Involvement in a semi-truck accident can produce devastating results. Even at low speeds, accidents caused by these vehicles result in serious injuries or even death. Injuries from a semi-truck accident can either result from colliding with other vehicles or being hit by the truck as a pedestrian. While dealing with the physical and emotional pain from the accident, you must sort out the issue of compensation. Mist semi-truck accidents are a result of negligence from a road user. Therefore, you are entitled to compensation for your injuries.

Even when you file a civil lawsuit against the negligent parties, compensation is not automatic. You must prove liability for the accident and show the losses and injuries you suffered. Additionally, you will need to deal with insurance adjusters who seek to downplay your claim. Battling for compensation in a truck accident case is an uphill task. Therefore, hiring and retaining a competent personal injury attorney is crucial in recovering a maximum settlement.

Settlement in a Semi-Truck Accident Case

In California, drivers must constantly share lanes with giant semi-trucks that travel daily. These vehicles' length and heavy weight contribute to devastating accidents, injuries, and death of victims. When you are involved in a semi-truck accident, you may be left to deal with high medical expenses, which you cannot cover since your ability to return to work is limited.

Fortunately, all victims of semi-truck accidents are entitled to recover compensation for their injuries. When you file a lawsuit or insurance claim against the liable parties in your accident, you can receive a settlement that covers your losses. Victims of semi-truck accidents have the right to know the support they will receive from semi-truck drivers and trucking companies after the accident.

However, estimating a settlement value may only be possible once all the accident details are accounted for. Injuries from these accidents vary in severity. Insurance companies are reluctant to shoulder liability for your injuries. Therefore, they may seek to generalize the accident victims and attempt to offer a settlement. You must understand that insurance adjusters do not have your best interests. Therefore, you may need an attorney to assess your case and help you fight for the settlement you deserve.

Factors Affecting Semi-Truck Accident Case Settlement

When seeking compensation for a semi-truck accident, you must deal with the insurance companies. The sole focus of insurance companies and their adjusters is to make money. They profit more from the situation by offering lower settlements to accident victims.  During your negotiation for settlement, your attorney will present a demand letter indicating the amount you want as a settlement for your injuries. Insurance companies rarely agree to pay the amount indicated in your demand letter. The adjusters will use different tactics to undercut your demand and lower the offer.

Some of the tactics the insurance companies use to ensure that they offer you a lower settlement include:

  • Coercing you into admitting fault for the accident. This reduces the liability for their client and thus lowers your settlement.
  • Argue that you are not injured. The insurance company can argue that your injuries are not severe through the information you provide to the adjusters after the accident.
  • Request you to consult with their doctors. The physicians appointed by the insurance company can downplay your injuries to ensure that you receive minimal compensation.

The following factors can impact your settlement in the case:

Accident Liability

Liability is a critical aspect of accident cases. Before receiving a settlement, you must prove that your accident was a direct consequence of the defendant’s negligence. With the guidance of your attorney, you can gather further evidence to prove that another person caused your accident and injuries. Common forms of evidence you can use for your claim include:

  • The police report from the accident
  • Witness testimony
  • Photographic and video evidence

Different parties are involved in the operation of trucks. Therefore, you can file a claim against multiple parties in a single accident. Having multiple defendants in your case increases the chances of a high settlement.

For example, if you suffer a serious accident and file a lawsuit against the truck driver, their insurance coverage may not be enough to pay for all your damages. When the insurance payments are depleted, you may have to cover your expenses out of pocket. However, if you can prove that the trucking company shared in the liability of your accident, you can recover maximum compensation for your injuries and losses.

The extent of your injuries

Personal injury claims aims to recover compensation for your injuries and losses that stem from the injury. Therefore, the seriousness of your injuries could significantly impact your settlement. Trucks and semi-truck accidents cause some of the most catastrophic accident injuries, including the following:

  • Traumatic Brain Injury

Head and brain injuries are some of the most serious injuries that could result from a collision. A TBI can either be open or closed depending on the cause of injury. A closed injury results from blunt trauma to the head, while sharp objects cause an open injury. The brain is a critical part of the body; an injury to this can significantly impact your life.

