Commercial vehicles pose a unique danger on our roads, and any accident caused by them could result in significant damages and injuries. Due to this risk, California personal injury laws have clear guidelines on how the injured can seek compensation if they believe that the accident was due to negligence. It starts with determining the cause of the accident, fault, and nature of your damages. Working alongside an experienced personal injury attorney will make the process smooth and improve your chances of recovering the compensation you deserve. But first, let us look at how compensation is determined in a California truck accident.
Determining Compensation in a Truck Accident
Several factors come into play when determining compensation in a California truck accident. All these factors are essential if you are not willing to miss a payment for some of your losses. Some of them are:
Insurance Issues
Auto accidents bring about significant losses that may be impossible to cover by an ordinary person. That is why California laws require every driver to have sufficient auto insurance coverage. No one is certain about what could happen while on the road. Auto insurance coverage can offer financial protection if you are involved in an accident and damage another person’s vehicle or injure them.
California DMV has specific insurance requirements for all drivers. For instance, commercial truck drivers are required to meet the following insurance requirements
- $500,000 insurance coverage for bodily injury per person
- $1 million insurance coverage for bodily injury per incident
- $200,000 insurance coverage for property damage
- Or, $1.2 million Combined Single Limit
If you have been injured in a truck accident, the value of your compensation will depend on the type of insurance policy the truck driver has and its maximum limit.
Insurance can affect your compensation, positively or negatively, in many other ways. For example, if the truck driver had no auto insurance or didn’t have large enough insurance to cover your damages, you may not recover total compensation for your damages. That is so unless you had an under-insured/uninsured motorist insurance coverage on your auto insurance policy.
Your compensation may also be affected if you were partly to blame for the accident. The civil court will use the state’s comparative negligence law to determine the truck driver’s percentage of fault.
But if there were more than one responsible party in the truck accident and each has a sufficient insurance policy, you’ll have an opportunity to recover total compensation.
Experienced personal injury attorneys understand how insurance could impact the outcome of your case. Therefore, it is advisable to work with an attorney from the beginning of the process. Since your attorney will have your best interest at heart, he/she will ensure that you recover total compensation for all your damages.
Proof of Liability
Establishing fault is an essential step in determining compensation in a California truck accident. The strength of your case lies in your lawyer’s ability to prove negligence on the part of the truck driver, truck company, or another entity. Without sufficient proof, you may not receive the compensation you deserve.
If you have been injured in a truck accident, you’ll most likely blame the truck driver for the accident. People at the accident scene will also blame the driver but cannot prove it at that instance. Without sufficient proof, the truck driver, truck company, or any other entity will not be willing to admit fault for the accident. That is why you have sufficient time before filing your case in court to conduct an investigation.
Most personal injury cases in California are based on negligence. To prove negligence, your personal injury attorney must establish the elements below:
- That the alleged responsible party owed you a duty of care — If it is the truck driver, his/her duty of care involves operating the truck lawfully and safely.
- The alleged responsible party breached that duty of care — For instance, the driver might have been distracted when the accident occurred or was operating the truck while tired or intoxicated.
- That the breach in duty of care was followed by an accident that resulted in damages like medical expenses, missed work, and loss of earning ability.
The court will expect you to provide sufficient proof to support your claims. Any theories about the cause of the accident should be supported by adequate proof, like an expert witness’s statement.
Your attorney can also engage the help of an accident reconstruction expert to explain to the court what might have happened to cause the accident and how the accident directly relates to your injuries. If successful, the court will be compelled to grant all your damages and more (including punitive damages) if the accident resulted from gross negligence.
However, it is crucial to watch out for any possibility of the court decreasing your compensation, especially if there is proof that you, too, were at fault in causing the accident.
The Nature of Injuries Incurred
California civil courts will also consider the nature of your injuries to determine your compensation in a truck accident. It is worth noting that commercial trucks are usually bigger and heavier than other vehicles on the road. Therefore, they are likely to cause severe damage to whatever and whomever they strike. It means that your injuries after a truck accident could be severe and more long-term. But it all depends on the kind of accident you were involved in.
Most truck accident injuries are catastrophic. If you did not lose your life in the accident, you might have incurred horrific injuries, some of which could take months and others years to recover.
A minor accident must have left with injuries that will take a few days or weeks to recover. It means that you will not spend a long time in hospitals receiving medical treatment. It also means that you might be going back to work sooner than later. Therefore, the types of damages you will be seeking compensation for will not be significant compared to those you might have incurred if the accident was more severe.
On the other hand, a severe truck accident must have left you with long-term and sometimes life-altering injuries. It means that you’ll require more compensation to cope with the new changes in your life. For instance, if you lost a limb or were incapacitated in the accident, you’ll need lifetime care. These expenses will be included in your claim and will determine the compensation you’ll include in your claim.
If your loved one lost his/her life in a truck accident, the type of compensation you’ll be seeking in court is different from the person who only incurred physical injuries.
It helps to work alongside an experienced personal injury attorney. Your attorney will ensure that you include all your damages in your claim for maximum compensation for all your losses.
Your Current and Future Medical Needs
The most significant damages in truck accidents are physical injuries incurred by all those involved in the accident. Commercial trucks are big and heavy, so they leave a trail of destruction whenever they are involved in an accident. If you have been involved in a truck accident, you probably incurred physical injuries. That is why it is advisable to seek medical help immediately after an accident.
