Maryville Truck Accident Lawyer
Tennessee’s heavy truck and commercial vehicle traffic puts other road users at high risk of serious injury on highways, surface streets, and even residential roads now that online sales and deliveries are booming. A collision with a large vehicle almost always ends in serious injury for the smaller road user. Whether you were an occupant of a passenger vehicle, motorcyclist, pedestrian, or bicyclist, the Maryville truck accident lawyers here at Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette can help you seek compensation for your extensive damages.
Fatal Truck Collisions are On the Rise
Since 2009, fatal truck collisions rose by 46 percent to nearly 5,000 fatalities each year, according to the National Safety Council. While semi trucks and large commercial vehicles make up a small percentage of vehicles on the road (four percent of registered vehicles), they are involved in nine percent of all fatal crashes. Unsurprisingly, passenger vehicle occupants, cyclists, and pedestrians are killed in these collisions at much higher rates than truck drivers; according to FMCSA, only 12 percent of fatalities are those of truck drivers. Nonfatal truck injury collisions are also on the rise, and victims of these crashes often face the following traumatic injuries:
- Fractured limbs;
- Traumatic brain injury;
- Spinal cord injury;
- Facial injuries;
- Lacerations;
- Contusions;
- Whiplash;
- Fractured vertebrae;
- Herniated disc;
- Burns;
- Permanent scarring and disfigurement;
- Amputation;
- Fractured ribs; and
- Fractured pelvis / hip.
Determining the Cause of a Large Truck Crash
Commercial and private truck drivers often face long hours on the road and boredom. To fight off drowsiness and boredom, they frequently turn to various forms of distraction: talking on the phone, texting, watching TV or movies, daydreaming, lap dogs, food and drink, and audiobooks/music. As such, distraction is a major cause of collisions among truck drivers. Other causes include aggressive driving, impatient driving, speeding, drowsy driving, and intoxication. In order to win a personal injury lawsuit, you must be able to prove how the crash occurred, and therefore assign liability to the truck driver. To do this, investigators, attorneys, and police use witness testimony, crash scene debris and tire marks, video evidence, and more. A few of the most common types (and causes) of crashes include:
- Truck changes lane and sideswipes a passenger vehicle (because the truck driver failed to check their mirrors);
- Truck rear-ends a slowing or stopped vehicle (because the truck driver was speeding or looking down at their phone);
- Object falls off of a truck, causing a crash behind (because the truck driver or party responsible for loading the truck loaded the cargo improperly);
- Truck T-bones another vehicle in an intersection (because the truck driver was speeding or impatient and tried to beat a yellow light); and
- Truck side-swipes a passenger vehicle on a highway on or off ramp (because the truck driver was impatient and failed to yield right of way).
Contact a Maryville Truck Accident Lawyer
Damages in a truck collision are often extreme. As a victim, you have the right to sue for damages stemming from your medical expenses, future medical needs, lost wages, lost earning capacity, pain and suffering, loss of joy of life, emotional distress, property damage, and more. To get started today, call our Maryville truck accident lawyers at Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette at 865-457-6440 to schedule a free case evaluation.
