Top Reasons Why You May Be Found Liable For Your Truck Accident

Truck drivers are held to higher standards than those operating passenger vehicles. However, there are some actions you can take as a passenger that can lead to a dangerous or even deadly accident. Making these mistakes will reduce the odds that you will win your truck accident case. 

Reckless Actions By Passenger Car Drivers

Do not follow trucks too closely. Because of their size, if you collide with the truck, the vehicle will not have as much give. When colliding with a passenger vehicle, the force of the collision will at least push the other car.

Do not cut off another truck or drive slowly with the truck behind you. Especially do not brake check: a practice where you slam on your brakes to stop tailgating. Trucks are not able to stop as quickly and cutting a truck driver off can lead to an accident.

When the truck is turning, make sure that you leave enough space. The truck cannot make the same sharp turns that a passenger vehicle can make and could clip your vehicle. While many truck drivers are careful to avoid this, you can't assume that this will always be the case.

Other safety measures you should take include:

• Not riding alongside the truck driver in her blindspot
• Not leaving enough room for the driver to change lanes
• Trying to cut the driver off when she is changing lanes
• Driving slowly in front of a large truck on a hill

After an accident, the truck driver will likely dispute her liability and may claim that you took actions that may have contributed to your accident. Therefore, you'll need help from a truck accident attorney.

Truck Driver Liability

Truck drivers sometimes drive in a reckless manner. If you believe that the other driver was the reckless one, talk to a truck accident attorney about how you may be able to prove that the truck driver was reckless. One piece of evidence drivers often forget about is the black box. A truck driver might have a camera recording the accident. The footage is stored on a black box. However, the trucking company will not necessarily let you access the black box unless your truck accident attorney requests footage.

Regardless of how the accident occurred, make sure to not talk about your case on social media and never admit fault. Otherwise, you might have your claim denied and your case was thrown out of court. 

For more help understanding liabilities, talk to a truck accident attorney today.

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