If you or someone you love has been in a truck accident, you may be entitled to financial compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other costs resulting from the accident. Contact the Fontana personal injury attorneys at OnderLaw today for a free initial case review.

OnderLaw has the experience and knowledge to help you recover financial compensation and help bring closure after a traumatic truck accident. Investigating truck accidents is a complex business, and dealing with truck companies and insurance agencies can be a significant burden if you are injured. We will take some of that burden off your shoulders by investigating your case on your behalf while you recover from your injuries. 

Why Do I Need A Lawyer? Why Should I Choose OnderLaw ?

If you or a loved one was involved in a truck accident, it’s crucial to consult with an experienced truck accident attorney as soon as possible. A good lawyer will have the knowledge and resources to help you recover a fair settlement so that you can move on with your life. 

A lawyer will be there to help you navigate the complex claims process, negotiate with the insurance company, and fight your case out in court if a fair settlement cannot be reached. A lawyer will also have the resources to investigate the accident, document damages on your behalf, and prove liability. 

The Fontana truck accident attorneys of OnderLaw will work tirelessly to hold the liable party or parties accountable for any injuries that you or a loved one sustained as the result of a truck accident. Our team is intimately familiar with trucking industry regulations and has significant experience taking truck companies to trial. 

Our team always works to provide the best possible legal representation to your or your loved one. OnderLaw has worked exhaustively across California to recover over $3,000,000,000 for our clients so far. Our work on personal injury cases, including truck accidents, has gotten us widespread recognition from the legal community.

We are proud to be listed in Super Lawyers, the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, Litigator Awards, National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers, Rue Ratings Best Attorneys of American, and Top 50 Verdicts in the US, as well as in the American Society of Legal Advocates, Martindale-Hubbell Peer, and the American Trial Lawyers Association.

Despite these accolades, we are the proudest of our success in recovering compensation for our clients. OnderLaw is ready to be your advocate, just as we have been for our other clients. 

Common Causes of Truck Accidents

While truck companies are generally trusted to follow protocols and train their drivers correctly, they do not always do everything they should to ensure that other motorists aren’t harmed by their drivers. This can have serious consequences for motorists, motorcyclists, cyclists, and pedestrians.

Some common causes of truck accidents include:

  • Drunk driving
  • Distracted driving
  • Aggressive driving
  • Driving while fatigued
  • Improper or insufficient training
  • Improper hiring
  • Improper supervision
  • Improper or insufficient maintenance of trucks
  • Hours of Service (HOS) regulation violations
  • Defective vehicle parts
  • Improper cargo loading
  • Unsecured loads

Whether the cause of your accident is listed above or not, you should contact a lawyer as soon as possible to have your case reviewed to ensure that you will be able to recover financial compensation and reach a fair settlement. OnderLaw has experience handling the above types of cases and more, understanding how driver error, poor training, or poor maintenance can all be factors that lead to a fatal truck crash.

Common Injuries Suffered in Car Accidents

Truck accidents can lead to catastrophic injuries for everyone involved, but motorists in passenger vehicles are more likely to suffer severe and even fatal injuries than truck drivers are. In fact, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 67% of all truck accident fatalities in 2019 were occupants of passenger vehicles, while just 16% were truck drivers. Because trucks are larger and heavier than passenger vehicles, they can cause severe injuries when they are involved in an accident. Many injuries resulting from truck accidents are life-altering. Some common injuries suffered in truck accidents include: 

  • Concussions
  • Traumatic brain injuries
  • Damage to internal organs
  • Internal Bleeding
  • Paralysis
  • Head and neck injuries
  • Spinal cord injuries
  • Whiplash
  • Back injuries
  • Fractures
  • Muscle tears, strains, and sprains
  • Lacerations

While these injuries and more can often happen in a truck accident, their effects can be long-lasting and have a significant impact on you or your loved one’s ability to support your household and live a normal life. Hiring an experienced Fontana truck accident attorney can help you get the compensation you need as you begin to rebuild your life after the crash. 

Who Is Responsible In An Accident? 

Determining who is responsible is an integral part of proving liability for a truck accident, and this can often be complicated. Luckily, an experienced truck accident lawyer can help prove liability using a variety of tools, such as: 

  • Dashboard cameras: Dashboard cameras monitor truck dashboards, designed to positively influence truck driver behavior. Because dashboard cameras are continuously recording, they can be used to easily identify the responsible party.
  • Surveillance footage: Whether near a storefront or another traffic camera or if a nearby observer captured the accident on video, this footage can be useful in determining the responsible party.
  • Hours of Service (HOS) logs: The federal government sets hours of service regulations , and they help to ensure that truck drivers are not overworked and are resting at regular intervals. If truck drivers violate hours of service regulations, they may become fatigued, which could result in an accident. 
  • Black box recorders: Also known as event data recorders (EDRs), black boxes document the truck’s movement and record certain information about the truck over time. Black boxes can be a useful tool to proving liability after a truck accident. 

It’s important to note that liability in a truck accident case isn’t always straightforward. In some cases, there may be more than one liable party. While the truck driver is usually at least partly to blame for a truck accident, the truck company, the truck manufacturer, any defective parts manufacturers, negligent cargo loaders, or other entities could potentially be liable in some way. That’s why it is so important to consult with a truck accident attorney from the start.

Compensation for Truck Accident Claims

If you have been injured in a truck accident, then you could be entitled to recover compensation. Compensation is designed to cover expenses you’ve incurred as a result of the accident. Some of the common types of compensation you may be able to recover include:

  • Property damage
  • Lost wages or other income
  • Loss of the ability to earn
  • Medical Bills
  • Recovery costs such as physical therapy or chiropractor costs
  • Disabilities because of the accident
  • Disfigurement
  • Pain and suffering
  • Lower quality of life
  • Grief counseling and emotional trauma
  • Punitive damages

Truck accidents can lead to severe physical and mental hardship and can result in significant financial damages. In many situations, these damages are permanent. You should not settle for anything less than what you deserve and need to move on with your life. You should be able to take care of your family and your life, rather than having to deal with the negligence of trucking companies.

An experienced Fontana-area truck accident lawyer can help lessen the financial burden caused by the accident. Your attorney will work to ensure that insurance companies do not low-ball you and that the liable party or parties are held accountable for their negligence. Unfortunately, truck companies and insurance companies do not always have your best interests in mind, but your lawyer certainly will. 

California and Fontana Truck Accident Statistics

Throughout California and here in Fontana, truck accidents remain tragically common, with 314 fatal crashes involving large trucks in California in 2018, the most recent year for which data is available. Unfortunately, fatal truck accidents throughout California have been on the rise since 2008, when 283 such accidents occurred. 

Here in San Bernardino County, serious vehicle accidents are also on the rise. In 2019, 16,123 people were seriously injured or killed in accidents, up 6% from 2018 and up 35% from 2010. Due to these concerning trends, qualified Fontana truck accident lawyers are necessary to hold trucking and insurance companies accountable and ensure that negligent or otherwise unqualified truck companies are brought to justice.

Call OnderLaw Today for a Free Initial Case Review

If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck or commercial vehicle accident in Fontana or in California, OnderLaw will be your advocate and will help you get your best chance possible for recovering compensation. Give OnderLaw a call now or contact us on our website to get an initial confidential review of your case.

The qualified Fontana truck injury lawyers of OnderLaw work on a contingency-fee-basis, meaning that we will not collect legal fees from you unless we secure compensation on your behalf. Simply put, we do not win unless you do. Give us a call now for your free case review.