Get Compensation for Commercial Vehicle Accidents
Commercial vehicle accidents are often some of the worst disasters on the road. Smaller vehicles can be pulverized by a crash with large, heavy trucks, and accident victims may sustain severe injuries including brain and spinal cord damage, paralysis, amputations, broken bones, and even death. Survivors often face long, painful recoveries that require expensive rehabilitation and continuing care, and medical bills mount up at a time they are unable to work.
If you or a loved one has been injured or someone has died in a Houston commercial truck accident due to another party’s negligence or fault, you may be entitled to compensation for your losses and the damages you received. However, getting compensation is not always easy. Texas injury laws regarding commercial vehicles are complicated, and there are there are complex trucking rules and regulations from Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) that may come into play as well. There may be multiple parties and insurance companies involved in the claim, and insurance companies are out for profit and will often try to deny or minimize your settlement.
Making mistakes can be costly, and without strong legal representation, you risk getting hit all over again in the aftermath and end up settling for an amount far lower than your injuries warrant. When accidents involve commercial trucks, there are a large number of parties potentially liable for the accident; they may include major corporations and multiple insurance companies well-experienced in defending claims and lawsuits. To get a fair settlement from insurance companies or from a trial if you do go to court, you generally need an attorney with extensive experience with commercial vehicles to build a strong case and go head-to-head with the opposition.
Fortunately, there is help available from the Houston personal injury attorneys at Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law. At this difficult time, when you are trying to recover from your traumatic accident, our legal team can take the burdens off you by dealing with the complex laws and multiple parties and insurers these cases involve. We understand the difficulties you face after a traumatic accident, and we have the knowledge and resources to build a strong case with the best chances for winning a favorable verdict or settlement. We can take the burden off you by handling all legal hurdles, negotiations with insurance companies and their attorneys, paperwork, and court appearances involved with proving liability and winning the settlement you deserve, so you can focus on your recovery.
How Our Houston Commercial Vehicle Attorney Helps You
Why Choose Us
There are many lawyers in Texas, but they are not created equal. It is important to find a commercial vehicle attorney you not only feel comfortable with but who has the experience and resources needed to help you recover the full amount you need to compensate for your bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other expenses.
Here are some reasons why we feel Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law is your best choice:
- We have more than 35 years of experience.
- We get results, and have recovered $1 Billion for our clients, including a $10.6 million settlement for multiple fractures and a traumatic brain injury resulting from a head-on car wreck.
- Terry Bryant and two additional attorneys are board certified.
- We have the resources of a skilled legal team, investigators, and expert witnesses to go up against a large trucking or insurance company.
- We have a 98 % positive group of satisfied clients who give testimonials to our service.
- We are recognized in our field — our law firm has received the Better Business Bureau’s Winner of Distinction Award multiple times.
- Terry Bryant is a former judge, which gives given him an unparalleled understanding of the law from all angles.
- We provide excellent customer service and are available 24/7 for client emergencies.
- We offer free initial consultations and a no-fee guarantee, which means you pay us nothing unless you get your money.
What Our Houston Commercial Truck Accident Lawyer Can Do for You:
- Investigate the accident thoroughly, often in conjunction with law enforcement, gathering evidence such as traffic videos, police and medical reports, and eyewitness interviews
- Thoroughly assess all your damages, including current and future medical bills, lost income, damaged property, and non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering.
- Hire experts to reconstruct the accident and testify as to fault and experts to testify as to the extent of your injuries, your costs, and expected costs in the future
- Locate all insurance companies for each defendant, and demand damages and aggressively negotiate with them for a fair settlement
- If negotiation doesn’t bring a satisfactory settlement, we will build your case and take it to court to win full and fair compensation for your injuries.
Insurance carriers and commercial vehicle companies have armies of attorneys, adjusters, paralegals, accident investigators, expert witnesses, and staffers to protect their bottom lines. Our Terry Bryant team has the knowledge, experience, and resources to go against them. We will be there for you at every stage of the legal process, from filing pretrial motions, to discovery, to presenting evidence and making closing arguments, to filing an appeal.
GET STARTED NOW (713) 973-8888 or toll-free 1 (800) 444-5000
Commercial Vehicle Accident Lawyer Must Prove Negligence
Proving negligence is necessary in any case for personal injury or wrongful death. To win your case, our commercial vehicle accident lawyer must be able to show that another party, the defendant in the case, was negligent and at fault for causing or contributing to the accident that injured you. To prove fault legally, our attorneys must show the existence of the following elements:
- Duty – The defendant owed you a duty of care not to cause harm.
- Breach – The defendant breached that duty by acting or failing to act.
- Cause – This breach caused a crash and your injuries.
- Damages – You suffered actual damages as a result.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (Title 49, Parts 350-399) govern all vehicles engaged in interstate traffic. When these regulations are not adhered to, the responsible parties can be found negligent and liable for damages.
In addition to the commercial truck driver and the company the driver works for, there may be other parties that can be found negligent and at fault for the accident. Depending on the circumstances, liable parties may include:
- The owner of the cargo or the party that loaded the cargo, if this was done improperly
- The company that leased the vehicle
- Third-party contractors or subcontractors
- Other negligent drivers that may have been involved with the accident
- The manufacturer of the vehicle or its equipment or parts if these failed
- The mechanic responsible for maintaining the vehicle if faulty maintenance caused a problem
- The government entity responsible for maintaining the road or the road repair company that failed to fix a dangerous condition.
