Missouri Truck Accident Lawyer Blog

Jerry Cousins, 74, was hospitalized after a Missouri tractor trailer accident on Highway 43 near Joplin, Missouri.

According to a Joplin Globe report, Cousins was driving a tractor-trailer northbound on the highway when the accident occurred. A second vehicle, driven by Caleb Vermillion, 28, was ahead of Cousins’ truck. Vermillion was attempting a left turn when Cousins’ truck hit Vermillion’s vehicle.

Cousins was taken to St. John’s Regional Medical Center for treatment. No information was given about Vermillion’s injuries or if he sustained any.

The details gathered so far about this tractor-trailer crash are not enough to determine who was at fault. If further investigation from local authorities reveals that one of the drivers was negligent and caused the injury accident, a Missouri truck accident attorney could be called by the injured party to recover damages.

If more details arise about this accident, we will post them here.

Being involved in a serious car accident can be one of the most traumatic experiences of anyone’s life. In the moments after an accident people are often disoriented and dealing with stress, fear or shock. Most people, though, don’t plan how to handle a situation like that until it actually happens. While it is unpleasant to think about, taking a few minutes to mentally walk through the steps you should take after a serious tractor-trailer injury accident will allow you to better handle the situation should it ever arise.

Immediately after the accident you should take a second to assess the situation. Your safety and the safety of everyone involved is the most important consideration so gather your composure, check yourself for injuries, and if you are still in harm’s way, move to safer ground if you are able.

Call 911 to request emergency help and wait for it to arrive. Even if you are not seriously injured do not leave the scene of the accident. It is against the law to leave the scene of a Missouri car accident you were involved with.

Once paramedics arrive, give them as much information as possible. If you can, tell them how many people are injured and the extent of their injuries. If you are injured, make sure to tell the paramedic that you need medical attention and explain every detail so they know how best to treat you. Listen to their instructions and follow them carefully so that you get the proper treatment.

The police may ask you for a statement at the scene. It is important to be truthful in your statement, but do not admit fault. Even if you think you were at fault, there may have been other factors in play that caused the accident that you didn’t even know about. Give just the information you are sure about and if you don’t know something, or feel too stressed to give an accurate answer, tell the officer that you would like to give your statement after you’ve had time to calm down. Make it clear that you are not refusing to offer a statement, but that you can’t offer a valid statement due to your mental state.

As soon as you can, contact your insurance agency and then start gathering information. Get information about the other vehicles and drivers, but do not share your insurance policy limits. In tractor-trailer crashes it is important to get information about the truck, what carrier company it is operated under, and who was driving. All truck drivers are supposed to keep log books to make sure that they do not violate any Federal Motor Carrier Regulations, but that is something the authorities will inspect.

Keep records of all your medical treatments and visits to the doctor as a result of the crash. If you thought you felt fine immediately after the crash, but are feeling pain days later that may be related, go see a doctor as soon as possible. It is not unusual to have lingering internal damage that is not readily apparent at the time of the crash.

You may then want to hire a personal injury attorney to investigate your case to ensure you receive the recovery you are entitled to. It is important to at least consult an attorney on car or tractor-trailer crashes to learn your rights because insurance companies will be looking for ways to reduce their claims and larger commercial shipping companies will have lawyers on staff working to protect their own interests. If you act quickly and give the attorney all the information of your case, you will have a much better chance of receiving the payments you deserve to cover the medical bills and recover quickly from your crash.

Local authorities in Lakota, North Dakota are looking for the driver of a semi tractor trailer who was involved in an injury accident that hospitalized four people on Sunday.

North Dakota State Highway Patrol authorities said the semi truck failed to yield to other traffic on U.S. Highway 2 and sent two vans into a roadside ditch. The truck then continued down the highway without stopping.

Four occupants of the other vehicles were injured and taken to local hospitals, but their names have not yet been released.

