Protecting Yourself & Your Claim After A Tractor-Trailer Crash

Both regular individuals and commercial drivers are required to carry a certain amount of auto insurance in order to do business in Florida, as they would be in most other states. However, insurers can often be necessary evils; they may provide peace of mind to the average driver, but in too many cases, insurers will engage in behavior designed to frustrate claim seekers in order to preserve their bottom line. If you have been involved in an accident with a tractor-trailer, it is important to enlist an attorney as quickly as possible in order to protect your rights.

A Matter Of Time

In general, insurers have the advantage of time in the hours and days immediately after a crash. While an injured driver is obtaining medical treatment and contemplating their options, an insurer is already gathering information to try and combat potential defense strategies. Because this places an insurer in an advantageous position in terms of claim evaluation, Unfortunately, some will use any potential excuse to deny a claim if, so to speak, every I is not dotted and every T is not crossed. Because of this, many plaintiffs who decide to file suit, and their attorneys, begin by having to ‘catch up’ and acquire all the evidence and information that a transport company’s insurer may have at their fingertips.

Most insurers act appropriately in the aftermath of a crash, providing all requested evidence to a plaintiff’s attorney. However, it is not an unheard-of tactic for the insurer or the defendant company to get rid of evidence in order to protect themselves. This is known as spoliation, and it may be a separate civil cause of action if a plaintiff can establish that it has occurred. Sometimes the destruction is accidental rather than deliberate, but it still can impede a person’s ability to seek damages after a crash.

Going On The Attack

While insurers may go so far as to deliberately conceal evidence, many who would not engage in such behavior will instead engage in subterfuge – or outright gaslighting – to try and position an injured plaintiff into doing something damaging to their own case. For example, an adjuster may contact an injured person after a tractor-trailer accident wanting to ‘get their side of the story,’ when any statement the plaintiff may make can be used against them to argue their injuries are less serious than claimed.

In addition, an insurer may try to argue for a greater percentage of fault than the injured driver should bear. In Florida, if a person is found more than 50 percent at fault for their own injuries, they are not permitted to recover damages – and even if their percentage of fault is less, it is in an insurer’s best interests to try and show that the plaintiff was at fault – for example, for an improper lane change or a lack of a seatbelt. The right attorney can help you show that your injuries stem from the defendant’s negligence.

Contact A Tampa Commercial Vehicle Accident Attorney

In accidents involving commercial vehicles, events can happen very quickly and injuries can be quite severe. An insurer wants to preserve their bottom line, but an injured plaintiff has the right to seek damages if their injuries are serious enough to merit a lawsuit. A Tampa truck accident attorney from the Rinaldo Law Group can help you determine the best path for you as you focus on recovery. Call our office today to schedule a consultation.

Source:

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0768/Sections/0768.81.html