You should ask a truck accident lawyer about their experience handling cases similar to yours. It’s also important to understand how they will investigate the crash, who could be held liable in your case, and what evidence they will likely preserve.
Many collision victims also ask which deadlines apply to their case, how they negotiate with insurance companies, what your claim might include, and how their fee structure works. For help from a truck accident lawyer in Boston, contact Earley Law Group ASAP.
Start With the Attorney’s Experience Handling Truck Claims
When deciding what to ask a truck accident lawyer, one of the first questions you should pose is whether they regularly handle serious commercial vehicle injury claims. Truck accidents are not always handled like ordinary passenger-vehicle collisions.
Here’s what a commercial truck case can involve:
- A driver
- The trucking company
- The vehicle owner
- A leasing company
- Maintenance providers
- Cargo loaders
- Manufacturers
- Additional parties
Federal and Massachusetts regulations can also become relevant to the investigation. That means the attorney should understand how to investigate more than the basic question of who hit whom. Ask the lawyer how they approach commercial vehicle cases.
Question the types of evidence they typically seek. A thoughtful answer should involve more than taking statements from the drivers. Ultimately, you should also feel comfortable asking whether the lawyer has handled cases involving injuries similar to yours.
The point is not to hear impressive legal terminology. You want to understand whether your Earley Law Group attorney has experience dealing with the types of issues that could affect your claim.
Find Out Who Could Be Held Responsible
A truck accident does not necessarily involve only the person sitting behind the wheel. Depending on the circumstances, legal responsibility could involve the truck driver, trucking company, vehicle owner, maintenance company, cargo-related parties, or another entity.
A lawyer should be willing to investigate each potential source of responsibility rather than immediately accepting the trucking company’s account of what happened. That investigation is particularly important when a commercial carrier is involved.
The carrier could have records concerning the driver, vehicle, inspections, maintenance, routes, work schedules, and other matters that could help establish what happened. Ask these questions when meeting with your attorney:
- Who are the potentially responsible parties in my case?
- How will you determine whether the trucking company is responsible?
- How will you investigate the driver’s employment and training?
- Will you look into maintenance and inspection records?
- How will you determine which insurance policies apply?
- How will you preserve evidence that the trucking company controls?
You do not need to know which parties should be named before speaking with a lawyer at Earley Law Group. Investigating that issue is part of the legal work.
Ask How the Crash Will Be Investigated
A truck accident investigation should go beyond reading the police report. The report can be useful, but it is only one piece of evidence. At Earley Law Group, here’s what our lawyers can gather for you:
- Photographs
- Witness statements
- Medical records
- Vehicle information
- Video footage
- Roadway evidence
- Other records that help establish how the collision happened
Commercial trucks can also contain electronic information that helps show what the vehicle was doing around the time of the crash. Evidence could include electronic logging information, onboard data, GPS information, camera footage, or other records.
Ask the lawyer what steps will be taken to preserve this information. This is an especially important question because some evidence is held by the trucking company or another business rather than the injured person.
A lawyer can send appropriate preservation requests and take legal action when necessary to protect evidence. The earlier this issue is addressed, the less likely it is that important information will disappear before it can be reviewed.
Discuss Massachusetts’ Comparative Negligence Rule
Another important question is how Massachusetts handles situations in which an injured person is accused of contributing to an accident. Massachusetts follows a modified comparative negligence rule.
Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 231, Section 85, a person’s damages can be reduced according to that person’s share of negligence. The statute bars recovery if the injured person’s negligence is greater than the combined negligence of the at-fault parties.
At Earley Law Group, we understand that insurance companies might make the following claims about your actions prior to the collision:
- You were speeding.
- You were following too closely.
- You changed lanes improperly.
- You were distracted behind the wheel.
- You otherwise contributed to the crash.
When meeting with Earley Law Group, ask your lawyer how they plan to respond if the trucking company’s insurer blames you. The burden should not fall on you to accept the insurance company’s version simply because the insurer says you were partly responsible.
Contact Earley Law Group to Ask a Truck Accident Lawyer Questions About Your Case
A truck accident lawyer should be prepared to investigate the collision, identify all potentially responsible parties, preserve relevant evidence, and assess available insurance coverage. It’s also important to have an attorney who knows how to properly document your injuries.
Lawyers who handle truck accident cases should also know how to address comparative negligence arguments, negotiate with insurers, and pursue litigation as needed. You should also receive straightforward answers to any questions that you have.
While no attorney can guarantee a particular settlement or a certain verdict, Earley Law Group has built a strong reputation throughout the Boston area since 2006. As attorneys with 25 years of combined experience recovering millions of dollars, Call Earley Before It’s Too Late!™