Truck accidents can have serious consequences. Commercial trucks are substantially larger and heavier than passenger vehicles, and crashes can cause traumatic injuries, permanent disabilities, and fatalities.
Not every truck accident results in a personal injury claim. A claim generally requires evidence that another party was legally responsible for the crash and that the collision caused compensable injuries or losses. Trucking cases can also involve multiple potentially responsible parties and evidence that may need to be preserved soon after the crash.
If you or a loved one was injured in a commercial truck accident in Illinois, call 911 and seek medical care the same day. Avoid giving a recorded statement to the trucking company’s insurer, and consider speaking with a truck accident lawyer before the carrier and its insurer complete their initial investigation.
The first priority after a truck accident is to get to safety and seek medical attention. If you can safely remain at the scene, however, there are several steps you can take to help preserve evidence for a potential injury claim.
Call 911 and cooperate with the responding police officers. Illinois law requires drivers involved in crashes resulting in injury or death to stop and remain at the scene, and crashes requiring a police report must be reported to the appropriate law enforcement agency. The investigating agency will document the collision and may interview the drivers and witnesses.
If you can do so safely, photograph the vehicles, the truck’s DOT number and identifying information, required placards, road conditions, traffic signals, vehicle damage, debris, skid marks, and visible injuries. Get the truck driver’s name and carrier, as well as the names and contact information of witnesses.
Do not admit fault or speculate about what caused the crash. Tell police what you remember accurately, but do not guess about speed, distances, traffic conditions, or other details you do not know.
A commercial truck accident may involve considerably more evidence and potentially more responsible parties than a typical collision between passenger vehicles.
The driver may be employed by a trucking company, while the truck may be owned, leased, maintained, or dispatched by another company. A claim may therefore require an investigation into the driver’s conduct as well as the carrier’s hiring, training, supervision, maintenance, and safety practices.
Commercial trucks may also generate electronic records that can help establish what happened before the crash. Depending on the circumstances, those records may include electronic logging device (ELD) information, engine control module (ECM) data, onboard video, GPS or telematics information, dispatch records, inspection records, and driver qualification materials.
That evidence can become important when the trucking company’s version of the crash differs from the injured person’s account.
The first 48 hours should focus on medical care, documentation, and protecting your rights. The trucking company and its insurer may also begin investigating the crash during this time, making important evidence more difficult to obtain.
Taking the right steps early can help protect both your health and your ability to pursue a claim.
Seek medical attention as soon as possible, even if your injuries initially seem manageable. Some injuries become more noticeable after the immediate effects of a collision wear off, and prompt medical documentation can establish when your symptoms began.
Follow your healthcare provider’s treatment recommendations and report new or worsening symptoms. Keep copies of medical records, bills, prescriptions, and other documentation related to your treatment.
The investigating police department or the Illinois State Police may prepare the Illinois Traffic Crash Report. If the Illinois State Police did not investigate the collision, the local law enforcement agency that did should generally be contacted to obtain the report.
The report can provide an important starting point for understanding the crash, including the drivers, vehicles, witnesses, and the investigating officer’s observations. It does not necessarily determine civil liability, however, and additional evidence may tell a different or more complete story.
You should generally notify your own automobile insurer about the crash and comply with the reporting requirements of your policy.
That does not mean you should give the trucking company’s insurer a recorded statement. The commercial carrier’s insurance company is investigating a claim against its insured and may use information from your statement when evaluating liability or damages. Before giving a recorded statement, speak with a truck accident lawyer.
Evidence preservation is particularly important in commercial trucking cases because some information is maintained electronically and may eventually be overwritten, deleted, or become more difficult to obtain.
When Staver represents an injured person after a truck accident, the firm can send a preservation or spoliation letter to the trucking company and other potentially responsible parties. The purpose is to put those parties on notice that relevant evidence must be preserved.
Potential evidence can include:
Federal regulations require post-accident alcohol and controlled-substance testing in qualifying commercial vehicle crashes. Under 49 CFR § 382.303, required testing must be conducted within specific time periods following qualifying crashes.
Different types of electronic evidence also have different retention periods. ELD records generally must be retained for six months, but video systems and other onboard technology may have shorter retention periods depending on the system. An early preservation request can therefore help prevent relevant evidence from disappearing before it can be investigated.
The trucking company’s insurer will typically conduct its own investigation after a serious crash. That investigation may begin before an injured person has even left the hospital.
An insurer may ask an injured driver or passenger to provide a recorded statement. It may also request information about prior injuries, medical treatment, employment, or the circumstances of the collision.
The insurer may ultimately argue that the injured driver was responsible for the crash or that the injuries are less serious than claimed. It may also make a quick settlement offer before the injured person knows the full extent of the medical consequences.
An early settlement can be tempting when medical bills and other expenses are accumulating. But accepting an offer generally means giving up the right to seek additional compensation for the same injuries.
