If you have been in a Florida car accident involving a truck, legal issues may initially be the furthest thing from your mind. Initially after a traffic accident, your main priority is generally to get medical attention and to contact your loved ones and your insurance provider. However, Florida laws very much affect how your accident case and claim will proceed. There are many pieces of legislation that can affect every aspect of your case:
1) Federal regulations regarding evidence. Under federal rules, commercial trucking companies and carriers must keep evidence related to drivers and their performance – evidence such as driver logs, for example. However, carriers only need to keep this evidence for a specific period of time, after which time they can destroy it. This is one reason why it is so important to work with a Florida personal injury attorney if you have been in a Florida trucking accident. An attorney can secure a court order or take other steps to ensure that evidence is preserved.
2) Regulations regarding insurance. Every Florida driver needs to have, at minimum, liability insurance to drive a car. Commercial trucks are required to have even more insurance in order to protect any victims in a Florida truck accident. The exact amount of insurance a truck company must carry depends on the materials being transported. Trucking companies responsible for carrying hazardous materials, for example, must generally carry far more insurance than companies hauling safer items.
3) Laws regarding liability. In order to recover money for lost wages, wrongful death, pain and suffering, property damages, medical expenses, and other costs, Florida car accident and truck accident victims generally need to show that a driver or truck company acted negligently in some manner and this negligence led to the accident. Obviously, proving negligence can be challenging without the assistance of a good Florida personal injury attorney. Florida personal injury attorneys have access to private investigators and other experts who can carefully research and investigate all the causes of an accident, with an eye to establishing liability.
4) Florida rules regarding damages. In order to recover damages, a Florida personal injury plaintiff must show that he or she has suffered damages. In some cases, it is very easy to establish this. For example, if the victim is a Florida spinal cord injury patient or has sustained serious burn injuries or other types of injuries, proving damages can be simple. However, some types of damages – such as psychological trauma, for example, or whiplash, are not so easy to establish because no conclusive tests exist for these conditions. As well, establishing the total costs for an injury can be difficult and a matter of negotiations, especially if an insurance carrier insists that the claim amount should be modest. A good Florida personal injury attorney can help protect a Florida traffic accident victim in these circumstances.
If you have been in a Florida trucking accident, Florida and federal regulations provide you with some protection. However, in order to take advantage of this protection, it is important to consult with a qualified Florida personal injury attorney to protect your rights. Before signing any statements or medical releases, especially, call the Flaxman Law Group. The caring and experienced legal team at the Flaxman Law Group has been successfully helping Florida trucking accident patients in Miami, Hollywood, Homestead, and surrounding south Florida communities for years. Through a free, no-obligation consultation, the Flaxman Law Group can help you understand your rights and options so that you make an informed decision about your case.