Colorado Springs Tractor-Trailer Accident Lawyer
We can handle your injury claim and investigate your crash
One of the most serious types of truck accidents is a collision caused by a tractor-trailer. Because 18-wheelers are so much larger than other vehicles on the road, these trucks often cause serious accidents with severe injuries. Knowing what to do after such a bad truck accident can be confusing. That’s why we want to help.
Attorney Stephen A. Longo and his talented legal team at The Longo Firm, LLC, in Colorado Springs have years of experience handling accident claims involving tractor-trailers. We’re familiar with the state and federal laws that apply to semi-trucks and big rigs. We know how to deal with trucking companies and how to effectively negotiate a fair settlement offer. We don’t back down from tough cases. We rise to the challenge.
Why do tractor-trailer accidents happen?
Accidents caused by tractor-trailer drivers often occur because the driver was behaving in a reckless or negligent manner. This includes:
- Excessive speeding or driving too fast for road conditions or hazardous weather conditions, especially in cases involving highway accidents.
- Distracted driving, including talking to a dispatcher or looking up directions while driving.
- Texting while driving, even though it’s illegal for commercial truck drivers to text while driving nationwide.
- Falling asleep at the wheel, especially in cases involving long-haul truckers driving cross-country.
- Inexperienced truck drivers who lose control of the 18-wheeler.
- Poorly maintained tractor-trailer that causes an accident, often due to a tire blowout or defective brakes.
Whatever the cause of your accident, make sure you have an experienced lawyer investigating your crash and building the strongest possible legal case on your behalf.
Your lawyer can demand access to important evidence from your tractor-trailer accident, including Hours of Service (HOS) logs (which detail how much hours the driver works each day) and data from the truck’s black box, also known as an electronic control module (ECM) or event data recorder (EDR). This device records show how fast the truck was going at the time of the crash, if the truck driver attempted to apply the brakes before the accident and when the driver last took a mandatory break.
Who decides who was at fault?
After your tractor-trailer accident is investigated by the appropriate local, state or federal authority (often local police and/or the National Transportation Safety Board, a federal agency that investigates serious truck accidents), the insurance companies for everyone involved often conduct their own investigation.
The investigations conducted by insurance companies matter a lot when it comes to determining who was at fault in your crash. This is because the insurance company (or companies) for the at-fault party is often responsible for compensating injury victims in most states. The reason why is many states have a fault-based insurance system.
Not surprisingly, insurance companies often do everything they can to prove that their policyholder was not at fault, even if they clearly caused the collision. This is especially true in tractor-trailer accidents since the accident claims in such cases can add up to a lot of money.
Fortunately, you can be part of these discussions and negotiations if you have an experienced lawyer on your side. Your attorney can conduct an independent investigation and gather evidence demonstrating that you were clearly not at fault and deserve to be financially compensated for your crash.
How much is my accident claim worth?
There’s no set dollar when it comes to tractor-trailer accident claims. Some might be worth a few thousand dollars. Other injury claims might be worth significantly more, especially if you or a loved one sustained a serious injury in the accident.
Whatever the circumstances of your crash, you should be paid for all your accident expenses if the tractor-trailer driver caused your crash. Such expenses may include:
- Money to repair or replace your vehicle.
- All past, present and future medical expenses, including emergency medical care, surgery, doctor’s appointments, physical therapy and follow-up surgery.
- Replacement income if you cannot work while recovering from your injury.
- Lost future income if you cannot return to work due to a permanent disability.
The stakes are high when it comes to many accident claims. Trucking companies and insurance companies know this. That’s why they often do everything they can to pay injury victims as little as possible or nothing at all. That’s why you need an experienced, aggressive attorney advocating for the money you rightfully deserve after your accident.
Who can I sue for damages?
Like most accidents, you can often file a lawsuit against the at-fault party responsible for causing your crash. In the case of tractor-trailer accidents, the at-fault party can include:
- The truck driver who caused your accident.
- The trucking company the truck driver works for, especially if the trucking company knowingly hired a driver with a history of reckless driving or other serious infractions.
- The company responsible for maintaining the truck, especially if the company did not properly maintain the tractor-trailer.
- The company that owns the cab of the tractor-trailer if it’s different company.
- The company that owns the trailer on the tractor-trailer that caused your crash.
- The company that loaded the truck, especially if the truck was loaded improperly and the contents of the truck shifted and caused the tractor-trailer to tip over.
- The company that packaged the contents in the truck, especially if the contents were not package properly and shifted during transit.
- The company that manufactured the tractor-trailer, especially if a defective part (tire blowout, defective brakes) caused your crash.
- The insurance companies for all these companies in certain circumstances.
In addition, each one of these companies often has at least one attorney working for them and defending their actions. That’s why it’s critical that you have an experienced lawyer working for you and demanding the money you rightfully deserve.
Demand justice after your accident. Contact us.
Experience matters when it comes to choosing the right lawyer to represent you after a serious tractor-trailer accident. That’s why many people often choose The Longo Firm, LLC to represent them. Attorney Longo knows the state and federal laws governing such accidents. He knows how to investigate them and how to deal with trucking companies, insurance companies and anyone else responsible for your crash.
In case after case, we consistently obtain sizable settlements and verdicts for injury victims. Case results matter here, of course, but it’s not just about the money at our law firm. We believe it’s important to be attentive to your personal needs after your accident. That’s why attorney Longo will give you his personal phone number in case you ever have a question about your case. We always put your best interests first here.
Discover what a dedicated legal team can do for you. Contact our law firm and schedule your free case evaluation at our Colorado Springs office. We’re ready to get right to work on your tractor-trailer accident claim.
The Longo Firm, LLC – no games, no gimmicks, just results.