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The Truck Driver May Not be the Liable Party After a Truck Accident


— February 17, 2022

If they fail to fulfill their duties in regard to maintaining truck safety and checking up on their employees, then they will usually be held more liable than the truck driver themselves.


Once the fault of a truck driver is obvious and established after a truck accident, most drivers may assume that the truck driver will be held responsible to deal with all the damages. Anyone who has been in a truck accident, or witnessed one, will know the severity of the damages these collisions can result in, and these are very expensive to deal with, often totaling to millions of dollars’ worth for all the victims involved.

Naturally, it will not be possible for the truck driver to cover everything financially, so anyone who finds themselves in a collision with a truck will likely find themselves opposing the trucking company who hired the truck driver, and not the truck driver themselves. Trucking companies are held to a very high standard, and they are expected to meet all the regulations set by the law. If they fail to fulfill their duties in regard to maintaining truck safety and checking up on their employees, then they will usually be held more liable than the truck driver themselves.

Even if the accident occurred specifically because of truck driver error, the trucking company, or other parties such as the manufacturer of the truck can be held to account in court for failing to do their duties and causing the collision to occur and victims to get hurt. Truck accidents can be fatal and lead to catastrophic injuries. Victims of a truck accident should connect with a truck accident attorney as soon as possible so they get the help they need filing a legitimate truck accident claim and getting the settlement they require as soon as possible.

What types of truck accidents occur in Orange County, California?

Truck accident on SR 20; image by WA State DoT, via Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, no changes.
Truck accident on SR 20; image by WA State DoT, via Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, no changes.

A truck accident can take place at any time and any location, often when drivers least expect it. The operators of passenger vehicles may be fulfilling their duty and following all the rules of the road, but they may still find that a collision happens. This is because no one can be responsible for the actions of the truck driver.

If the truck driver is distracted or fatigued, then the chances of getting into a collision are significant. Common types of truck accidents include tire blowout truck accidents, and jackknife accidents. When a tire blows out, then the massive vehicle can easily swerve into another lane and collide with the vehicles that are passing by. Jackknife accidents are another common way that trucks get into a collision, and they often occur due to locked wheels, equipment malfunction, and the failure to brake properly. 

Truck accidents can be life changing, and if anyone has found themselves or their loved ones in such a situation, they should connect with a truck accident attorney at Chudleigh Law to get help with the legal claim process.

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