Monroe Truck Accident Attorneys

Monroe is a thriving metropolitan area in northern Louisiana with nearly 50,000 residents and plenty of attractions to draw tourists. Like other population centers, the visitors and residents of Monroe rely on commercial motor vehicles to deliver supplies from other regions or to transport their shipments from the city.

Unfortunately, the enormous trucks used to ship products into and out of the city pose several hazards to other users of the roads, including the occupants of passenger cars, motorcyclists, pedestrians, and bicyclists. These hazards include significant blind spots, increased stopping distance, and a tendency to roll over when turning too sharply or making emergency maneuvers.

If you've been injured in a truck accident in Monroe, several local firms would be happy to speak with you about your case. However, Stewart J. Guss, Injury Accident Lawyers, not only has a legal team in Louisiana but is a national firm with the resources and a reputation that has been hard-earned over the past 20-plus years. Our team is available seven days a week, 24 hours a day, to evaluate your case and answer the questions you have about your accident. Simply reach out to us online or by calling 800-898-4877.

Monroe Truck Accident Guide

Trust Guss: A National Law Firm Right Here in Louisiana

Modern conveniences—including the ability to make toll-free phone calls and even have a video conference if need be—have made it possible for those injured in Monroe truck accidents to obtain assistance from any law firm working in the state and to have dedicated legal professionals working on their case without ever having to leave their homes.

By working with a national law firm, the clients of Stewart J. Guss, Injury Accident Lawyers, benefit from an even more extensive network of professionals and the resources available to handle even the most complex cases. This helps with a truck accident claim, for example, as this type of accident involves not only a federally regulated industry but one notorious for hiring high-powered insurers and attorneys to protect their financial interests. The first step to obtaining a free case evaluation and learning more about your legal options is to contact us by phone or online.

What Is a Truck Accident Case Worth?

There has been a significant increase in commercial truck accidents in recent years, as reported by the National Safety Council. Large trucks account for around 9 percent of all vehicles involved in fatal crashes and 3 percent of all vehicles involved in injury crashes. Weighing up to 80,000 pounds when fully loaded and taller and longer than other vehicles, commercial trucks feature some maneuverability issues that can lead to accidents.

Make no mistake about it: Having a collision with a semi-truck can result in serious injuries! These injuries can result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills and lost wages, extensive property damage to the vehicle you were driving, and negative impacts that include physical pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and more.

Trucking companies and truck owners/operators must obtain more liability insurance to fully compensate others when a truck driver causes an accident.

There are no "average" truck accident cases or average values to injury claims. There are, however, several unique factors to your injury case that an experienced Monroe truck accident lawyer will use to determine the value of your claim. These factors include the amount of insurance available to compensate for the claim, the severity of your injury, and the level of carelessness or recklessness exhibited by the at-fault driver.

Where Are Truck Accidents Likely to Occur in Monroe?

The most likely areas for truck accidents are on the roadways they travel the most, including Interstate 20, which is part of the Eisenhower Interstate System and accommodates east-west traffic into and out of the city and to other cities, including Atlanta, Birmingham, and Dallas. 

Additionally, as noted by the City of Monroe, trucks can use US Highway 65 to travel north-south around the city, and U.S. 80, which also facilitates east-west traffic through Monroe. While these are the most common locations for trucks traveling through or into and out of the city, note that trucks use many other streets—even in the heart of Monroe—to provide services to businesses and residents.

Even the loading and unloading areas in retail parking lots can be the scene of truck accidents if a driver is unaware of the vehicles and people around them.

Causes of Truck Accidents and the Injuries that Result

Decades of trucking in the US have led to a pile of regulations on the industry and the drivers, including the requirement that drivers obtain training and a special license to operate the vehicle, submit to regular physical exams, and drug and alcohol screenings, and perform a pre-trip inspect on their truck before every journey. Trucking companies must insure and maintain the vehicle, retain personnel files on their drivers, and ensure that the drivers follow policies and industry best practices.

Despite these requirements, the drivers of commercial trucks still cause accidents sometimes due to carelessness and recklessness.

