Catastrophic Truck Accident Lawyers
Over $1 Billion in Verdicts & Settlements*
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, in 2005 there were nearly 8.5 million large trucks registered in the United States. A large truck is defined as one with a gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 pounds when empty of cargo. When filled with cargo, these vehicles can easily weigh over 80,000 pounds!
Over 5,000 fatalities in accidents involving large trucks occur annually, and although large trucks make up only 4% of the vehicles on the road, they account for about 14% of all fatal accidents. If you have been injured or suffered a tragic loss in a truck accident, you deserve to hold negligent parties accountable.
At Snyder & Snyder, we specialize in bringing serious cases to court and winning large jury awards for our clients. The results speak for themselves—in our firm’s history, we have over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements*. Known as “pit bulls” in the court, we are the aggressive attorneys you need when the rest of your life is on the line.
There’s no reason to delay—call (410) 983-3535 today for your free case consultation.
What Defines a Catastrophic Truck Accident?
A catastrophic truck accident involves serious injury or death. Serious injury can be defined as an injury that requires long-term treatment or one from which the victim will never fully recover. Catastrophic injury statistics for large truck accidents may seem low until compared with the death rates in these accidents.
For example, in 2005, 114,000 people were injured in large truck accidents in the United States, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. This translates to a little over a two-to-one ratio of injury to death in large truck accidents. It is reasonable to assume that most people who are involved in an accident with a large truck are severely injured or killed, unlike car accidents in which only one-half of the victims are injured.
Catastrophic truck accidents are far more likely to result in death or serious injury to the passengers of other vehicles than to the driver of the truck. The FMCSA notes that in 2005, only 800 of the 5,212 fatalities in large truck accidents were occupants of the truck involved. This means that 85% of the people killed in large truck accidents are the occupants of other types of vehicles.
What Are Some Types of Injuries Seen in Catastrophic Truck Accidents?
Catastrophic Truck accidents often involve the following:
- Brain Injury – Direct blows to the head can result in damage that cannot be repaired and can cause permanent disabilities or loss of cognitive functioning.
- Spinal Cord Injuries – Damage to the spinal cord is often permanent and can result in paralysis, loss of use of body parts, and even long-term damage to internal organs
- Paralysis – Paraplegia, or loss of the use of the legs, and quadriplegia, the loss of the use of the body, are common effects of brain and spinal cord damage. While some victims eventually recover the use of their bodies, others are limited in their mobility for the rest of their lives.
- Bone Fractures – Broken bones may require surgery and long-term recovery while limited to a wheelchair or other devices to assist in mobility. Broken bones may heal only to cause pain and suffering for the rest of the victim’s life.
- Soft Tissue Damage – While most soft tissue damage is not catastrophic in nature, these injuries can lead to life-long health problems from which the victim cannot recover.
- Death – More people die in large truck accidents than in car accidents when reviewed on a percentage basis. The loss of a loved one is one catastrophic consequence than can never be repaired.
The Rights of Catastrophically Injured Victims
Victims who are injured in truck accidents may find that they have a hard time collecting damages from the responsible driver or even getting a straight answer as to who is actually liable for their injuries. This is because in so many truck accident cases there are a multitude of possible defendants, each trying to blame the other for the crash.
The possible parties responsible for your injury include:
- Independent truck drivers
- The owners of improperly packed cargo
- The company that hired the driver who caused your accident
To sort out the multiplicity of problems associated with a catastrophic truck accident and receive the payments to which the victim is entitled, most victims need the help of a personal injury attorney who understands the law regarding truck accidents. The Law Office of Snyder & Snyder, P.A. has decades of experience investigating who is truly responsible for our clients’ injuries. We don’t let companies give us the run-around—we find out who is at fault and bring them to court.
Contact Snyder & Snyder for a free consultation if you or a loved one is a victim of catastrophic injury resulting from a major truck accident.