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How much you settle for after a truck accident depends on several factors, including the severity of your injuries and how much income you lost. However, if you or someone you love suffered injuries in a truck accident where the other driver was at fault, you could recover monetary damages.
Just as no two truck accidents are identical, neither are two settlements. A truck accident lawyer in your area can help you determine how much you should settle for after a truck accident. They’ll create a detailed list of your specific recoverable damages based on your medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and more.
Document the Economic Damages You Are Entitled to Recover
Start building your compensation request by understanding the damages you can recover. For example, economic damages—tangible expenses with a fixed monetary value—can include the following:
- Past and future medical bills
- Past and future income loss
- Assistive medical devices
- Treatment-related travel expenses
- Property damage or total loss
- Diminished property value
Your personal injury attorney will be sure to value your economic damages accurately. To do so, they will collect evidence substantiating their value, including bills, receipts, and estimates.
Assess the Monetary Value of Your Noneconomic Damages
In addition to economic damages, you can also request noneconomic damages that compensate you for emotional and psychological losses stemming from the crash. Unfortunately, these are intangible and can be more difficult to assign a monetary value. This category includes the following:
- Physical disability
- Physical disfigurement
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
The lawyer who handles your case will explain how they determine the value of your noneconomic damages. They will also collect your medical records, written prognosis, and other documents, then use an accepted formula to calculate their monetary value.
Understand the Compensation Surviving Families Can Request
Did your family lose a loved one because of a truck accident? If so, you have our sincerest condolences. Once you’re ready, you could be entitled to recover wrongful death damages:
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Loss of your loved one’s income
- Loss of their contributions to your family
- Loss of consortium and companionship
- Loss of guidance and support
You might find it difficult and emotionally challenging to determine wrongful death compensation. Instead, a wrongful death attorney in your area can explain your state’s laws and which family members can file a wrongful death action.
Identify the Appropriate Party to Pursue for Compensation
Once you’ve calculated your recoverable damages, your attorney will help you determine who bears financial responsibility for compensating you. After a truck accident, potentially liable parties can include:
- The truck driver
- The trucking company
- The cargo loaders
- The truck’s repair facility
- The truck’s maker
- Truck parts makers
Sometimes, you could assign liability to multiple parties. Thus, your truck accident lawyer will investigate the cause of your accident and help you build a compelling case for financial recovery against all liable parties.
You Must Establish the At-Fault Party’s Negligence to Seek Compensation
To pursue an at-fault party, you must prove the four legally required components of negligence—duty, breach, cause, and damages. Therefore, the legal team representing you will collect evidence proving liability. Your evidence file might include the following:
- Medical records
- Written prognosis
- Salary records
- Accident report
- Injury photos
- Surveillance videos
- Accident scene photos
- Witness statements
- Truck driver logbooks
- Truck maintenance records
Some of the evidence in your file will prove the cause of the crash and the costs of the accident while documenting your recoverable damages.
A Truck Accident Lawyer Can Ensure You Meet Your State’s Filing Deadline
Every state has a filing deadline that victims must meet when seeking compensation via a personal injury lawsuit. This deadline, also called the statute of limitations, determines how much time you have to file a lawsuit against the at-fault party. For example, in South Carolina, S.C. Ann. § 15-3-530 sets a three-year deadline.
Failure to file your lawsuit on time could result in:
- The inability to file your lawsuit
- The court dismissing your suit out of hand
- Inadvertently forfeiting your right to compensation
The sooner you get a law firm involved, the more time it has to ensure your case meets the appropriate filing deadline. Early involvement also means your attorney has sufficient time to investigate your accident’s cause and can speak to accident witnesses while their memories are fresh.
Call for Your Free Truck Accident Case Review
Were you or someone you love injured in a truck accident, or was a loved one fatally injured? Our client-focused team at Schiller & Hamilton can help you determine how much compensation you should settle for after a truck accident.
We will ensure your case receives a fair and appropriate financial value. Contact one of our team members for a free review of your case today.