Pennsylvania Truck Accident Attorney
When Should You Hire A Pennsylvania Truck Accident Lawyer?
If you or a loved one in the Pennsylvania area has suffered serious injuries because of a collision with a large truck, you may be entitled to compensation. To increase the likelihood of successfully recovering compensation from your truck accident case, it is important for you to not only find a reputable law firm with experienced truck accident attorneys but to do so as soon as possible.
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Why? Most truck drivers work for commercial trucking companies. To protect their profits, it is standard practice for companies in the trucking industry to have a law firm on retainer to defend them whenever their driver is involved in a trucking accident. While the victim and their family are still in shock and dealing with the medical emergency as a result of the truck crash, the truck company's lawyers could be visiting the crash site, obtaining copies of the police report, and getting the important head start to building a legal defense for the trucking company.
The trucking company’s #1 priority is their profits.
Our #1 priority is you and protecting your legal rights.
We will fight the trucking company, so you can focus on getting better.
It is also important to know that the state of Pennsylvania's Statute of Limitations establishes deadlines for filing lawsuits. You may waive your right to compensation if you fail to act quickly.
Pennsylvania Truck Accident Statistics
In 2021 alone, there were 7,244 truck-related accidents in Pennsylvania, with 144 of those accidents involving fatalities. It’s an unfortunate fact that thousands of crashes happen every year, with the potential to permanently alter the lives of drivers and other vehicle occupants.
The total number of crashes including fatal crashes in 2021 was the second highest in five years. Accidents can happen due to various instances of human error, mechanical failure, or both. Inclement weather is also a huge factor in big truck accidents, as drivers have to be able to manage slippery and hazardous conditions with the weight of their cargo.
A lack of proper vehicle inspection such as misaligned tires and wheels, failed brakes and steering systems, or unsecure and overloaded trailers are also possible causes of accidents.
Common distractions, such as answering a call, texting, or checking GPS can affect drivers as well.
Many of these reported crashes happened on state highways, both local and interstate roads including Interstate 95. The higher speed limit on highways induce a greater proportion of accidents and over 75% of all heavy truck accidents occurred on state highways. 10% of other accidents happened on local roads and 7% of all other accidents happened on turnpikes.
Types of Truck Accidents
According to recent statistics, common types of truck accidents in Philadelphia and throughout Pennsylvania include:
- Rear-end collisions - when a truck crashes into the end of a smaller vehicle. Often occurs when a truck fails to properly stop in time and is especially hazardous depending on weather conditions such as rain, snow, ice or fog.
- Head-on collisions - when a truck collides with a smaller car nose-to-nose.
- Side collisions - when a truck swipes into a smaller car due to wrongful overtaking, blind spots, excessive speed, or improper distancing.
- Jackknifing - when the head of the truck twists around so it faces the back of the truck, almost like a broken neck. Trucks often skid into this position because of brake or equipment failure, improper breaking, or inclement weather. A collision is nearly impossible to avoid in jackknifing accidents.
- Under-ride accident - when a smaller car crashes into a big truck and continues moving with force under the truck.
- Over-ride accident - when a large truck crashes into a smaller car and continues to drive over it.
How Much Money Can You Get For Your PennsylvaniaTruck Accident Claim?
When a passenger vehicle collides with a commercial truck, the passenger vehicle driver faces a greater risk of suffering devastating injuries, compared to collisions with other passenger vehicles. Broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, are among some of the serious injuries truck accident victims commonly sustain, which can drastically alter a person's way of life. Healing from these injuries costs money and time. Your personal injury claim should not only factor in medical bill costs, but lost wages, and compensation for pain and suffering as well.
Due to the sheer size and weight of commercial trucks, many of the accidents are fatal. When a motor vehicle accident results in a fatality or fatalities, it is in the best interest and the right of the close relatives of the deceased to file a wrongful death claim to recover money from the truck driver, trucking company, or another negligent third party.
As with all personal injury claims, each case has its own unique fact pattern. Because each truck accident case is unique, without knowing the circumstance leading up to the accident and any other important details - no one can predict or even estimate what the monetary compensation will be for your claim. Therefore, before you accept any money from an insurance company, call us at 1-888-341-3697 or submit an online form, for a free consultation and case evaluation. What they are offering you could be drastically less than what you can get with the proper legal representation.
Why You Should Hire A Pennsylvania Truck Accident Lawyer
Unfortunately, getting just compensation from trucking accidents in Pennsylvania is more difficult than it should be. You will face resistance from the truck driver, the trucking company's attorneys, and the auto insurance companies. To make matters even worse, the truck company can even try and blame you for the trucking accident. As your truck accident attorney, the information and evidence we gather to fight for your personal injury claim can also serve to protect you from any claims made by the trucking company. It is in your best interest to have an experienced attorney backed by a law firm with ample resources on your side.
After a catastrophic accident, let us handle all dealings with the trucking company so you can focus on healing.
What Qualifies As A Large Truck Accident?
ANY vehicle that weighs more than 10,000 pounds qualifies as a large truck. Such vehicles are typically referred to as semis or tractor-trailers. Accidents involving these types of vehicles are particularly dangerous due to their large size.
