When Should You Contact an Injury Attorney after a Truck Accident in Illinois or Indiana?

It’s never too soon to enlist the help of a personal injury lawyer after a serious truck crash.

There are almost half a million large truck crashes in this country that are reported to law enforcement, according to the latest report from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Trucking is dangerous for everyone on our roads: the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 874 truckers died while on the job in 2021. That’s around 16 truck drivers losing their lives on the job every single week.

The risk of a serious or deadly truck accident is much higher in our part of the country because both Illinois and Indiana have significantly more commercial truck traffic than most other states. Trucks are a big reason we are known as the “Crossroads of America.” Read, Huge and Growing Freight Truck Traffic in Northern Indiana: Increasing Danger of Semi-Truck Crashes.

It is important for victims of a truck accident involving any kind of commercial truck (18-wheeler; tractor trailer; reefer; tanker; flatbed; dump truck, etc.) to understand the legalities involved in that crash from the moment of impact. For truck drivers as well as rig occupants; drivers and passengers in other vehicles; as well as any injured pedestrians or motorcyclists, they need to know how fast the law begins to work in these matters.

It is never too soon to get the help of an experienced personal injury lawyer after a serious truck crash in Indiana or Illinois.

Why? Consider the following:

Rapid Response Teams Work Fast to Help Lessen or Deflect Responsibility for the Truck Crash

Many people may be surprised to learn that there are groups dedicated to dealing with serious truck accidents on behalf of trucking companies or insurance carriers. They are known as “Rapid Response Teams.”

The Rapid Response Team for your truck crash may be run by the insurance carrier or by the law firm employed for the defense. They may be in-house for a large trucking company. Sometimes, they are independent third-party companies in the business of rapid response who stand at the ready to deploy to the truck crash site.

Who are on these Rapid Response Teams?

These groups include a number of transportation industry professionals with education and experience in truck accidents. They will understand the various causes of truck crashes as well as compliance issues. Team members may well include reconstruction experts; professional investigators; lawyers; and media strategists.

Each team will be made up of experts needed for the particular circumstances of the specific truck crash. For instance, different experts will be needed for a rollover than for a crash involving hazardous materials.

They are Fast to the Crash

It can be amazing to learn how fast the members of the Rapid Response Team begin work, doing things like interviewing witnesses; taking photographs and videos of the accident scene; gathering facts for use as documentary or digital evidence (think black boxes); and doing things like surveillance or media work.

While police officers or deputy sheriffs are likely to be the first on the accident scene as investigators, and there will be independent federal regulatory investigations in many severe truck accidents, it is the Rapid Response Team that will be preserving evidence and confirming compliance with state or federal laws for the purpose of defending against future injury or wrongful death claims.

Legal Help for Truck Crash Victim

In the face of the involvement of the defense team – sometimes at the scene within hours of the crash itself – it is vital for truck accident victims to even the playing field as soon as possible in order to protect their interests. Concerns include:

Evidence Preservation

Time-sensitive evidence may be lost to the injured person after a truck crash if they do not have advocates working on their behalf, for instance. Witnesses may vanish who have critical information about the truck crash or about events that happened in the minutes before the tragedy. Video footage may be lost.

For more, read: Black Box Data in Semi-Truck Crashes: The Importance of EDR Evidence; Evidence in Serious or Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes or Car Accidents: What is Crush Analysis? Accident Reconstruction Experts and Injury Claims.

Communications About the Crash

Having legal representation means that the client and their loved ones can turn over communications about the accident to their lawyer. This may be a huge weight off of their shoulders, especially in dealing with insurance adjusters and others representing adverse interests. In many situations, hiring an attorney creates a legal shield against the victim and their family members being contacted about the truck crash. See, Bad Faith: When an Accident Victim is Victimized a Second Time by the Insurance Company.

Determine Parties With Legal Responsibility

Liability in truck accidents can be complex. There may be more than one company or individual with legal responsibility for the truck crash. Determining the extent of the victim’s injury claims can take time and resources that work best the faster in time to the event itself. For more, read Semi Truck Crash Liability: Third Party Liability in Indiana Truck Accidents.

Statute of Limitations

All accident claims must be filed within a set time frame under state law. If the victim, understandably overwhelmed with the truck crash life consequences, does not file by this deadline then their claims are barred by statute. There may be complications here; for instance, there will be different deadlines if a governmental entity is involved, or if a minor has been hurt.

Knowing the filing deadline is extremely important. It will not matter how truly valid the claims may be: miss the “statute of limitations” deadline date and there is no recompense. It is a simple and powerful defense for anyone with legal responsibility for the victim’s harm.

Lawyers not only will be able to calculate that specific deadline, but they will help their client to meet that deadline and protect their interests.

See: Deadlines For Accident Claims Must Be Met By Victims or Claims Are Barred.

Helping with Workers’ Compensation

Both Indiana and Illinois have state laws that require employers to buy insurance coverage to protect workers in the event of an injury on the job. Personal injury lawyers can help their clients in obtaining Workers’ Compensation benefits while they proceed with their civil claims, and in dealing with issues like subrogation after an injury award.

Read: Work Accident in Illinois or Indiana: Workers Compensation Claim vs. Personal Injury Damages.

Injury Attorney for Truck Crash Victims in Indiana or Illinois

For those who have been hurt in a catastrophic or deadly truck crash, the priority must be with the victim’s medical needs and long-term care. The focus must be on the needs of loved ones, as well, who are also suffering in the aftermath of the truck accident.

However, there is no law or regulation that prohibits someone from seeking out legal representation after a serious truck crash. They may find it is an emotional support to them and a real stress reducer in a most difficult time, as well as beneficial in protecting their rights.

Pursuing justice against the wrongdoers in a severe truck crash is never simple. No matter how obvious the cause, there will be attempts to minimize monetary exposure on behalf of those exposed to financial liability. Having an experienced legal team on the side of the truck crash victim can help in these “David vs Goliath” scenarios.

For truck crash victims and their loved ones considering hiring legal counsel, see:

Truck crashes are some of the most horrific kinds of accidents on our roadways. The weight and size of the big rig means greater force in impact, even at low speeds. Bodily harm in truck accidents is often severe or fatal, and our law recognizes the right of victims to pursue claims against all who contributed to the crash. Please be careful out there!