Boca Raton Truck Accident Attorney

Most Common Causes of Boca Raton Truck Accidents

Your Boca Raton truck accident lawyer will conduct an investigation into the cause of your crash and whether it was related to any of these common factors:

Aggressive Driving

Aggressive driving is an umbrella term that includes a range of behaviors such as:

• Cutting off other drivers
• Following too closely or tailgating
• Weaving in and out of lanes
• Passing illegally
• Repeated braking and accelerating (brake checking)
• Speeding

Speeding

Heavy vehicles need more stopping distance to avoid an auto accident. A tractor trailer traveling at 65 miles per hour needs 600 ft to come to a complete stop. Many trucking companies have added speed limiters to prevent truck drivers from going over a certain speed, so some semi trucks can’t go faster than the speed limit. However, when truck drivers run red lights or speed through streets like US1, Glades Road, Military Highway, and other local roads, they increase the likelihood of causing a Boca Raton truck accident.

Driver Fatigue

Truck driver fatigue impairs performance and can be caused by driving long hours, so the FMCSA has instituted hours of service regulations to prevent trucking accidents. A study by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) found that 13 percent of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers were considered to have been fatigued at the time of their truck accident. Prescription drug use, lack of sleep, extended work hours, and other factors can contribute to fatigue that leads to a crash.

Distracted Driving

When a truck driver looks at their phone even for 5 seconds while traveling at 55 mph, it’s like driving the length of a football field with their eyes closed. The most common forms of distracted driving are manual (taking hands off the wheel), visual (looking away from the road), and cognitive (mind not focused on driving). Distracted driving claimed the lives of 3,142 people in 2020. Contact our law firm if you were injured in an accident caused by a driver’s negligence.

Adverse Weather Conditions

South Florida gets a lot of fierce storms and truck drivers are supposed to adjust their driving to the current conditions. Every truck driver assumes a legal responsibility to exercise caution and care in all weather conditions.

Alcohol Use Is Not One Of The Top Causes, But Still Occurs

Drunk driving is, in fact, not one of the top causes of truck accidents because of the strict regulations governing the trucking industry and truck drivers. In 2015, only 3% of fatally injured truck drivers had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above 0.08%, compared to 30% of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers with BACs at or above 0.08%. Though rarer, when Boca Raton truck accidents happen due to drunk driving, they cause personal injury. Contact our Boca Raton law firm today to talk about getting compensation for your serious injuries.

Source: www.fmcsa.dot.gov

Possible Injuries After a Truck Accident

Because of the size difference between semi trucks and smaller vehicles, trucking accidents can cause devastating injuries to drivers and passengers of smaller cars, pedestrians, and bicyclists.

Catastrophic injuries are those that permanently alter the life of the accident victim by preventing them from doing the things that they used to.

Large trucks have a lot of mass. Broken bones are common injuries resulting from the bones fracturing under the pressure of the force of impact. The most common broken bone injuries occur in the following areas:

• Ribs
• Pelvis
• Wrists
• Tibias/Fibulas
• Femurs
• Clavicles
• Hips

Spinal cord injuries (SCI) can lead to lifelong complications. Victims suffering from paraplegia after a trucking accident will rely on a ventilator to breathe and need intensive care, leading to high medical expenses. SCI results in loss of voluntary muscle control from the point of injury on down.

Like SCI, traumatic brain injuries (TBI) after an accident can change a person’s life. TBI results from the brain hitting the inner walls of the skull during impact, resulting in brain bleeding, bruising, and shearing of neurons. It can also be caused by an object piercing the skull during impact and exposing the brain. There are immediate effects of TBI, like nausea, dizziness, headache, confusion, or loss of consciousness. Over the next several days, months or years, the victim may experience cognitive, behavioral, and psychological effects from TBI.

How Common are Truck Accidents in Boca Raton?

So far there have been 5,750 total vehicle crashes in Palm Beach County in 2023. In 2021 there were 3,353 car accidents in Boca Raton. Based on the city’s population, this makes the car accident rate in Boca Raton 8% higher than the rest of Florida.