Illinois follows a modified comparative-fault system. This means an injured person whose contributory fault is more than 50% is generally barred from recovering damages. When the injured person’s fault is 50% or less, the recovery is reduced in proportion to that person’s percentage of fault.
That makes statements about the accident important. An injured driver who says, for example, that they “might have been going too fast” or “should have seen the truck” may unintentionally give the insurer information it can use to argue comparative fault.
A person’s statement immediately after a collision should also be considered in context. Someone who has just been involved in a traumatic crash may be frightened, confused, in pain, or unaware of the full circumstances. An investigation should consider physical evidence, electronic records, witnesses, vehicle damage, and other evidence rather than relying on a single statement.
A truck accident claim requires more than establishing that a collision occurred. The investigation must examine why the crash happened, who was responsible, and how the collision caused the claimed injuries and losses.
Evidence may include the police report, photographs, witness statements, medical records, vehicle data, ELD information, video, maintenance records, driver qualification records, and other trucking records.
In some cases, accident reconstruction may also be necessary. A reconstruction professional can analyze vehicle damage, roadway evidence, photographs, electronic data, and other information to help determine how the collision occurred.
The investigation may also need to determine whether the driver or trucking company violated applicable federal or state safety requirements.
Illinois generally gives an injured person two years to file a personal injury lawsuit under 735 ILCS 5/13-202. The deadline can vary depending on the circumstances and the identity of the potentially responsible parties.
A different deadline may apply when a governmental entity or employee is involved. Under 745 ILCS 10/8-101, claims subject to the Illinois Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act generally have a one-year limitations period.
These deadlines make an early legal review important. Waiting until the deadline approaches can also make it more difficult to locate witnesses and preserve evidence.
The damages available in a truck accident claim depend on the injuries, losses, and circumstances of the case.
Depending on the evidence, compensation may include:
Serious truck accidents can result in injuries requiring months or years of treatment. Evaluating future medical care and the long-term effect of an injury can therefore be important before determining whether a settlement offer fairly compensates the injured person.
If a truck accident causes a death, surviving family members may also have a wrongful death claim under Illinois law.
As treatment continues, keep records of your medical appointments, expenses, medications, rehabilitation, missed work, and other effects of the crash.
A pain journal can also help document how an injury affects daily life. Record significant symptoms, physical limitations, sleep problems, missed activities, and other changes that occur during recovery.
Avoid posting about the crash, your injuries, your treatment, or your activities on social media. Public posts and photographs may later be reviewed by an insurance company or defense attorney and potentially used to challenge the extent of your injuries.
Most importantly, do not assume that an insurance company will protect your interests. Its responsibility is to evaluate and defend its insured’s claim. An attorney can help protect your interests while the evidence is being gathered.
Truck accident cases can involve extensive evidence that an injured person may not know how to obtain or preserve. Staver Accident Injury Lawyers can investigate the circumstances of the collision, identify potentially responsible parties, request relevant FMCSA and trucking records, preserve electronic evidence, and work with accident reconstruction professionals when appropriate.
Our team can also handle communications with the trucking company’s insurer, evaluate settlement offers, and prepare the claim for litigation when necessary. The goal is to build the claim around the available evidence rather than allowing the trucking company’s insurer to establish the initial version of what happened.
Not before having the offer reviewed by a truck accident lawyer. An early offer may not account for future medical treatment, lost earning capacity, permanent limitations, or other damages that are not yet known.
You may still have a claim. Tell your attorney exactly what you said and provide any information you have about when the statement was taken and who conducted it. The statement can then be considered alongside the other evidence.
A partial fault does not automatically prevent recovery in Illinois. If your fault is 50% or less, your damages are generally reduced according to your percentage of fault. If your fault is more than 50%, you generally cannot recover damages under Illinois’ modified comparative-fault rule.
A citation may be relevant to the investigation, but it does not automatically establish civil liability. The underlying conduct, the other evidence from the collision, and the injuries involved must all be considered.
Your Illinois residence does not necessarily determine which state’s law applies. The location of the crash, the parties involved, and other jurisdictional issues can affect the applicable law and filing deadline. An attorney should promptly review an out-of-state accident.
Staver handles qualifying personal injury cases on a contingency-fee basis. You do not pay an attorney fee unless the firm recovers compensation for you, and the specific fee arrangement can be explained during a free consultation.
A commercial truck accident can create serious injuries and a complicated insurance claim. Evidence may need to be preserved quickly, and the trucking company’s insurer may begin its investigation before you understand the full extent of your injuries.
Staver Accident Injury Lawyers can investigate the crash, preserve important evidence, handle communications with the trucking company and its insurer, and pursue the compensation available under Illinois law.
If you or a loved one was injured in a truck accident, contact Staver Accident Injury Lawyers for a free consultation. You pay nothing unless we win.
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