Truck Accident Lawyer

Whether you use the Turnpike, I-80, the Schuylkill, or I-79, you know that truckers often drive like they own the roadway. Pennsylvania truck accidents often occur because truckers drive too aggressively. When this happens, the consequences can be deadly. Motorists may suffer serious injuries in the cars these big trucks demolish. Each truck accident lawyer at Ostroff Injury Law is committed to making truckers and trucking companies pay for the catastrophic injuries they cause.

Driving a Semi-Truck is Dangerous

Driving a semi-truck or other type of commercial vehicle requires much more skill and care as opposed to driving a passenger vehicle. There is a special license needed to drive a commercial vehicle. Medical certifications are necessary, hours of driving are monitored and limited, cargo weight is restricted, and tractor-trailer maintenance must be documented.

A study by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration noted three major “critical events” that lead to truck-related accidents:

• Running out of the travel lane into another lane or off the road
• Colliding with the rear end of another vehicle in the truck’s travel lane
• Losing vehicle control

Why do these events occur? The most common causes of crashes involving large trucks usually fall into the following categories:

• Driving too fast for conditions or speeding
• Driver fatigue
• Hours of service violations
• Vehicle maintenance (including inadequate tires and tire check rules)
• Driver distraction
• Following too closely
• Failure to keep the truck under control in an emergency situation

The majority of trucks on the road are part of large companies that profit greatly from the cargo they transport. For this reason, when a large truck is in a crash, the companies have the resources to have lawyers and experts at the scene to protect their interests within hours. These professionals take statements and preserve evidence to protect the trucking companies, not the interests of those that were injured.

Why Truckers Rush

Businesses rely heavily on the trucking industry to deliver their products on time. Truck owners often impose challenging deadlines on the drivers they employ. If a trucker gets tied up in traffic, with a customer, or at a rest stop, he or she must make up for the delays. Other times, truckers are impatient and rush because they are anxious to finish their day. Pressure to make deadlines and meet high demand from businesses can lead truck drivers to make poor decisions that cause Pennsylvania truck accidents. Strict deadlines and ignoring safety rules and regulations can lead to devastating Pennsylvania truck accidents.

Truck Crashes in Poor Weather Conditions

Truck drivers must take all possible measures to prevent accidents during bad weather. Failure to do so can result in jackknifing, rollovers, multi-car pileups, and other devastating crashes. Below are some of the common adverse weather conditions and why they can be dangerous.

• High Winds. Due to blowing snow or dust, high wind speed can decrease a truck driver’s visibility and reaction time. Debris and snow that blows into the road can also obstruct lanes. A driver may need to quickly move out of the way or drive over it. Either decision can endanger nearby motorists.
• Rain and Snow. In addition to creating slippery roads, precipitation can decrease the distance a truck driver is able to see. Drivers may have less time to react to a sudden stop or other issue as a result. When rainy conditions lead to flooding, travel lanes can become submerged, forcing truck drivers and other motorists to change lanes unexpectedly.
• Fog. At any time of the day, fog can substantially diminish visibility and drivers’ reaction time.

Regarding long-term effects, adverse weather can greatly affect the pavement on highways and small roads, resulting in infrastructure damage and year-round hazardous road conditions for trucks and passenger vehicles alike.

If Other Lawyers Told You “No”

Jon doesn’t care what other lawyers told you. If other lawyers have told you that you don’t have a case, call Jon anyway. He has recovered millions of dollars for clients whom other lawyers told they didn’t have a case.

In fact, one client of Jon’s was blamed when she drove into the side of a tractor trailer late one evening. The police, the trucker, and even an eyewitness blamed Jon’s client for this serious collision. The client’s family called a few local lawyers before they called Jon. The other lawyers agreed with the police and were unwilling to investigate further. Jon used a well-respected nighttime visibility expert to prove that, because the truck failed to have proper reflective tape on it, his client couldn’t see the side of the truck when she struck it. He proved the other local lawyers wrong and overcame the negative police investigation and eyewitness account to win a $5.7 million award for this small-town client.

Jon doesn’t care that the police blamed you. If the police blamed you for the truck crash, but you know it wasn’t your fault, call Jon.

In one small Pennsylvania town alone, Jon recovered millions for two different clients, in two different accidents, even though the police blamed each of them for the accident they were in. Jon proved the police wrong, and his two clients recovered millions as a result. Jon will use everything he has learned from the 25,000 accident victims he has helped over the past 25 years.

Truck Crash with Limited Tort

If you have limited tort insurance and heard that you cannot get a recovery, call Jon. He may be able to find an exception so limited tort does not apply to you, even if you chose it.

Call Jon at 800-818-8148 for a free consultation with an experienced Pennsylvania truck accident attorney at Ostroff Injury Law. We’ll explain how we can help you get the compensation you deserve for your medical bills and more.