In 2015, 30% of deaths involving large tractor trailers occurred on interstates and freeways, while 53% occurred on major roads other than freeways or highways. In 2016, there were 44,307 accidents involving commercial trucks in Florida.

Why You Need a Truck Accident Attorney

An experienced truck accident attorney who is used to dealing with insurance providers can help you recover compensation for your serious injuries and damages. Trucking companies have the money and power to hire legal teams that intimidate accident victims, but we fight back harder.

Because crashes involving large trucks lead to severe injuries, accident victims face enormous medical bills for their medical treatment. Therefore, the damages they seek in their truck accident case could be worth thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Insurance companies, however, are focused on saving themselves money.

Insurance adjusters and other responsible parties may offer you a lowball settlement, so you need the help of an experienced Boca Raton truck accident lawyer to negotiate on your behalf. The insurance company will use your ignorance of the law and your rights to try to convince you that there are deadlines you must meet and steps you must take right away. A truck accident lawyer can protect you from being taken advantage of by the insurance adjusters.

FAQs

Below are some of the most common questions about Boca Raton truck accidents that our personal injury lawyers receive.

Who is liable for a tractor trailer accident?

A negligent truck driver can be held liable for a Boca Raton truck accident. Truck drivers have an obligation to follow state and federal trucking regulations, and local traffic laws. Failure to uphold these rules, like failure to properly inspect a truck before going on the road, can make them liable. A truck driver can be held liable for dangerous lane changes, driving too fast for weather conditions, following other vehicles too closely, violating hours of service regulations and other forms of negligence.

The trucking company can also be held liable for a tractor trailer accident. Even though the trucking industry should be primarily concerned with safety, the basis of their business is to deliver freight as quickly as possible. Trucking companies are required to keep strict logs and records. Trucking companies that falsify log books in violation of Motor Carrier Safety Regulations can be held liable for injuries or wrongful death in a trucking accident.

If neither the company or driver own the truck, then the truck owner can be held liable for an accident if it was caused by their negligence in regularly inspecting the equipment, engine and tires.

Is it difficult to prove negligence in my Boca Raton truck accident case?

Your Boca Raton truck accident attorney will need to prove negligence to recover your compensation. Truck accident attorneys collect evidence from eyewitness statements, police reports, medical records, camera footage, and log books. Your truck accident attorney will conduct an investigation to see if the driver and trucking company were in compliance with the FMCSA.

Truck accident cases can be traumatic for the victim, but our most experienced truck accident attorneys will handle your case so that you don’t have to deal with the stress of proving your damages.

Call us today to schedule your free consultation with a truck accident lawyer who can answer your questions regarding what legal strategies would be best to use in your case.

What types of damages are caused by a Boca Raton truck accident?

Damages are the losses you have suffered because of the action of a negligent truck driver or incautious trucking company:

• Economic damages: You can receive compensation for your medical costs, lost wages, property damage, and other financial losses in a trucking accident claim.
• Noneconomic damages: These may be awarded in a Boca Raton truck accident case, which compensates accident victims for their physical pain, emotional anguish, and psychological distress

Punitive damages are awarded to punish a defendant for outrageously reckless behavior, such as intentional conduct or gross negligence that results in a Boca Raton truck accident. Your truck accident lawyer will use clear and convincing evidence to prove the defendant knew of their wrongdoing and the high probability that their actions could lead to an accident.

When a trucking accident has led to a wrongful death, the surviving family members may file for economic damages, including funeral and burial costs, medical expenses incurred before the decedent’s death, and the value of lost support and services.

Boca Raton Truck Accident Attorney

If you were in a Boca Raton truck accident caused by a negligent truck driver or trucking company, call the Law Offices of Scott J. Senft at 954-998-0175. The experienced truck accident attorneys from our South Florida law firm will fight aggressively to obtain a settlement or award from the responsible party on your behalf.