Toledo Truck Accident Lawyers

Your Rights After a Truck Crash

From our experience working on truck accident injury claims, we know the stress and grief truck accidents cause. According to the Ohio Revised Code, you have the right to pursue financial compensation for how a truck accident negatively affects your life. Let us use our experience to help you recover — financially and physically.

Several factors can complicate Toledo truck accident claims. Several parties could share responsibility and liability for the crash and your damages. The evidence could be complicated, and insurance companies often try to reduce payouts.

To ensure your rights are protected and your Toledo truck accident gets the attention it deserves, turn to our accident attorneys. As dedicated truck accident lawyers with a proven record, we can lead you through the process.

Why You Need a Toledo Truck Accident Attorney

Accidents involving commercial trucks, like semi-trucks, 18-wheelers, or other large vehicles, have an inherent risk of increased damage compared to crashes involving passenger vehicles. Trucks are much bigger than cars, can have difficulty stopping, and can carry potentially hazardous cargo. Following a collision, the trucking or insurance company will do what it can to reduce its liability. They might try to discredit your injuries or blame you. These companies also usually have more resources than the victims. These factors often come together to complicate truck crash cases. Luckily, you don’t have to navigate your case alone.

Ohio Truck Accident Help has decades of experience and a reputation for dealing with truck accidents. We also have the resources to even the odds. We’re here to hold negligent truck drivers, trucking companies, and insurance companies accountable and are willing to fight for our clients’ fair compensation.

Personal Injury Laws In Toledo Truck Accidents

Ohio allows truck accident victims to pursue legal action to make them “financially whole.” Victims can file a lawsuit through the Lucas County courts or use an insurance claim to gain full compensation from the at-fault party for any economic and non-economic damages the crash created.

Negligence Causes Most Lucas County Truck Crashes

Knowing what negligence is and how to prove it is key to pursuing compensation after a truck accident. For example, you or your loved one may believe the accident was caused by a distracted truck driver or defective vehicle. Both are examples of negligence, but you’ll need evidence to prove what happened and the harm you endured.

Suppose you were driving north on I-75, and a semi-truck veered in front of you to avoid exiting on I-280. If they did not maintain a clear distance or properly signal, they would be considered negligent if they made you crash. They should be held accountable for any damage or injuries they cause.

Our Toledo truck accident lawyers will work with local law enforcement, insurance companies, and anyone else who can provide evidence of negligence. We will work to establish that you were owed a duty of care, someone’s behavior or actions violated that duty, you were caused harm as a result, and you suffered damages.

Truck Accident Liability & Fault

Determining fault in a truck accident case can be complex. The fault could lie with several people, whether the driver, their employer, the truck’s manufacturer, or someone who loaded the truck before the accident. Our trucking accident lawyers can use their local knowledge to find and assign fault to all appropriate parties.

Common Truck Accidents

Truck crashes you could experience in the Toledo area include:

• Delivery Vehicle accidents
• Dump Truck accidents
• Jackknife accidents
• Rear-end truck accidents
• Tanker Truck accidents
• Underride and Override accidents
• Utility Vehicle accidents

Toledo Truck Accident Injuries

Industrial trucks pose a threat to drivers because their size means they can have more momentum, less time to react, and higher centers of gravity. These also lead to more severe injuries than typical car crashes.

It’s common for truck accidents to result in:

• Broken Bones
• Burn Injuries
• Head and brain injuries
• Spinal and Paralysis injuries
• Death

Types of Truck Accident Compensation

There are mainly two types of damages an at-fault party will be responsible for paying after a truck accident:

• Economic damages are usually the more apparent financial losses tied to your injuries, such as lost wages, property damage, or current and future medical expenses.
• Non-economic damages are generally more subjective and include pain, suffering, inconvenience, emotional distress, loss of consortium, loss of enjoyment of life, or even disfigurement or disability.

In some instances, you may be able to collect punitive damage payments, especially if the at-fault party was malicious or intentionally negligent. Punitive damages are meant to deter repeat offenses.

By working with an experienced truck accident lawyer, you can properly document your losses, estimate future financial implications, and pursue full and fair compensation for everything you’re legally entitled to recover.

Collect Medical Evidence

If you’re injured in a Toledo-area truck accident, you’ll likely receive treatment at the University of Toledo Medical Center, ProMedica Toledo Hospital, or Mercy Health — St. Anne Hospital. Ask your medical care providers for any documentation they can provide to support your claim.

Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), they can give you copies of your reports, prescriptions, or other relevant treatment documents.

Notify the Truck Accident Defendants

Your lawyer can notify the at-fault party that you intend to file a claim against them. Your lawyer will help gather the necessary documents. They’ll likely be working with the trucking company’s insurance company.

Insurance companies are designed to create revenue, so their agents will likely find ways to limit or reduce your payout: expect a lowball offer.

Investigate the Collision

Your attorney will investigate the truck accident in question. They’ll gather witness statements and use crash scene photos or videos, police reports, and testimony as needed. As they build the case, your attorney will probably speak with experts related to large truck accidents, such as crash reconstructionists, to solidify your case.

Truck accidents are also unique because companies maintain extensive records surrounding their trucks, like a truck’s trip, cargo, or inspection records. These belong to the companies, but a knowledgeable truck accident lawyer will know how to file motions to access those records before they’re destroyed or deleted.

File a Truck Accident Claim or Lawsuit

Most truck accident cases are resolved by negotiating with the insurance company. However, there are times when the insurance company is unwilling to settle, or you gain the advantage by filing an official lawsuit. Typically, this happens in the Lucas County Common Pleas Court. If the insurance company continues to reject your claim, your lawyer will take the case to trial, and a jury or judge may determine the outcome.

The amount and timeline of each truck accident claim are unique to each truck accident. Some cases can take weeks to settle, but they can also last months or years. Remember that Ohio’s Statute of Limitations is two years from the accident, so calling a  truck accident lawyer is of the essence.

Consult an Experienced Lawyer

Ohio Truck Accident Help assists truck accident victims around Toledo, Lucas County, and across Ohio. We will guide you in each step of the process, work with the appropriate witnesses, experts, and specialists to prove fault, and make your truck accident claim as strong as possible after a crash.

Let us handle the legal complexities and the insurance companies. We will do everything in our power to secure what you need. With our focus on trucking accidents, our team can help you get what’s fair.