Heading to soccer practice to pick up your children. Running an errand for your elderly mom. Heading home from work. Then the unimaginable happens, and you are involved in a collision with a big truck. Not only are those at your destination uncertain about what has happened, but your life is irreparably changed.
We know the devastation caused when you are the victim of a truck accident. Whether it is because the driver was distracted, misjudged the distance between his front end and your rear end, or because they failed to pay attention to their blind spot, your life will never be the same as it was an hour ago.
After you seek medical help, contact a Tallahassee Truck accident lawyer at Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers PA immediately and let us help ensure your financial future is not as uncertain as your physical condition. We fight to ensure Tallahassee truck accident victims are treated fairly by big insurance companies.
Table of Contents
- How Dolman Law Group Can Help
- Compensation For a Truck Accident Case
- Truck Accident Types and Common Injuries
- Insurance Company Claims After a Truck Accident
- Contact a Tallahassee Truck Accident Lawyer Today
Why Consider Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers PA
After a truck accident, there are many things that a victim must consider. One of the most important decisions they will have to make is whether to hire an attorney to represent them. At Dolman Law Group, we believe that most truck accident victims in Tallahassee should hire a lawyer to ensure they get the maximum settlement for their injuries. We believe our track record speaks for itself.
Some of our recent truck accident settlements include:
- $3.2 million - Truck accident resulting in a brain injury
- $1.75 million - Truck accident resulting in shoulder surgery with mild TBI
We do not back down. We are committed to aggressively pursuing the full amount of your losses and ensuring that your family does not suffer financially after an accident involving a truck. We understand that our past results do not mean we will have the same success in the future, but we also know that a solid foundation of getting results can help increase our future success. You can contact Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers PA at our offices and expect the same great service and attention to detail.
Contact Our Award-Winning Legal Team
You should reach out to the legal team at Dolman Accident Injury Lawyers PA and speak with one of our truck accident lawyers as soon as possible. Do not offer any information to the insurance company, except for the date, time, and location of the accident, until after you have sought legal advice. Let us help you make sure you get the best possible settlement for your injuries.
Compensation From a Tallahassee Truck Accident Case
Multiple types of accidents occur on Tallahassee roads. In one recent year, the Tallahassee area saw more than 2,600 injuries due to motor vehicle accidents, many involving trucks. One of the common routes between Florida and Georgia continues to be the Claude Pepper Memorial Highway (U.S. 27) which gets a lot of truck traffic, as the Florida Department of Transportation's report from the same year shows.
Victims of truck accidents should understand:
- Type of Compensation You May Include in Claims
- Factors That Affect Your Final Compensation Settlement
- How a Truck Accident Lawyer Can Help Get the Best Settlement
Let's explore each of these aspects of a truck accident claim.
Type of Compensation You Can Include in Truck Accident Claims
Victims often ask their lawyer how much they can expect to collect when filing a truck accident claim.
Here are the general categories of compensation that a Tallahassee truck accident victim may be able to include in their claim:
- Medical expenses - Current and future out-of-pocket medical expenses associated with the truck accident. These expenses should include all required treatments and medical equipment needed for the victim to safely return to their home and/or their work.
- Wage losses - A truck accident victim may be out of work for several weeks or could face long-term issues returning to their job. Any wage losses associated with the injury suffered in a truck accident can be compensable.
- Other expenses - Tallahassee truck accident victims may have to pay for help doing chores they did before being injured. You may include these expenses in a compensation claim.
- Pain and suffering - Physical and emotional distress from an injury can hamper a victim's recovery. You may include these non-financial damages in a claim.
When you work with an experienced Tallahassee truck accident lawyer at Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers PA, we will do everything possible to obtain the maximum settlement for your injuries.
Factors That Affect Your Final Compensation Settlement
Several factors can impact a final settlement for a Tallahassee accident victim.
Some of these include:
- The severity of the victim's injuries
- Total medical bills
- Insurance policy limits
- Precedence similar cases
- established
- Type and amount of available evidence
- Whether the victim can return to work
How a Truck Accident Lawyer Can Help Get the Best Settlement
Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers PA understands how to deal with insurance company adjusters, and we will handle all negotiations on your behalf. This could prevent you from making mistakes that will minimize your final claim. We understand that most victims do not completely understand the Florida Tallahassee personal injury laws, which can protect a victim's rights following a truck accident.
We will work tirelessly as your advocate, and we will ensure you fully understand the steps we are taking and why we are taking them. We know that the more information you have, the better decisions you can make for yourself and your family.
What Makes Tallahassee Unique and Challenging
Almost 200,000 people live full-time in Tallahassee—160,439 adults and only 20,110 over 65. Nearly 66 percent of the population of working age is employed. Most households have two vehicles, and the average commute time to work is slightly over 21 minutes. Tallahassee is also home to three colleges.
The Claude Pepper Memorial Highway (U.S. 27) runs through Tallahassee and has a history of being one of the most dangerous and deadly roadways with a significant history of truck accidents. In one recent year, the tourism industry touted a record number of tourists, 2.4 million. These factors contribute to traffic and therefore make an accident even more probable.