The responsible party must meet all medical expenses incurred after a personal injury case. They should include medical expenses immediately after the accident, any treatment you might be receiving in the course of filing for compensation, and any expected medical cost in the future. All these are determined by the kind of accident you were involved in.
The problem with accepting a quick settlement is that it is impossible to determine how severe your injuries are shortly after the accident and how damaging they can be. It is advisable to wait for a comprehensive medical report to know how much further treatment you’ll require before a full recovery. Some complications due to underlying injuries arise days or even weeks after the accident.
An experienced attorney will know the importance of relying on the directive of a medical expert who understands the implications of injuries like those you have sustained. The medical expert will also estimate the time your injuries will take to recover and the estimated costs of current and future medical treatment you will require.
Your attorney will also ensure that you include all your medical costs in your claim for total compensation. The costs will also include transport to and from doctor appointments, surgical services, emergency services, hospitalization, and all medications you received in the hospital.
You’ll also include any medical-related out-of-pocket expenditure you have incurred after the accident. Future medical expenses will include doctor’s appointments, transportation to and from the hospital, physical therapy, testing and lab work, plus follow-up treatment, among others.
Note that there are issues that could affect the amount of compensation you will receive from a truck accident claim. For example, failing to seek medical help immediately after the accident might be interpreted to mean that you did not incur severe injuries after the accident. This could cause the court to reconsider your claim and only award compensation or damages that seem genuine enough. Additionally, your payment could reduce if it was determined that you had a pre-existing condition. Remember that any injury included in the claim must have been incurred in the accident. If not, the allegedly responsible party will not be held liable for it.
Your Capacity to Work
The impact of a California truck accident is determined by your ability or inability to engage in productive work after the accident. Compensation will also be based on your ability or inability to go back on your life after the accident. If your injuries are severe, you might be forced to take a break from work to concentrate on your recovery.
If you can go back to work immediately after the accident, you’ll only be compensated for the few losses you might have incurred in the accident. You might not have lost much and will only recover less damages from your claim. Remember that California civil court will only award you compensation for only the losses you’ve incurred in the accident.
Your damages increase as your inability to work increases. For example, if you have incurred severe physical injuries that do not allow you to go back to work for a few days, weeks, or months, your compensation will include lost wages for the days you will be out of work.
But if your injuries are so severe that you may not be able to work for the rest of your life, you will need compensation for the lost earning capability. On top of that, you might need the help of a caregiver and constant monitoring if your ability to care for yourself was also lost.
If you have children that solely depend on you, you’ll also need to seek caregiver services to ensure that their needs are met as you recover from your injuries. These, too, will be included in your claim.
A detailed medical report can state your current inabilities and whether or not you are expected to improve with time. If so, the doctor will include any medical treatment and therapies you might need to enjoy the same quality of life as you did before the accident. All these additional expenses will be included in your claim.
Property Damage
When an accident occurs, it is not just people who incur injuries. People lose valuable properties too, and they deserve compensation for that. In determining your compensation after a truck accident, the civil court will also want to know the type and value of the property that you lost through damage in the accident. It could be your vehicle, motorbike, bicycle, or anything else of value that might have been lost in the car. It is advisable to have the details of damaged property documented and included in your claim.
Experts advise taking pictures and videos of the accident scene immediately after the accident to strengthen your case. Ensure not to lose any crucial piece of evidence that might help in your case. For example, do not wait until your vehicle is towed away to start taking pictures. Let the judge see the amount of damage as it occurred at the accident scene. This way, you’ll not miss an opportunity to recover compensation for any loss you might have incurred.
The Effect of the Accident on Your Life
Compensation in a truck accident is based not only on tangible losses but also on the intangible losses experienced in the accident. That is why, on top of the economic damages, California civil courts award non-economic damages in personal injury cases. The non-economic losses are determined by the impact the accident might have had on your life.
How much did you suffer from the accident? Suffering could have been brought about by several factors, including the physical pain you had to endure, the thought of how much you lost in the accident, or the thought of never recovering fully from your injuries. Since it is not possible to put a dollar value on the amount of suffering you might have incurred after the accident, the court will rely on your attorney’s prowess to fight for compensation to determine the compensation you deserve from it all.
Other than suffering, the court will award compensation for any emotional distress that could have been brought in the accident. You might have suffered stress or even depression while undergoing treatment. Some people are not able to cope with being hospitalized for lengthy periods. You might have been emotionally affected because you had to leave young children unattended to seek treatment. An experienced attorney will know how best to explain your emotional distress after the accident, to have it awarded by the court.
Additionally, your compensation will be determined by the impact the accident had on your relationships.
Did the accident affect your ability to enjoy relationships?
For example, a severe physical injury might affect your ability to enjoy a sexual relationship. Your inability to enjoy the things that you used to enjoy before will also count. You may no longer be able to go out as a family because of an impairment you incurred in the accident. Worrying too much about your recovery might also affect the quality of the relationship you have with your loved ones. All these will count in determining your compensation.
Find a Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney Near Me
Have you been injured in a truck accident and were wondering how compensation is determined? Personal injury attorneys consider several factors in deciding what should be included in your claim. If you would like to receive maximum compensation for your injuries in Los Angeles, CA, contact an experienced personal injury attorney. At Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney, our experienced attorneys will walk you through the process to ensure that nothing is left out of your claim. Call us at 424-231-2013, and let us begin by studying the details of your case.
