accident in Fort Lauderdale?
Several parties can share liability after a semi truck or 18-wheeler crash. Besides the driver, the trucking company may be responsible for poor hiring, training, or maintenance. A cargo loader, a truck or parts manufacturer, or a maintenance contractor may also share the blame. Your lawyer investigates each one to reach every available insurance policy.
What federal trucking rules can help prove my case?
Commercial truck drivers and trucking companies must follow Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) rules. These limit a driver’s hours of service, require drug and alcohol testing, and set inspection and maintenance standards. When a driver or company breaks these rules and a crash follows, the violation can be strong evidence of negligence.
Why is the truck’s black box important after a crash?
Most commercial trucks carry an event data recorder and an electronic logging device. Together they can show the truck’s speed, braking, and the driver’s hours behind the wheel before the crash. Trucking companies do not have to keep this data forever, so your lawyer should send a preservation letter as soon as possible.
How much is a Fort Lauderdale truck accident case worth?
Every case is different. The value depends on how serious your injuries are, your medical bills now and in the future, your lost income, and your pain and suffering. Interstate trucking companies hauling general freight must carry at least $750,000 in liability coverage, so more money is often available than in a typical car accident claim.
Contact a Fort Lauderdale Truck Accident Lawyer
A truck accident on a Fort Lauderdale street or highway can leave you feeling vulnerable and powerless. You may need major financial assistance to pay your medical bills and also your normal monthly bills before going bankrupt. An at-fault truck driver’s insurer should be responsible for these and other damages. The truck driver’s employer could also be liable for your losses.
Allow Cowen Edwards Trial Lawyers to handle the stress and frustration of battling truck insurance companies while you use that time to focus on healing. Contact us to schedule a free consultation and tell us what happened. Let us know about your biggest hardships since the accident and then let us go to work holding an auto insurer fully liable.