  • Broken Bones and Amputations

The impact from semi-truck accidents can break even the strongest bones in the body. In cases where the bones are severely damaged, the doctor can decide to amputate the limbs. Broken bones take a long time to recover. Treatment for the injury includes painful and costly procedures. Amputations, on the other hand, can cause permanent disability. Adjusting to the impacts of amputations can be very challenging,

  • Spinal Cord Injuries

The spinal cord is an important body part that controls multiple functions. A spinal cord injury occurs when an accident damages the vertebrae from excessive impact. Depending on the accident's severity, you can suffer temporary or permanent spinal cord injury. A complete spine severing can affect your sexual, bladder, and bowel function. Life cannot be the same after a spinal cord injury.

  • Death

Death is not an uncommon outcome of a truck accident. Some victims die from the accident's impact, while others succumb to other injuries. Losing a loved one in a semi-truck accident can be devastating. Additionally, you could be left to deal with the medical bills accumulated before the death.

If you have suffered serious injuries or lost a loved one in the accident, your losses will be higher, and the likelihood of receiving a high settlement increases.

Negligence

Most semi-truck accidents are caused by negligence from the truck driver, trucking companies, truck manufacturers, or other road users. Sometimes, you can be partially at fault for the accident. California is a pure comparative negligence state. Therefore, you will receive a settlement depending on the percentage of fault of each party in the accident. You can be compensated for your injuries even when you contributed to the accident.

For example, if you contribute 30% to an accident, you are entitled to compensation for up to 70% of the injuries. However, you should never admit to fault for the accident. You must allow the insurance companies or the defendant's attorney to determine your contribution. Admitting to some fault for the accident could reduce your settlement significantly.

Availability of Insurance

Another factor impacting your settlement is the availability of insurance coverage to pay for your damages. In California, all drivers must have minimum insurance. However, commercial vehicles like semi-trucks must have large insurance covers. If an insured driver hits you, you can seek compensation from your insurance company.

Large companies carry more insurance than the state minimum. Therefore, filing a claim against a large truck company means you can recover more compensation.

Competence of your Attorney

For maximum settlement in a semi-truck accident case, you must deal with insurance adjusters whose main role is to downplay the case and offer low settlements. A skilled personal injury attorney understands insurance tactics and can help you with the adjusters and insurance companies. Additionally, your attorney may be able to collect all the evidence needed to prove liability and damages for maximum compensation.

Potential Settlement in your Semi-Truck Accident Case

Although the settlement amount for semi-truck accident cases varies from one person to another. A successful case could yield a settlement for the following damages:

Medical Expenses

You will rarely walk out of a semi-truck accident uninjured. Semi-trucks cause accidents ranging from head-on collisions to rollover accidents and pedestrian accidents. Most of these accidents result in serious and catastrophic injuries. Dealing with your injuries is hard enough. You do not need to shoulder financial losses for another person’s negligence. Therefore, the liable party in your accident is responsible for paying your medical bills.

Medical expenses accumulate when emergency services arrive and take you to the hospital. Most injuries from a semi-truck accident take a while to recover. This increases hospital stays and the cost of treatment. Most liable parties are reluctant to admit to fault for the accident.

Therefore, you may need to pay your medical bills using medical insurance or seek care from physicians who operate on a lien. If you are treated by a doctor online, you must compensate them with the proceeds of the claim. They can share in paying your bills and recover the money after your settlement if you have multiple health covers. Medical expenses after a semi-truck crash include:

  • Emergency room treatment.
  • Surgeries and medical procedures.
  • Medical services and drugs.
  • Hospital stays.
  • Physical and cognitive rehabilitation.
  • Extended care services.

Before medical expenses are incorporated into your sentence, you must provide evidence of injuries and treatment. Therefore, you must seek immediate medical care after the accident.

Additionally, you must ensure that all your treatments are recorded. Sometimes, the at-fault party’s insurance company will request medical records dating five years. This move aims to ensure that the injuries for which you seek compensation resulted from the accident. If you had an existing injury that worsened after the accident, you could still recover compensation.

Lost Wages

The injuries from a semi-truck accident can keep you away from work for weeks or even months. As you nurse your injuries and spend time in the hospital, you will miss out on your monthly salary, commissions, overtime payment, bonuses, and income from self-employment. Lost wages differ from earning capacity because the lost wages are current losses and can be calculated.