In fact, approximately 10% of people involved in large truck accidents lose their lives. Additionally, large truck accidents are more likely to involve multiple vehicles than passenger car collisions.
Federal and state agencies are responsible for regulating truck driver hours and trucking equipment. Trucking companies must keep records of this information. Large truck accidents are often the result of trucker fatigue and/or faulty equipment. Negligence on the part of truck drivers, such as speeding, improper lane changes, and failure to observe other vehicles when making turns, can also result in accidents. If you or a loved one has been involved in a collision with a large truck, get in touch with an experienced truck accident lawyer immediately.
Large trucks are involved in a high percentage of traffic crashes and deaths. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, in 2015 alone- over 53,000 large trucks were involved in crashes that caused auto accident injuries with over 4,000 fatal injuries. Sadly, the trend lines indicate a growing problem. The same data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety from 2009 data indicated only 3,200 deaths related to large truck accidents. The problem is likely to continue to increase as industry insiders confirm that more trucks continue to ride U.S. highways and roads daily.
It is important to have the help of an experienced truck accident lawyer whenever you are hurt in any one of these accidents. The legal professionals at our personal injury law firm will give you valuable legal advice and will take care of your truck accident case by negotiating with the trucking company and/or insurance carrier. In addition, you can learn whether or not the filing of a lawsuit against the trucking company is necessary to ensure that you receive the compensation for your auto accident injury that you deserve.
Anyone hurt in a large truck accident needs assistance from a truck accident attorney to ensure the responsible parties are held accountable. Our legal professionals that handle these cases understand how to negotiate with trucking companies to maximize the likelihood of a positive outcome. Additionally, a qualified truck accident lawyer can explain whether filing a lawsuit in the wake of an accident is even necessary in order to get proper compensation.
Why We Are the Right Philadelphia Truck Accident Lawyer for Your Case
Serious truck accident cases are not just business for us – they’re personal. When we take on a new client, we adopt them as part of our family, and we fight for them in every way possible.
That has been our motivating force in capturing hundreds of millions of dollars for clients we have represented during the past 50-plus years. It is also the reason we aspire to be one of the best personal injury firms in the country
During our 50-plus years working on catastrophic-accident cases involving passenger vehicles and large trucks, we have helped our clients successfully litigate and pursue justice for all types of truck accident cases. Whether it was an accident with a semi-truck, commercial vehicle, tractor-trailer, or any other class of large truck, by applying our vast experience and leveraging all necessary resources, our truck accident lawyers in Philadelphia have collected millions of dollars in damages for our Pennsylvania clients, money that was at times desperately needed to pay for lost wages, medical expenses, and quality of life care.
To successfully mount a case against the truck companies and their legal team, you want a law firm with experienced trial attorneys who have the ability as well as the financial resources to take the truck companies to court.
Gathering witness testimony, conducting an accident reconstruction, and filing legal motions can be incredibly time consuming and costly. If we take on your case, your initial evaluation, consultation, and all steps leading to the successful conclusion of your case are costs that we handle on your behalf. In other words, you are not required to pay us anything until we recover money for you!
As we work on your case, our firm will utilize experts and specialists to gather whatever evidence we feel is essential to litigate your personal injury claim against the defendants. Smaller law firms cannot and would not be willing to take on some of the costs involved. The result of going to the wrong law firm for a truck accident case is that they could try to settle too early and may not get you as much money as you could have received.
At The Rothenberg Law Firm LLP, we can guarantee that if we take on your case, we believe it is a winner, and we will spare no expense to make sure your case gets the best shot of reaching a successful settlement or trial verdict.
Everyone at our firm, from our Philadelphia attorneys and to our paralegal and support staff, has worked with clients in similar situations to yours and understands that you may be facing significant emotional and financial burdens following an accident of this nature. We work hard to relieve as much of that burden as possible. We are here for you during your most difficult times.
Get Legal Help From a Pennsylvania Truck Accident Lawyer
Again, if you or a loved one in the Philadelphia area has been hurt in a large truck accident, our experienced personal injury attorneys at The Rothenberg Law Firm are here to help. Call us at 1-888-341-3697 or submit a free online case evaluation.
Your initial consultation with a Philadelphia truck accident attorney is FREE. If we take on your case, we work on a contingency fee basis. This means we won’t charge any fees for our services unless our truck accident lawyers succeed in getting compensation for you first.
That said, it is important to know that the Statute of Limitations establishes deadlines for filing lawsuits. You may waive your right to compensation if you fail to act quickly. Get in touch with a Philadelphia truck accident lawyer at our firm today to avoid this outcome.
What Our Clients Say
The Rothenberg Law Firm turned a painful and traumatic experience into a positive moment. They guided me through a very difficult time. Both the attorney and paralegal were always available to assist and provide advice. They always responded and took care of things in an expeditiously manner. The best decision I made was to let the Rothenberg law firm handle my case.
"I was in a car accident and it all went downhill from there. I was left with injuries to my neck, back, and knee which have prevented me from working for months. I was worried that my future would be uncertain, but the Rothenberg law firm gave me great help. They fought for me and made sure that I got the best care possible. After everything was done I was surprised with how much they were able to recover considering the insurance company initially offered barely enough to cover my medical and physical therapy bills."