Any or all of these parties may be at fault for contributing to the accident, and our legal team will seek to identify them as they all may have insurance and assets that can go toward a settlement award.
Damage Awards Our Attorneys for Houston Commercial Vehicle Accidents May Recover
Commercial vehicles are required by law to carry substantial insurance. Our Houston commercial vehicle accident lawyers will fight for compensation that covers both your monetary costs, called economic or “special damages,” and your non-economic damages, called “general” damages.
Economic Damages
Are for monetary losses such as the cost of:
- Medical and rehabilitation bills and continuing care
- Lost wages, current and projected into the future
- Property damages from the accident.
Non-economic Damages
Are to compensate you for losses that do not have a specific dollar value but negatively affect your life, including:
- Physical, mental, and emotional pain and suffering
- Permanent disability
- Disfigurement and scarring
- Loss of companionship and consortium
- Loss of quality of life.
To qualify for non-economic damages in Texas, you must have had physical injury and costs as well as pain and suffering.
Punitive damages
In some rare situations, where the crash was caused by actions that were wantonly reckless and negligent, you may also be awarded punitive damages. Texas law (C.P.R.C. Title 2 Subchapter C Sec. 41.008) caps the amounts of punitive damages.
At Terry Bryant Accident and Injury Law, we will evaluate your case to see what it should be worth and use all our resources to fight for optimum compensation for you and your family.
Amounts of Damage Awards
There are a wide range of damage amounts you may receive in a successful commercial vehicle accident lawsuit, from the thousands to millions of dollars, depending on the individual circumstances of your case.
In general, severe injuries that involve permanent damage and require long-term care will bring a higher damage award than injuries that heal relatively quickly. If there are multiple parties at fault and they all have insurance and/or assets, the settlement may be higher.
Our Houston commercial vehicle accident lawyer will consider all factors when determining the compensation to go after.
Commercial Vehicle Accident Lawyer Answers Questions
Victims of traumatic commercial vehicle accidents are bound to have questions and concerns. These are best addressed at your free consultation, but to get you started, here are some answers to questions our commercial vehicle lawyers are often asked:
How Do Commercial Vehicle Accidents Differ From Personal Vehicle Accidents?
Due to the size of commercial vehicles, damage and injuries tend to be more serious and expensive. Commercial vehicles are governed by laws and regulations not applicable to passenger vehicles; and while their insurance policies should have much higher coverage limits, they will do everything possible to fight claims. Also, cases may be more complicated as there may be multiple liable parties and multiple insurance companies involved.
Should I Talk to the Insurance Company?
Do not talk to the insurance company, as they are out to deny or delay claims or get you to accept a lowball offer, and anything you say can be used against you. Tell the insurance company to talk to your attorney and let Terry Bryant handle all communications with the insurance company to negotiate the best possible deal for you.
What if a Loved One Died in the Accident?
If a close relative such as a spouse, child, or parent was killed in the crash, you may be able to win compensation by filing a wrongful death case.
According to Texas law (Texas Statutes section 71.001), an action for wrongful death may be brought if the “wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, unskillfulness, or default” of one party causes the death of another.
Will I Have to Go to Court?
If our commercial vehicle attorneys can negotiate a settlement, you will not need to go to court. If we cannot, the case will go to trial, where a jury will decide who is at fault and whether compensation should be awarded. Most cases are settled out of court, at any point before a verdict is made.
How Long Will it Take to Get a Settlement?
The time to settle your case may range from months to years, depending on a variety of factors, including the extent of injuries, the costs and number of defendants and insurance companies involved, and whether the case can be settled through negotiations or it goes to trial. More simple cases can sometimes be settled in a number of months, but complicated ones that wind up in court can drag on for years.
At Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law, we will be there for you throughout the entire legal process, and you can have all your questions answered.
About Attorney Terry Bryant
Terry Bryant is Board Certified in personal injury trial law, which means his extensive knowledge of the law has been recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, setting him apart from many other injury attorneys.
The 22 years he spent as a Municipal Judge for Spring Valley Village, TX, also provides him keen insight into the Texas court system. That experience also helps shape his perspective on personal injury cases and how they might resolve. This unique insight benefits his clients.
Call Our Commercial Vehicle Accident Lawyer for Help
An accident involving a commercial vehicle is usually serious and complicated. If you or a loved one has been injured or someone has died in a crash, you should hire a lawyer experienced with commercial accident claims to ensure you aren’t shortchanged by a lowball insurance offer and that you receive every penny you deserve.
The compassionate personal injury lawyers at Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law are here to handle all legal hurdles involved in getting you the compensation you deserve. According to the law (Texas C.P.R.C. Title 2, Chapter 16, Sec. 16.003), you generally have two years after the date of the accident to file a lawsuit in court. If you miss this deadline, the courts are likely to dismiss your case, so do not delay.
We offer a free consultation to discuss the facts of your case and determine the best way to move forward. You pay nothing unless and until we win, so contact us or call us today to get started.
Call (713) 973-8888 or toll-free 1 (800) 444-5000 now
Attorney Terry Bryant
Terry Bryant is Board Certified in personal injury trial law, which means his extensive knowledge of the law has been recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, setting him apart from many other injury attorneys. The 22 years he spent as a Municipal Judge, Spring Valley Village, TX also provides him keen insight into the Texas court system. That experience also helps shape his perspective on personal injury cases and how they might resolve. This unique insight benefits his clients. [ Attorney Bio ]