You must file a lawsuit within two years of the accident to recover for lost wages in California. Each damage you claim in a semi-truck accident must be accompanied by evidence. You can prove your lost wages through the following ways:

  1. Letter From Your Employer

If you have regular employment, it is easy to obtain a lost wages letter from your employer. The lost wages letter determines the amount you lose by indicating the following:

  • The terms of your employment contract.
  • The number of hours you work per day.
  • The amount you earn per hour.
  • Confirmation that you were an employee at the time of the accident.
  • The overtime pay to which you are entitled.
  • The number of days you missed from work after the accident.
  • The amount you could have reasonably expected to receive during the days you missed from work.
  1. Tax Returns and Pay Stubs

If your employer fails to give you the lost wages letter or you do not hold a consistent job position, you can establish your lost wages through pay stubs or income tax returns. You can request your tax return documents by filing form FTB 3516. If you earn your income from self-employment, you can use tax statements from previous years and billing statements for seasonal income.

Lost Earning Capacity

In your semi-truck accident case settlement, you can receive compensation for past and future earnings. Lost earning capacity is the loss of your ability to earn money in the future due to the impact of your injuries. Unlike lost wages, proving lost earning capacity is challenging since the loss hasn’t occurred.

Often, you will receive compensation for lost earning capacity after serious injuries, which do not recover when you receive your settlement. Although a permanent injury is not necessary for you to receive these benefits, the seriousness of the injury may impact the amount you stand to recover. If you can return to work before filing your case, you cannot recover these damages.

Lost earnings could be in the form of salary, bonuses, self-employment income, and overtime pay. When determining the lost earrings for your settlement, the court or insurance company awarding compensation could consider the following factors:

  • The severity of your injuries.
  • The duration of your incapacitation is likely to last.
  • Your age and life expectancy.
  • The number of working years you have left before retirement.
  • Your overall health before the accident.
  • Your long-term career goals and prospects of a promotion.
  • Your performance and reviews.

You do not need a history of earnings to recover compensation for lost earning capacity. Evidence of lost earning capacity can be archived through testimonies from the following individuals:

  • Your employer. Your employer will testify on your work history and how the accident injuries affect your performance.
  • Your physician. The doctor or therapist who treats you after the semi-truck accident can speak on your health and ability to work, given your injuries.
  • An expert economist. An economist establishes the salary trends in your field of work to determine what you would have earned without the injuries.
  • Family and friends. Individuals with whom you have a personal relationship can testify to your life before and after the injuries.

Pain and Suffering

Semi-truck accident injuries can cause serious physical and emotional pain. While a judge cannot attach a dollar value to your pain, you can be compensated for pain and suffering. Pain and suffering, in this case, include emotional distress, psychological trauma, and anxiety caused by the auto accident.

There is no fixed standard for the amount you can recover for non-economic damages. However, the following factors may increase your settlement:

  • Need for lifelong medical care.
  • Permanent disabilities like spinal cord injury and amputations.
  • Lost wages due to disability.
  • Reduced quality of life.

Wrongful Death Settlement

You can claim compensation for wrongful death when you lose a loved one in a semi-truck accident. Although compensation does not ease the pain of losing a friend or loved one, the amount you receive can help reduce financial distress from funeral and burial expenses.

Find a Reliable Truck Accident Attorney Near Me

If you are involved in a semi-truck accident, you are entitled to compensation for your injuries. By filing a claim with the insurance company, There is no exact amount you can receive as settlement for your semi-truck accident. The amount you stand to recover will vary depending on the seriousness of your injuries, liability, and the strength of your legal team. Immediately after the accident, insurance companies will begin to contact you with settlements that do not cover your losses. Before accepting a settlement, you must speak with your attorney.

Although compensation for your injuries will not eliminate the physical pain and trauma caused by accident, it can cover your medical expenses and reimburse you for lost wages and future earning capacity. At The Personal Injury Attorney Law Firm, we understand the devastation a semi-truck accident could cause to you and your family. We serve clients seeking legal guidance and representation to battle semi-truck accident lawsuits throughout California. Contact us at 800-492-6718 to discuss the details of your claim.