Officials have described the truck as a white semi that was not pulling a trailer at the time of the crash. If you have any information on this truck or its driver, contact the North Dakota Highway Patrol Headquarters at 701-328-2455.

Leaving the scene of accident is a serious offense. If the truck driver is found to be responsible for the accident, he may face criminal charges as well as a potential personal injury lawsuit from the injured parties. Anytime you are involved in a car accident, even if you didn’t cause the wreck, stay at the scene until police arrive.

If the driver is never found, the injured parties may be able to make a claim against their own insurance policy’s ‘uninsured motorist’ coverage. These policies are created to protect people if they are injured in crashes with drivers who don’t have the legal minimum liability insurance, but it can also be used in hit-and-run cases. Injured drivers should contact a car accident or personal injury lawyer before talking to an insurance company representative, however, to make sure they understand all their rights.

Photo from KY3.com

Donald Creed, 76, a truck driver with a Kansas City based company, has pleaded not guilty to charges in connection with a fatal tractor trailer accident that killed 10 people in Oklahoma.

Creed is facing 10 counts of misdemeanor negligent homicide from a crash that occurred on June 26. On that day, he was driving a tractor trailer which plowed through a line of cars that had been stopped due to an earlier wreck. In all, six cars were hit and 10 people left dead.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol crash report found there were no mechanical problems with the truck and that Creed’s cruise control was set within the speed limit.

Local media reports say witnesses described the truck as traveling very fast and changing lanes without signaling. It appears Creed did not attempt to brake as there were no skid marks on the road and an arrest warrant cited witnesses claiming they never saw brake lights, according to a NewsOK.com report.

Troopers cited in the NewsOK report also said Creed had been driving for around 10 hours, which is approaching the Hours of Service Regulation limit of 11. Creed had been on his cell phone minutes before the crash.

No new information was available about any potential personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits. If the evidence proves that Creed was distracted by his phone or negligent in some other way causing the crash, the family of the deceased may be able to contact a tractor trailer accident lawyer and recover significant damages.

Local authorities are investigating a tractor trailer injury crash in Tuscumbia, Alabama that sent one man to the hospital Thursday afternoon.

According to local media reports, two tractor trailer trucks were each traveling west on U.S. highway 72 at approximately 3:10 p.m. One of the trucks rear-ended the other with enough force to send debris and oil over the roadway.

Officials did not identify the drivers, but one of them suffered serious injury and was taken to Decatur General Hospital for treatment.

The westbound lanes of the highway were shut down for hours as the debris and oil was cleaned away.

No indication was given as to what may have caused the accident or if any citation will be issued to either driver. The truck crash is still under investigation by the Tuscumbia Police Department.

If evidence is found that either driver was negligent and caused the accident, a tractor trailer accident lawyer may be called in to recover damages to pay for expenses arising from the crash. Since the drivers were commercial truck operators, they are held to higher standards than the average driver and must keep detailed logs of their driving to ensure they don’t violate any federal motor carrier regulations.

Photo from Lexington Dispatch

Police in Lexington, North Carolina have identified a woman who died when a tractor trailer crashed into her car as Mary Green Small, 54, of Louisville, Ky.

According to local media reports, Small was driving her 1990 Nissan along Interstate 85 on Monday morning when the fatal tractor trailer accident occurred. She had stopped her car in a travel lane when a tractor trailer, driven by William Offutt, 49, slammed into the rear of the car. The impact was so intense that the car immediately caught fire and exploded, according to witness reports.

Small was pronounced dead at the scene. Offutt did not suffer any significant injury.

It is not known at this time why Small was stopped or why Offutt failed to slow his truck before rear-ending her. The accident is still under investigation from local authorities.

In most cases where a car or truck rear-ends another vehicle, the rear end collision doctrine applies. This means that negligence is assumed on the part of the at fault driver as all drivers are responsible for what’s ahead of them on the roadway. There are exceptions to this rule and there may be extenuating circumstances to this case that could affect liability. While it is a tragic and trying time, the family of the deceased should contact a tractor trailer accident attorney as soon as possible to investigate the accident and collect any evidence that may prove useful should a personal injury suit arise from the crash.