Some of the negligent driving behaviors that can make a truck driver or trucking company liable for an accident include:

• Distracted driving, including driving while texting or using a cell phone for other purposes, eating, drinking, smoking, visiting with a passenger or co-driver, adjusting vehicle controls, or thinking about something other than driving safely.
• Drowsy driving occurs when a driver has gone many hours without sleep or has not obtained restful sleep. Drivers of commercial trucks are at a higher risk for drowsy driver accidents, as they often drive many hours across boring terrain (which can result in mental exhaustion). They often sleep in their sleeper berths—which increases the risk of accidents occurring shortly after they begin driving again due to sleep inertia. They often operate their vehicles during the late night hours when the body instinctively desires to sleep.
• Alcohol or drugs can impair the skills the driver needs to operate a vehicle safely. This includes all types of drugs, even those prescribed or purchased over the counter.
• Failure to yield the right-of-way at stop signs, stop lights, or even when merging or passing due to significant blind spots that occur on all four sides of the vehicle and make it difficult for a truck driver to see if someone else is traveling in the lane that they're merging into. While the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regularly warns other drivers of the truck's blind spots and tells them to avoid these no-zones, the truck driver must clear these areas before merging.

Some of the most severe injuries a person can suffer can result from an accident involving a commercial truck. This includes catastrophic injuries such as head and spinal cord injuries, traumatic limb amputations, and severe burns. Other injuries commonly associated with truck accidents include broken bones, internal injuries, spinal vertebrae and disc damage, and much more.

Each of these injuries can lead to massive medical expenses, the inability of the sufferer to work while recovering from the injury, and—in the case of catastrophic injuries—can account for a loss in future earning capacity. What's more, the injuries can cause a person to suffer pain, become distressed about their future, be inconvenienced by the frequency of medical appointments, and be unable to enjoy hobbies and events that are important to them.

How Stewart J. Guss, Injury Accident Lawyers Can Help You Fight the Insurance Company

As heavy as the impacts are to others when a truck driver fails to operate their vehicle safely and legally on a public road, accident injury claims aren't usually filed against the trucking companies or truck drivers themselves. They're filed against the insurance policy maintained on the vehicle.

When the at-fault party's insurance provider receives the policy, they will assign a claims adjuster to evaluate the claim and determine how much compensation to provide for the claimant based on the insured's liability and the documentation showing the expenses and impacts the claimant suffered.

Remember: the claims adjuster is an employee of the insurance company, and they're viewing the claim from the standpoint of causing as small of a payout as possible on behalf of their employer.

Claimants who do not have attorneys to manage communication with the insurer often find the value of their claim degraded by tactics the insurance company uses to devalue claims, such as convincing the claimant the lowball settlement offer is the most they can receive for their claim, or telling them that they need to release their entire medical history to review the claim, even though they do not need to see all of that.

The legal team at Stewart J. Guss, Injury Accident Lawyers, can help you fight the insurance company by providing services to deliver the most compensation available for your claim.

These services include:

• Evaluating your case to determine who was liable and the liable party's insurance resources.
• Evaluating your claim based on the expenses you incurred and the psychological costs of your injury.
• Communicating with the insurance claims adjuster about your claim, protecting its value from well-known tactics.
• Filing a lawsuit in court within the one-year statute of limitations that applies to most types of personal injury claims in Louisiana.
• Gathering the extensive evidence needed to prove a truck accident claim.
• Presenting your case at trial if necessary.
• Helping you to obtain your compensation after your claim.

What You Can Do to Protect the Value of Your Truck Accident Claim

With an experienced legal team on board, most truck accident claimants can focus entirely on recovering from their physical injuries while the firm handles their legal claims.

However, to assist with the case, you can:

• Promptly respond to your lawyer's requests for information.
• Keep copies of receipts and any journaling you have done regarding your level of pain and the frequency of medical appointments and provide these records, along with the accident report and other information you have obtained, for your attorney.
• Attend all scheduled medical appointments pertaining to your accident injuries and follow your doctor's treatment plan.

While having an attorney is often suggested as an option after someone has been injured in an accident, the guidance and assistance your legal team provides are essential to having a positive outcome in your claim.

Injured in a Monroe Truck Accident? Call Stewart J. Guss, Injury Accident Lawyers

Technology has caused us all to be closer than ever before. It provides the access you need to a nationwide law firm with the resources and expertise necessary to handle claims involving a federally regulated industry and the efforts made by high-powered insurers to keep money in the pockets of employers rather than fairly compensating those harmed by a truck driver's negligence.

If a Monroe traffic accident caused by a negligent truck driver injured you or your loved one, you likely have many questions about your case. If so, you can always trust Guss.

The Monroe personal injury lawyers of Stewart J. Guss, Injury Accident Lawyers, is nationally recognized for protecting the rights of injured victims for more than 20 years. If a Monroe truck accident injured you, call our office right now for a free consultation! Because we take all of our personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis, you will not owe us a dime unless we win your case. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so call us today at 800-898-4877 or contact us now by clicking here.