What are your rights after a Brownsville 18-wheeler accident?

Truck drivers work long hard hours and unfortunately, they often drive past the point of exhaustion just to make a decent living for their families. However, tired drivers pose a danger to other drivers on the road.

When an accident involves an 18-wheeler, the results can be catastrophic. A fully-loaded semi truck may weigh as much as 80,000 pounds. In contrast, the average passenger car weighs about 3,000 pounds. When a passenger car collides with a truck that is more than 25 times heavier, the car and the passengers inside have little chance of escaping harm. If the truck is carrying hazardous chemicals or flammable cargo, the consequences can be deadly for all involved. More than 5,000 fatalities and 100,000 injuries each year are attributed to large truck accidents.

In order to determine who is responsible for an accident, one must prove that someone, either the driver or the trucking company, was negligent. All drivers have a duty to follow traffic laws, drive as safely as possible and avoid causing injury to others. If a driver fails in this duty and causes injury to another, he is negligent.

In a trucking accident case, the fault may be shared by the trucker, the trucking company and other responsible parties, such as the owner of a hazardous cargo or a contractor that hired the truck.

Accident victims and their families are entitled to compensation for any physical, emotional or financial losses that resulted from the accident. These losses may include medical bills, burial expenses, compensation for disfigurement or disability, pain and suffering, emotional trauma, lost income, loss of earning capacity and loss of companionship.

Learn more about your rights after a trucking accident. Request your FREE copy of our report, The Insider’s Guide to Texas Car Accident Cases. This guide explains the rights of accident victims in Brownsville, San Antonio, McAllen, Rio Grande City and throughout South Texas.

If you have been involved in an accident with an 18-wheeler or other large commercial truck, the Brownsville accident attorneys at the Cowen Law Group will do our best to get you fair and full compensation for all your losses. We will investigate the accident, read the accident report, look for laws that were broken, check driving logs, examine the trucking companies policies and history of accidents, read medical reports and determine how best to support your accident injury case.

If you have questions about your rights or need help, contact the Cowen Law Group. We offer a 30-day risk-free guarantee, so you can be sure that we are on your side. Call today for a free consultation.