Two truck drivers were seriously injured Saturday after a Missouri tractor trailer crash involving three trucks on Highway 54 in Camden County, Missouri.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the accident occurred at the intersection of Highway 54 and Carnahan Road where traffic had backed up due to construction. Brian Keith, 42, who was traveling westbound in a 1987 Freightliner Truck, was stopped in the traffic when another truck approached from behind. The second tractor trailer, a 1988 Freightliner driven by Brian Ray, 37, was unable to stop behind Keith’s truck and had to swerve to avoid an accident. Unfortunately, as Ray swerved to avoid the collision, he entered oncoming traffic where he collided head-on with a 2007 International Truck, driven by Larry Burk, 63.

Ray and Burk were seriously injured and taken to St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. Though Keith’s truck was also damaged, he managed to avoid any injury.

The initial crash report does not indicate why Ray was unable to stop for the construction. There may have been some mechanical problems with the truck itself, the load may have been too heavy or Ray could have simply been inattentive at the wheel. These possibilities are still under investigation.

If an investigation into the accident reveals negligence on the part of any driver, the injured parties may be able to contact a Missouri truck accident lawyer to help recover damages needed to pay for medical expenses, lost wages or any other financial hardships arising from the accident.

Roger Walters, 48, was killed Wednesday when the pickup truck he was riding in was slammed into by a larger box truck on Route 837 in Union Township, Pennsylvania.

According to a WPXI report, a box truck driven by an unidentified driver crashed into two pickup trucks, including Walters’, in the northbound lane of Route 837. Walters was thrown from his pickup and pronounced dead at the scene.

No word has been released on the status of the box truck driver or the other pickup driver.

Local authorities are sill investigating the crash to determine exactly what happened and why the driver of the box truck may have lost control.

Box trucks are the type of moving trucks rented out by companies like Uhaul among others. They are smaller than a tractor trailer, but since they are larger that most other passenger vehicles, they can cause serious damage or injury in a crash.

Authorities will likely look into any potential mechanical problems with the truck as well as the state of the driver. If they find that negligence on the part of the driver or the box truck company was to blame for the accident, Walters’ family may be able to pursue a wrongful death claim and recover damages that can be used to cover funeral costs and other expenses. Further investigation by a truck accident attorney will be needed to sort out the legal issues involved with any potential claims.

A new study released by the American Association for Justice has revealed that over 28,000 commercial motor carrier companies operating in the United States have violated at least one federal safety regulation. Potentially 200,000 trucks have been or currently are operating in violation of these safety laws.

The safety regulations put in place by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration are designed to reduce the number of deaths and serious personal injuries caused by tractor trailer crashes. These regulations include checks on driver competency, hours of service regulations, and regular mechanical inspections.

Some of the violations in the study include defective brakes and tires, excessive or dangerous shipping loads and drivers operating under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

As we’ve stated on this blog in the past, keeping a close watch on the motor carrier industry is important because of the risks involved. Large commercial shipping vehicles are simply more dangerous than smaller passenger cars. One statistic pointed out by the AAJ says that trucks account for only four percent of the traffic in the U.S., but are involved in 12 percent of traffic fatalities.

Another concern raised by the study is the level of insurance carried by these shipping companies. In the event of a catastrophic accident with a tractor trailer, the injured party might be in for years of expensive recovery and rehab. The minimum liability insurance required of trucking companies, which was set 29 years ago, may not be enough to compensate people for these medical expenses.

This last fact is why it’s so important to consult a truck accident lawyer as soon as possible if you or a loved one are involved in an accident with a tractor trailer. An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to examine your case, find any federal violations that may have contributed to the accident, and fight for you to receive a damage award that will offset your medical expenses.