Hit By a Delivery Truck: What Should You Do?

The toll of injury after a car accident can be devastating, but this is especially true if the collision involved a larger commercial truck or van. If you’ve been in an accident with a commercial delivery truck, such as a UPS or FedEx truck, proceed with a standard car accident claim, with some exceptions. Depending on the outcome of the accident and whether you or any passengers sustained any injuries, you may have grounds to sue for compensation.

Determining the liability in an accident involving a commercial delivery truck can be complex because you can file a lawsuit against the individual driver or the employer of the driver. However, if the company hires independent contractors to drive its vehicles, the company may not be liable for the contractor’s actions.

The first course of action is to list all parties involved with the delivery truck. This may not be as easy as it appears, since the truck’s owner will often lease the truck to another company, which hires someone to drive the truck, and that driver delivers the product to another company. In addition, if a mechanical error caused the accident, you may file a lawsuit against the company’s mechanic as well.

Depending on the circumstances of your case, you may end up suing all of these people or only a select few. Skilled legal counsel can guide your through these complexities, since determining fault can be extremely challenging.

If the driver is employed by the company, your lawyer will likely advise you to sue the company. You will be more likely to receive compensation for you medical bills, lost wages, and suffering if you choose to pursue the company as opposed to the individual driver because companies have larger funds, and juries will more likely side with you against a large organization.

If the driver intentionally caused the accident, however, he or she would be held responsible and not the company. For example, if the driver intentionally ran into another car for revenge, the company would likely not be held liable for the accident. In this instance, you would sue the driver. Another exception would occur if the employee was not acting “within the scope of employment,” which covers several factors, including the employee’s intentions, the work he or she was hired to perform, and the amount of freedom the employee is given to perform duties.

If the driver of the delivery truck is an independent contractor, he or she is self-employed and not a direct employee of the delivery company. In this situation, you can sue the driver, but your attorney will want to look for any other parties who may be involved, such as a truck leasing company.

There is a chance the company that hired the independent contractor could be negligent, depending on the details of the accident and how the driver’s contract was written. Your lawyer will want to review these facts carefully. Some contracts use language stating that a company is not responsible for driving-related negligence, but the company does have a right to control certain driver actions. If this is the case, a jury may find a company responsible for the independent contractor’s negligence.

In a typical automobile accident case, you would strive to prove how the other driver violated traffic regulations and laws. The same is true when dealing with a commercial delivery truck accident case, but you will have the advantage because of the hundreds of state and federal regulations specific to the trucking industry.

Federal laws and regulations govern almost every aspect of commercial truck driving. Your chance of proving negligence greatly increases when an investigation uncovers violations of these laws. An attorney who understands both federal laws and Texas state laws is crucial to case involving a commercial truck. Contact Gordon, Elias, & Seely LLP today for your free consultation.

The post Hit By a Delivery Truck: What Should You Do? appeared first on GES Injury Attorneys.