Commercial Truck Accidents: Underride Guards

Fort Worth and Dallas have seen their share of serious truck accidents recently. Across America, 4,000 people are injured in traffic accidents involving 18-wheeler commercial trucks each year. A further 100,000 motorists are injured. Big rig wrecks are always extremely serious. Due to the sheer size of a tractor trailer - in addition to the weight of their cargo - any collision involving a big rig is guaranteed to produce serious property damage and often very serious injuries. If you or a loved one have been hurt in a crash involving an 18-wheeler, it is very important that you contact a board-certified personal injury attorney as soon as possible.

Commercial trucking companies are big businesses. They know that if one of their truck operators was at fault, they could be forced to pay out a lot of damages to cover medical bills of the injured parties. Truck companies are known to have their company representatives on the scene of a crash very quickly. Therefore, it is extremely important that you have your own lawyer and accident investigator at the scene as soon after at the collision as possible.

One of the biggest dangers regarding big rig wrecks is the underride guard installed at the back of most large tractor trailers. The guard is designed to prevent cars from traveling beneath the truck in the event of a rear-end collision. However, studies have shown that the guard often fails even at relatively low speeds. Passenger vehicles should be stopped outright by the guards, but instead the upper part of many cars are crushed or sliced off when hitting a big rig from behind. If such an accident was to occur in real life, the driver and passengers in the car would almost certainly be decapitated and killed.

In addition to concerns about the design and installation of the guards to trucks, there are also concerns about the safety designs of cars. Many models which perform well in test crashes involving other similar cars perform very well, but in an 18-wheeler rear-impact collision there is often virtually no protection which could stand up to the force of the truck. The National Highway Administration (NHTSA) estimates that there are 423 fatalities each year caused by cars which strike the back of a truck, breaking the guard rail, and continue to slide beneath the truck.

If you have been injured in a truck accident it is very important that you consult with an experience personal injury lawyer immediately. Your lawyer will be able to explain your legal rights and make sure that you are treated fairly. If the driver working for the trucking company was at fault, you might expect the corporation and their insurance company to treat you fairly and contribute to your hospital bills, but sadly that is rarely the case. As a business, their number one priority is always going to be their bottom line. You deserve someone who will look after your interests. If you've been injured, you will need to pay the doctor, you will suffer a loss of income due to forced time off work, and you will also have endured very real pain and suffering for which you are also entitled to receive compensation. The sooner you contact a PI lawyer who can fight for your rights - the better.

Contact the Anderson Law Firm online now or call toll free at 800-354-MARK (6275). We offer 100% free initial consultations on your personal situation, and there is absolutely no obligation. Don't delay. If you've been hurt or hospitalized following a truck accident, call us today.


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Making A Wrongful Death Claim on Behalf of Someone Who Has Died

One of the most common questions a new client has is “What is my case worth?”

The truth is that it is extremely difficult to estimate any injury claim's value until the injured party has ended medical treatment and is either well or as well as he or she is going to get. Only then can you truly put a figure on the damages that should be sought.

There is nothing worse than settling a claim too soon because once you settle, it's final. If your conditions worsen after prematurely accepting a settlement then you have no choice but to pay any additional medical bills yourself. Once your case settles, you cannot force the insurance company to also pay for your medical care in the future.