Tractor-trailers can frequently be seen hauling freight on Interstates and highways across Tennessee.
Tractor-trailers are much bigger and heavier than most passenger cars. As a result, accidents involving 18 wheelers and passenger cars can be devastating.
Unfortunately, many of our clients have been injured in an accident involving a tractor-trailer on a Tennessee roadway.
Tractor-trailer accidents are often caused by the same factors that lead to other car wrecks (distracted driving, driving under the influence, speeding, etc.). Driver fatigue and poor maintenance of equipment are also common factors in tractor-trailer accidents.
There are usually multiple parties who are potentially liable for causing a tractor-trailer accident. Those parties may include the truck driver, the trucking company, the owner of the truck and trailer, the manufacturer of the truck and trailer, and the people responsible for performing maintenance on the truck and trailer.
Truck drivers and trucking companies generally must comply with laws and regulations that apply to tractor-trailers. Many of the controlling laws and regulations can be found on the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration website. Whether the tractor-trailer operator and/or the trucking company complied with the trucking safety laws and regulations likely will be important factors in any tractor-trailer accident claim.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a tractor-trailer accident you should immediately contact a lawyer who can advise you of your rights. You should contact a tractor-trailer accident lawyer quickly to help ensure that important evidence is not destroyed. A big trucking company will have people working to defend or minimize your claim immediately. You should have a lawyer working just as hard for you.
Contact attorney Patrick Witherington today for a free consultation and case evaluation to discuss how we can help protect your rights and see that you are fairly compensated.