Semi-trucks possess a great danger in the terms of road accidents and people can be severely injured and die due to the clash with these massive commercial trucks. If the fault is triggered by the truck driver or the truck company, a good amount of injury settlement comes into the role play.
A hint on the average settlement related to semi-truck wreck cases:
We mean a hefty sum as the form of truck accident settlements. In relation to the insurance requirements, the liability claim involves multiple commercial bodies. Consideration is given to the truck drivers who should be proficient and possess extensive training for gaining a CDL or Commercial Driver’s License. The truck drivers are required to follow the safety regulations strictly to hold a CDL. The regulations are directed to protect the citizens of the country. Drivers who operate trucks are held to a much higher standard in comparison to the regular vehicle drivers. A maximum number of hours has been set for the truck drivers, and if they exceed those hours and accident occurs due to it, personal injury liability and criminal penalties will result. Hence, the truck drivers need to drive with optimum caution because they hold a CDL.
It happens that after a serious semi-truck accident, the police and the truck wreck lawyer find out the evidence to prove that the trucking company and the driver haven’t followed the state and federal rules. The trucking companies and the truck operations try to cut corners, but the experienced jury does not accept the specific situations when it comes to the delivery of the verdict.
Semi-truck drivers:- Liability insurance:
The liability insurance meant for the truck company and the truck driver is complex directing towards public safety. It is intended to protect the public from truck crashes especially where the drivers are careless. The primary idea supporting the minimum liability insurance renders that the trucking agency can disburse enough damages for making the injury party whole. But in reality, it doesn’t happen often.
As per the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the truck drivers should boast minimum coverage. The kind of cargo that is being carried controls the minimum amount of insurance coverage.
- The non-harming cargo carried in the vehicles that are <10,001 lbs: approx. $300,000
- The hazardless goods carried in the vehicles that are >10,001 lbs: approx. $750,000
- Oil transported by the private carriers: approx. $1,000,000
- Hazardous things carried by private carriers: approx. $5,000,000
FMCSA has established these amounts as the minimum. Several trucking agencies need minimum liability insurance that is not less than $1,000,000 despite the material type.
Does the trucking company set out for minimum coverage?
When a passenger car is rear-ended by an eighteen-wheeler, both the passenger and the car suffer extreme damages that require a hefty amount of money for the treatment. The saddest part is that minimum coverage rarely covers the extreme medical expenditures like the spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries.
Many times, the trucking company avoids updating the coverage limits for many years. The medical costs and inflation rise with time. The policy limits may not take care of the victim’s high medical cost.
In a settlement concerning the truck accident, the sufferers can win damages that greatly surpass the limit of minimum liability. As per a 2013 study, it is resolved that around 42% of the truck accident settlements paid have outrun the minimum insurance limit of the FMCSA.
The truck accident cases need a specialized attorney so that the victim can be given the maximum compensation to cover the medical and rehabilitation expenses.
The state and federal regulations lay an impact on the settlements:
The FMCSA regulations govern semi-trucks in the US. In a certain manual, the drivers are required to stay in the two lanes on the interstate’s right. It is considered breaching the law to drive out of the two lanes. Hence, if an accident occurs where the driver is driving in the far left lane, a personal injury lawsuit can arise where the settlement rate is higher.
The combination touching both the state and the federal laws stating that the truckers, as well as the truck companies, are needed to follow can end in a settlement with a large amount.
