Baton Rouge Truck Accident Lawyers

Automobile and Trucking Accidents Have Serious Consequences

Travel by motor vehicle is an essential part of modern life. But it also is where millions of people experience accidents, disability, and sometimes death:

• Six million car accidents on U.S. roads claim 40,000 lives every year.
• More than three million people are injured in traffic mishaps annually.
• More than two million people are permanently disabled in traffic accidents every 12 months.
• Every 12 minutes, one person dies in a car or truck wreck.
• A significant injury from vehicular accidents occurs every 14 seconds.

Not all accidents occur because of driver fault—many accidents result from a poorly designed or a poorly maintained roadway or intersection. Sometimes, a defectively manufactured tire or a poorly designed vehicle is at fault—such as the much-publicized SUVs involved in rollover accidents. In those cases, the liable party is the governmental body, parish, county, or state responsible for the roadway, or the manufacturer of the tire or vehicle.

Trucking Accidents Are Particularly Injurious

Some commercial trucks can weigh more than 80,000 pounds and measure up to 75 feet in length. An accident involving a large truck and a smaller vehicle can have exceptionally tragic consequences:

• According to the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), 500,000 truck accidents occur each year.
• In 98 percent of truck accidents involving fatalities, the passengers or driver in the smaller vehicle—not the truck—are killed.

Choosing a Baton Rouge Trucking Accident Attorney: Experience Matters

In the aftermath of traffic-related accidents, victims (and their survivors) often face challenging matters that are complicated by complex liability and insurance laws that require proof in court according to the Personal Injury Damages Law.

Particularly for a wrongful death case, where the main witness is no longer able to testify, and for many cases where there are often disputed versions of how the accident happened, a thorough investigation is needed, the sooner the better. Accident reconstruction experts—most often, licensed engineers—look at such things as skid marks, damage to vehicles, collision debris, vehicle “black boxes” and witnesses’ statements. These help identify vehicle speeds and the specific actions of drivers. Certified legal investigators record witness statements, collect photographic evidence at the scene, and store all evidence (including vehicles).

At Marks and Lear PLC, one of our Baton Rouge truck accident attorneys is also an engineer who reviews all cases to determine if accident reconstruction is necessary. This lawyer is uniquely qualified to evaluate and present all accident reconstruction reports.

Baton Rouge Truck Accident Attorneys Challenge Insurance Companies

It is important to approach each case with professional expertise, because insurance companies—representing those individuals and companies responsible for the accident—have their own team of investigators, adjustors, agents, and lawyers working on their behalf.

As a business, insurance companies are primarily concerned with limiting their payout—to your disadvantage. They are not legally required to inform you of such things as:

• How much liability insurance is available.
• If the policyholder has additional liability or excess insurance policies.
• The applicability of any uninsured or under-insured motorist insurance coverage, which you may have or which may be included in the policy on the vehicle in which you are a passenger.

Note also that when you reach a settlement, the insurance company might include provisions in the fine print that will destroy your rights to all such additional sources of compensation. A qualified and experienced Baton Rouge truck accident lawyer can work on your behalf against each of these loopholes.

Contact an experienced attorney

If you are injured in an automobile or trucking accident, speak to a Baton Rouge truck accident lawyer from our firm. Contact Marks and Lear PLC today by calling toll free at 225-383-5678 or email us online.