Truck Accident

Tyler Accident Lawyer For over three decades I have personally handled truck accident cases throughout Texas. Truck accident cases are much more complex than auto accidents and require specialized knowledge and experience. Perhaps the complexity of these cases is why many attorneys who advertise for tractor-trailer accidents cases actually refer them to an experienced firm like ours.

The convergence of a number of major highways in the Tyler area coupled with it being an East Texas regional shopping and business center results in a large number of commercial and private vehicles coming together often with disastrous results.

Trucking companies and drivers are regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. Drivers' hours of service are strictly regulated. There are numerous equipment regulations regarding 18-wheelers. These accidents often involve catastrophic injuries and complicated accident reconstructions. Only an attorney who is experienced in these areas can effectively represent you when you have been involved in an accident with one of these tractor-trailer rigs.

Accidents involving tankers oftentimes focus on the total weight combination. A tractor pulling a tank trailer is subject to maximum legal weight limitations. East Texas oilfield trucking companies that use tank trucks often calculate weights using the weight of water which is less dense and weighs less than many other liquids. An attorney handling a tanker accident must be knowledgeable regarding the physics and dynamics that are unique to tank trucks.

Trucking companies have learned that drivers who are paid a salary tend to drive slower than those who are paid by the mile. Thus most companies pay their drivers by the mile. The obvious result is that the faster a truck is going the more the driver is earning. Unfortunately, speed also increases the number and severity of accidents. Companies also dispatch their drivers with delivery deadlines that are impossible to meet unless the truck driver substantially exceeds the speed limit while on the open road. While the average speed for the total number of miles traveled may be below the speed limit, traffic delays, fuel stops and small towns force truck drivers to travel at excessive speeds while on the open highway. An attorney handling a truck accident involving long-haul trucking must be familiar with the factors that go into reconstructing the speed of the tractor-trailer not only at the time of the accident but also during the entire trip.

One of the most dangerous things that we do in our daily lives is share the public roadways with commercial trucks. Trucking companies continue to place ever increasing pressure on their drivers to go farther and faster. The resulting driver fatigue leads to driver error. When the operator of an 80,000 lb. rig makes a mistake the results are often catastrophic. Studies show that drivers' fatigue is a huge factor. Truck drivers are required to log their hours and are limited to a maximum of ten hours "on duty" before they must rest. However, detailed analysis of their log books, fuel tickets, dispatch records, phone records, and other trip documents often shows that they are fatigued because they have exceeded the maximum allowable hours of service regardless of what is written in their log books. An attorney handling cases involving driver error must look beyond the actual facts of the accident and the driver's log book and discover the underlying cause of the driver fatigue.

We have handled numerous accident cases in Tyler, Rusk, Henderson, Nacogdoches, Carthage, Marshall, Longview, Gilmore, Pittsburg, Mineola, Quitman, Canton, Athens, Palestine, Jacksonville, and the rest of East Texas.

We have collected many millions of dollars for our clients who have sustained injuries which were caused by commercial trucks. Good settlements in these cases are not an accident. They are the result of our knowledge, experience and thorough development of the case.

After more than thirty-seven years and thousands of personal injury cases there is virtually nothing that we haven't seen and successfully handled. There is no substitute for experience. If you want the assistance of an experienced Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney in the Tyler / Longview / East Texas area contact us today.

Representative Truck Accident Cases
Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law

903-531-9300

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Texas Injury Lawyer Blog - Truck Accident Victims