- The Damage and Injuries are Often Catastrophic – It’s basic physics. Remember, Force = Mass x Velocity. If a larger commercial vehicle is involved in a collision, the damage to the smaller passenger vehicle will be much more substantial, not a fender bender. If a large commercial vehicle is involved, the speeds do not have to be very high for the damage and injuries to be substantial, and the force of the large vehicle often tosses the passenger car (and it’s passengers around) causing more injury.
- The Commercial Business and Insurance Carrier Investigate Promptly – In commercial accidents, involving catastrophic or serious injury, the commercial business and insurance carrier often have a “crisis” team that they will send to the scene as soon as hours after a crash. This is to collect evidence, or sometimes hide evidence, including getting statements, photos, and inspecting where the vehicles came to rest. This is why it is important for you to get a lawyer on the case right away. You should not let the commercial insurance carrier or company have a leg up, while you are focusing on your injuries and every way your life has been upended and disrupted.
- When More Damage and Injuries are at Stake, the Insurance Company is More Concerned About Its Money – When someone is more seriously hurt as a result of a collision, the insurance company for the at fault party is very concerned about the case. Therefore, they will assemble their A-team, including top lawyers, to start defending the case and framing the facts in their favor. They will hire investigators to creepily conduct surveillance of the injured person(s) doing regular things to mischaracterize them as not being hurt, or to try to frame a story that if someone can go about some things in daily life, they must not be that injured. This is very often very far from the truth. The commercial insurance carrier will deny fault, and blame you, or other persons for causing the crash and will it take a skilled and experienced team on your side to shed light on the truth and expose frivolous “defenses.”
- Vehicle Inspections Must Happen Quickly and Evidence Must be Preserved – This should be at the top of this list. Hiring a lawyer on your side quickly will enable that lawyer to demand all parties involved preserve evidence, including the vehicles involved, and assembling a team of experts to conduct critical inspections, such as Event Data Downloads, checking for mechanical defects, obtaining photos and videos, witness information, etc. Delay unnecessarily risks evidence getting lost, stale, or compromised. Witnesses memories’ fade, and their desire to describe what they witnessed is highest immediately after witnessing a shocking collision or accident. Witnesses can be lost, move away, or sadly pass away. It is important to have your legal team subpoena 911 records right away. You can usually only obtain this information after a lawsuit is filed, and with the subpoena power of an attorney.
- Immediate Quality Medical Care is Required – When a large commercial vehicle collision causes serious injuries, people are often blindsided and do not have access to the quality of care they really need. You may need access to top notch specialists, and you will need that care quickly. You may find yourself immediately transported to the nearest trauma center undergoing a surgery, but what happens after you are discharged? What about follow up care? Therapy? Rehabilitation? You are not going to be going back to the Emergency Room for after-visits. Every person does not have access to the same health insurance or medical providers, some people have very basic health insurance intended for annual check ups or the one-off visit here and there. Hiring an experienced (and caring) attorney will help you get access to the specialized care you deserve, and the BEST care you can get when a serious injury is unnaturally thrust into your life due to the negligence or carelessness of someone else. You may need the skills and experience of a medical team that is outside your insurance network – and you deserve to have the best medical team, not just access to the medical care your situation provides.
November 20, 2024