Most of us know what it feels like to be tired at work, but what happens when your work is driving? Fatigued driving is hazardous, and some studies show that drowsy driving can sometimes be even more dangerous than drunk driving. When a truck driver is fatigued behind the wheel, this poses a massive risk to the driver and everyone else on the road with them. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has set forth guidelines called the Hours of Service that give specific timetables for a driver to adhere to in order to reduce work-related fatigue on the road. Still, these regulations will not guarantee that no driver is ever tired on the road.
If you have been in an accident with a truck driver and you are not at fault, there are many different things your attorney will need to consider to determine what caused the crash. Fatigue can be difficult to prove if the driver does not admit to it, but working with a truck accident attorney can help you get clarity on the best path towards recovering the compensation you deserve.
CONTACT 1-800-INJURED FOR A FREE CONSULTATION ABOUT YOUR TRUCK ACCIDENT
1-800-Injured is an attorney and medical referral service. If you have been hurt in a crash with a tired truck driver, you may be able to seek compensation for your damages — both economic and non-economic — through either an insurance claim or lawsuit. However, it is often a difficult process to recover the money you are rightfully owed without going through a series of negotiations. Working with a personal injury attorney is the best way through this process, but many people are too distracted or overwhelmed by the initial impacts of their accident to take time to find a lawyer on their own. We are here to help.
Read more below about calculating the damages you are owed following an accident with a fatigued truck driver, and contact us as soon as possible to be connected with a truck accident attorney in your area who is ready to take your case and fight for what you deserve.
CALCULATING DAMAGES AFTER AN ACCIDENT WITH A FATIGUED TRUCKER
The central issue of any tort claim is the amount of money the victim deserves, and insurance companies are extremely experienced in settling claims for far less than what is fair. The claims adjuster assigned to your case will go through the damages during their investigation and are trained to look for reasons to limit your settlement instead of maximizing it and including all legitimate damages. On the other hand, your attorney will go through every detail of your accident and gather all possible damages to be included in your claim. Insurance companies expect victims to overlook many specific damages that are either difficult to calculate or that they may not even realize are legitimate, but your attorney will be skilled at calculating all economic damages and quantifying non-economic damages.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are the basis of a tort claim, and the simplest to calculate. They seek compensation for an injury’s measurable financial impacts — essentially, anything with a set dollar value associated with it. These types of damages include things like medical bills and recovery costs, as well as any employment-based impacts or losses like lost wages or impacts to a victim’s earning capacity. While income-based and medical-based damages are typically among the most prominent in this category, there are many other damages that your attorney will help you identify and calculate before including them in their negotiations for a fair settlement package.
Calculating economic damages is as “simple” as gathering all tangible evidence possible in order to prove the amounts being included as line items in your claim. This includes bills, receipts, tax statements, earnings reports, and anything else that will support the dollar value that you include for each particular damage. Your attorney will be able to gather these pieces of documentation to ensure that you have as much leverage as possible or necessary during negotiations.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are more difficult to assign a dollar value to, simply because they seek compensation for impacts that do not have an economic value associated with them. These types of damages include things like the actual pain and suffering that a victim will endure following an injury, as well as things like loss of enjoyment or ability to pursue their daily activities. These are just a few of the many non-economic damages that you and your attorney will be able to explore.
There are a number of ways to calculate the monetary value of non-economic damages, and your attorney will choose the method that will result in the most amount of money for your unique situation. Trying to negotiate these damages on your own can be very difficult, and insurance companies recognize that when a victim is attempting to fight for these damages on their own, it can be easy to deny them or avoid accepting them as legitimate.