Grand Junction Truck Accident Lawyers

Have You Been Involved in a Commercial Vehicle Accident in Colorado or Utah?

Western Slope highways are loaded with tractor-trailers—overloaded, in fact! The Colorado Department of Transportation reports that a significant percentage of the 18-wheelers that roll across Interstate 70, State Highway 50, and many other Colorado and Utah highways each year are overweight, oversized. or both.

Overweight or not, when a vehicle of such size is involved in an accident, the results can be devastating, especially for anyone in a smaller vehicle. Typical cars and other motor vehicles don’t stand a chance against commercial trucks.

 The experienced truck accident lawyers at Veritas in Grand Junction, Colorado, understand how these accidents involving massive commercial vehicles drastically impact families—often permanently.

If injured in a crash involving a semitrailer, you may face a lengthy hospital stay, an extensive rehabilitation process, missed work, and mounting expenses. Fortunately, if the truck accident was caused by someone else's negligence, you are entitled to compensation for your loses. 

These losses can include your medical expenses, lost wages, long-term rehabilitation expenses, and even pain and suffering. 

For help recovering these much-needed funds, call (970) 292-7171 to learn how our legal team can help you after a truck accident. Visit one of our Colorado office locations, where we extend our assistance to injured victims not only within the state but also in Eastern Utah.

Common Causes of Truck Accidents

Truck accidents can have devastating consequences, often resulting in severe injuries and property damage. Understanding the causes of these accidents is crucial for improving road safety and preventing future incidents. While there are many factors that can contribute to truck accidents, several key causes consistently emerge in accident data and studies. 

Here, are some of the primary factors that lead to truck accidents:

• Driver Fatigue
• Distracted Driving
• Impaired Driving
• Speeding
• Inadequate Training
• Poor Vehicle Maintenance
• Weather Conditions
• Reckless Driving
• Inadequate Following Distance

If you have been injured in an accident that was caused by a large commercial truck, your injuries may be very severe. While it's understandable to be angry at the reckless trucker who caused your accident and injuries, you may be surprised to learn that many accidents involving big rigs are actually the fault of the drivers of smaller passenger cars and light trucks.

Motorists sometimes don't realize the much greater distance it takes a semi-truck to brake and full stops when a car pulls out in front of them or cuts them off in traffic on the highway. Other drivers cruise along in the big rigs' "No Zones," the blind spots located on either side of, and directly in front and behind, of large commercial trucks. But when vehicles are in these positions, truck drivers can't see them.

Another danger for passenger cars on multi-lane highways is to ride in the lane between two 18-wheelers. This is an extremely vulnerable position to be in because you are not visible to either driver and could easily get crushed between the two commercial rigs.

But truckers have to accept their fair share of the responsibility for accidents and injuries to motorists. Some drivers have not received sufficient training to learn how to drive defensively and safely.

The trucking companies, too, share the blame for highway injuries and deaths. They push truckers to adhere to impossible schedules that force them to ignore federal Hours of Service regulations, drive when fatigued and in hazardous weather conditions, and at excessive speeds.

Determining Liability After a Truck Accident

Unlike a car accident the party who is held responsible for an accident isn’t always the driver who caused an accident. An investigation is usually launched to determine what party or parties can be held liable. Oftentimes an investigation will find the trucking company liable as they are often caught encouraging their drivers to break trucking regulations in order to help save their company time and money.

There are scenarios where a trucker can be held liable for an accident. For example, if a driver owns their own truck or if the accident was a direct result of their own negligence, such as drinking while driving. It’s even possible for the truck manufacturer to be held liable for your injuries if an accident was caused by a defect in the manufacturing.

 Whatever the cause of your accident, our firm has the skill and knowledge to identify the appropriate party and fight for you. Learn more about how we can help you by calling us today.

Truckers and the Hours of Service Regulations 

Because of the risk semi-trucks pose in the event of an accident, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) heavily regulates truck drivers. The goal of the regulations is to prevent truck accidents and help protect other drivers on the road. A notable regulation is called the hours of service regulations. 

The hours of service regulations aim to ensure truckers are well-rested, since tired drivers are much more likely to cause an accident. According to these rules truck drivers can work up to 14-hours in a workday, but only 11 of these hours can be spent driving. The remaining time must be spent on meal or rest breaks. After the workday is over, drivers must rest for at least 10 consecutive hours.