Beaumont T-Bone Truck Accident Attorney
If you were hurt or if your loved one was injured or killed in a T-bone truck accident, we want to help you get the compensation you deserve. You are probably feeling stressed and overwhelmed — an experienced Beaumont truck accident lawyer at Portner Bond, PLLC will help carry that burden for you while you rest and recover.
A T-bone accident occurs when one vehicle slams into the side of another vehicle. These accidents are also referred to as side-impact and broadside accidents. T-bone accidents are common when one vehicle fails to stop at a stop sign or stoplight and either crashes into a car in the middle of the intersection or is hit by a vehicle that was driving through the intersection and was unable to stop in time to avoid the accident.
In a T-bone accident, those sitting on the sides of the vehicle usually suffer the most severe injuries. T-bone accidents caused by trucks often result in catastrophic injury, even death, due to the truck’s significant size and weight. If you or a loved one was injured in this type of accident, you deserve compensation to pay your medical bills, repair your car, and recover from any trauma and emotional stress. An experienced T-bone truck accident attorney, like the ones at Portner Bond, PLLC, has an excellent track record of advocating from accident victims and receiving high settlements. Call us today at (409) 838-4444 for a 100% consultation.
Why should I hire a lawyer?
If you have been T-boned by a truck, it’s likely that you suffered injuries and need to pay for car replacements. Your injuries may need continued care, resulting in future medical bills, and you may have lost wages if your injuries made you unable to work. A lawyer will help you get compensation for the costs you have incurred so that you can rest and recover without having to stress about the financial toll of your accident.
Additionally, trucks are almost always commercially operated, which means they are subject to thousands of state and federal regulations. If any of these rules were broken and that played a role in your accident, you may be entitled to more compensation than you initially realize. An experienced truck accident attorney has specialized knowledge of these rules and regulations and will be able to investigate to determine if any were broken. A lawyer will also know the settlement amount you can expect based on the unique circumstances of your accident and can advise you on when to take an insurance company settlement and when to take your claim to court.
Why should I choose Portner Bond, PLLC?
At Portner Bond, PLLC, our lawyers have over 70 years of combined experience handling personal injury claims, including truck accidents. We understand the devastating impact that truck accidents have on our client’s lives and do everything we can to bring justice to accident victims. Our award-winning attorneys have helped thousands of clients get the compensation they deserve.
We understand that many people worry about how they will pay for any attorney. At Portner Bond, PLLC, we operate on a contingency-fee-basis, meaning we take a small percentage of the overall settlement you win at the end of your case. There are no fees or bills to pay along the way, and we only get paid if we win your case. If we lose, then you owe us nothing. We also offer a 100% free consultation, so you can decide whether or not you would like to work with us without any financial pressure. You can give us a call today at (409) 838-4444 to tell us about your accident and schedule a consultation.
T-bone Accidents Involving Trucks
Any accident involving a truck is different from a regular passenger vehicle accident in several important ways. Trucks are usually at least 20 to 30 times heavier than passenger vehicles and take longer to slow down or come to a stop while braking, both of which can increase the force of a truck’s impact during an accident.
To minimize the risks that trucks pose to other vehicles on the road, the trucking industry is heavily regulated. Almost every aspect of trucking is regulated: how much weight a truck can carry, truck driver hiring practices, and maintenance schedules are just a few regulated areas.
What Causes T-bone Accidents?
As mentioned, most T-bone accidents occur at intersections. Many factors can lead to a T-bone accident. Some of the most common are:
- Failing to come to a complete stop (making a rolling stop). It takes trucks a significantly longer amount of time to come to a complete stop than it does passenger vehicles. Because of this, truck drivers sometimes slow down but do not completely stop at a stop sign or red light. Even if the truck has slowed down, a T-bone accident can still cause serious injury. Trucks may also roll through a stop sign if their brakes or tires are worn out, which is why trucks are legally required to have tire and brake inspections periodically. If an inspection was missed or a repair was skipped, the truck driver or company could be held responsible for the accident.
- Improper left turn. When making an unprotected left turn (turning left on a regular green light, not a green arrow), trucks need to exercise particular caution. If a truck driver miscalculates the speed with which oncoming traffic is approaching, they risk T-boning an oncoming vehicle if the truck starts to make the turn. Trucks sometimes also take unprotected left turns without stopping or slowing down to beat oncoming traffic. If a truck doesn’t start to slow down before entering a left turn lane, which is often quite short, they risk not having adequate time to slow down or stop before attempting a turn.
- Inclement weather. In bad weather conditions, all drivers must take additional steps to minimize the risk of an accident. In weather conditions such as snow, heavy rain, or ice, truck drivers must take steps like driving more slowly and leaving more stopping distance between them and the vehicle in front of them. In extremely bad weather, trucks may need to move to the shoulder of the road and stop until the weather passes. Even though no one can control the weather, inclement weather is very rarely determined to be the cause of an accident. Even if a truck T-boned you after sliding across black ice, it’s possible the truck driver could still be held liable.
How Much is My Case Worth?
Truck accident settlements vary depending on the extent of your injuries, vehicle repair costs, and other damages. In general, you are entitled to pursue two kinds of damages: economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic damages are for any financial costs you incurred as a result of your accident. Medical bills, vehicle repair/replacement, and lost wages are all economic damages. It’s a good idea to keep all documentation of any bills you paid after your accident to streamline your ability to receive economic damage compensation.
It’s also critical to get medical attention as soon as possible after your accident. Of course, it’s in the best interest of your health, but it’s also crucial to have medical documentation of your injuries to be compensated for medical bills and lost wages. If you don’t have this kind of documentation, an insurance company might try to argue that your injuries aren’t serious enough to deserve compensation.
Non-economic damages are those for which money can be an approximate substitution, rather than an exact one. You may have heard of compensation for “pain and suffering” — these are non-economic damages. If your injuries have impacted your ability to live your life the way you did before your accident, you may be entitled to non-economic damages.
It can be challenging to put a dollar sign on pain, suffering, and mental trauma, but compensation for non-economic damages tends to be about 1.5 to 5 times the amount of an individual’s economic damages. To make a case for non-economic damages, we recommend starting a journal of every time that your injuries or trauma prevent you from living life to the fullest.
How Long Will My Case Take?
In general, our firm starts negotiating settlement claims with insurance companies after our clients have finished their medical treatment. If injuries require continued medical care, we will work with you to determine the best time to begin legal action. It usually takes several months to negotiate a settlement with an insurance company. If we cannot reach an agreement with the insurance company, you may choose to bring your case to court. Trials in a court can take one or more years to resolve.
Every case is different. Some are resolved quite quickly, and some take many years. We work diligently to make sure we are efficient as possible, as we know, settlement negotiation and court trials can be stressful.
Contact a Beaumont Injury Attorney
We are committed to bringing justice to all of our personal injury clients. Give us a call today at (409) 838-4444 to schedule your free consultation.