Florida has specific rules regarding roadway accidents involving personal vehicles. This is a state which has no-fault coverage. However, those victims who suffer a serious injury can file a claim with the insurer of the party responsible for the accident. Trucks are required to have higher minimum coverage than automobiles. At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers PA, we will ensure you fully understand how these rules impact you and your ability to collect compensation for your injuries.
Truck Accident Types and Common Injuries
Every vehicle on the roadway can be involved in head-on collisions, sideswipe collisions, or rear-end collisions. However, some accident types are unique to trucks on Tallahassee roadways.
Some of these include:
- Tractor-Trailer Rollover Accidents - Trucks have a different center of gravity than cars and, as a result, are more prone to rolling over. Misjudging speed while turning can transfer the weight of a load and result in the vehicle overturning.
- Underride Semi-Truck Accidents - Unfortunately, because of the height of a truck, there is often enough space for a car to fit underneath. Being wedged under a truck can mean serious injuries to the occupant of a car. Truckers sometimes cause these accidents when they fail to clear their blind spots.
- Jackknife Accidents - The trailer and the truck cab are moving in different directions because a driver hit their brakes too hard, attempted to make a lane change at too high a speed, or turned improperly.
- Wide Turn Semi-Truck Accidents - These accidents are frightening. Trucks need more room than cars to execute a turn, and these moves can cause a great deal of harm to drivers of cars. Poorly executed turns can destroy a car traveling in another lane resulting in serious or fatal injuries to occupants.
The challenge with trucks is the sheer weight difference between a standard automobile and an 18-wheeler.
Because of this, victims can suffer serious injuries, including:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Back trauma
- Spinal cord injuries
- Broken or fractured bones
- Internal injuries
- Amputations
These are all serious injuries and can be potentially life-threatening. Many Tallahassee truck accident victims could face a lifetime of pain or disability because of their injuries. That is why at Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we fight hard to make sure every victim is heard and they recover proper compensation after suffering an injury.
Insurance Company Claims After a Truck Accident
Many people do not realize how challenging it can be to work with an insurer to resolve a legitimate claim. There are many issues an accident victim must face, including the primary hurdle of proving fault following a truck accident.
Some of the potentially liable parties include:
- Truck driver
- Employer of the truck driver
- A third party such as a maintenance company
- Manufacturers who have failed to properly inspect a vehicle or safety feature
Insurers are in business to make money. They earn the bulk of their income from collecting premiums. However, every time they pay a claim, they lose money. They will use every legal opportunity to challenge, minimize, or deny a claim.
Some of the most common tactics which truck accident victims may face after they open a claim following a Tallahassee truck accident include:
- Complete denial of liability - They will point at another party as responsible for the accident—the victim or another driver in cases involving multiple parties.
- Misinformation to the claimant - Insurers often believe that a claimant will fall for anything they tell them. They may tell you that you cannot open your claim without a recorded statement, that hiring a lawyer will cost too much, or that the policy does not apply to your accident. This misinformation can cause victims to give up.
Insurers often anticipate that most accident victims will not hire a lawyer because they think they can negotiate on their behalf. Consulting with a lawyer and gaining a full understanding of your legal rights is important because insurance adjusters are under no legal obligation to provide you with information about your rights or to tell you the limits of the policy you seek to file a claim against.
Dolman Accident Injury Lawyers PA will always provide the information you need to understand your legal rights and options. We can negotiate with insurers on your behalf and ensure that you are not inadvertently hurting your chances of getting the best possible settlement for your injuries.
Increasing the Odds of a Full Settlement After a Tallahassee Truck Accident
After a truck accident, several things will happen quickly. You want to make sure you seek immediate medical attention.
Once you have returned home and contacted a Tallahassee truck accident attorney, you want to gather the following information to take to them:
- Names and contact information of the truck driver
- Contact information for the truck driver's insurance company
- A copy of your insurance policy—ensure you notify them of the accident but do not share any additional information.
- Copies of all medical expenses, including prescription medications
- A record of your recovery—this should be a journal that includes details about the level of pain you have suffered, activities you may have had to sacrifice while recovering, etc.
- Records of any expenses you incurred because of your injury. Some of these may include hiring someone to attend to tasks you would normally do on your own, home modifications, etc.
- Obtain a copy of the police report, which should provide details of the accident.
These things should begin upon your release from your care immediately after the accident. Make sure you keep all doctors' appointments and keep track of everything they tell you. Closely follow all recommendations of your medical team.
Contact Us Today to Help With Your Tallahassee Truck Accident Claim
When you have suffered an injury in a truck accident in Tallahassee, you want someone to take on the insurance company on your behalf. We already know they have a legal team working on their side, and your best option is to have someone working equally as hard on your behalf on your side.
With offices across both Florida coasts, you can easily reach Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, at 850-790-5830, or you can contact us using our online contact page.
Tallahassee Office
2707 Killarney Way, Suite 205
Tallahassee, FL 32309
850-790-5830
What Our Clients Have to Say:
“Chad Robinson always responded immediately whenever I had questions or concerns. He worked hard to make sure I received what I deserved.”
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December 19
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“AMAZING and understanding attorneys! Did great on my case and I highly recommend Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA for anyone that has been injured in an accident!"
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Jan 2020
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