What Should NYC Drivers with Personal Injury Do After an Accident with a Big-Rig Truck?

If you are injured by the negligence of commercial truck drivers, you ARE entitled to compensation for your personal injuries. But be aware–suits involving truckers are often more difficult than other kinds of collision suits, for several reasons:

1. First, it may be difficult to find the trucker after the collision. The nature of a trucker’s job means that he might be involved in a collision in a state far from where he lives–and a place where he’ll never return.

2. Trucking companies are also very skilled in defending themselves against negligence claims (which, to them, are just a part of doing business), and they can be very aggressive in denying claims, because every dollar they pay out in compensation to accident victims is a dollar that does not go into their pockets.

3. Further complicating matters is the fact that most commercial big-rig accidents involve far more parties than the typical fender-bender. Parties can include the truck driver, the trucking company, the shipper(s), the insurance adjuster, and the insurer, and the legal relationships among all of these parties can be difficult to unravel.

Persons who have been involved in a collision with a trucker are entitled to recover compensation for items such as personal injury medical bills, time lost from work, pain and suffering, mental anguish, disfigurement, and loss of earning capacity. The complexity of these cases means that you should consult an experienced attorney and should NOT rely on the trucking company’s insurance adjuster to look out for your interests.

If you have had an accident and personal injury that involves you and a big-rig (semi) truck, New York City Attorney Stephen Bilkis says that it is important you know your rights–and are protected at every turn after the accident: with the insurance company, with the other driver, and any possible legal action.