What to Do After a Distracted Driving Truck Accident
A distracted driving truck accident and the claims paperwork afterwards can both be painful. We help you navigate through.
Distracted driving remains a significant safety concern across the United States. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, crashes involving distracted driving resulted in 3,208 deaths and 315,167 injuries in 2024.
Truck drivers encounter several forms of distractions on the road. Phones are the most common form of distraction for drivers, as they take away their attention from driving.
The size and weight of a commercial truck have a significant effect on the severity if they get involved in an accident. They almost always result in severe harm to victims. This in turn causes substantial cost in expenses for treatment and even lost income.
Here’s what to do if you’re hurt in a distracted driving accident and learn what evidence can strengthen your claim and how to pursue compensation.
Get to Safety and Check for Injuries
Try to get out of the way of traffic if possible. Make sure to check yourself for any injuries. Once done, you may also check other passengers for injuries as well before you do anything else.
In many truck accidents, people suffer injuries that may not be immediately apparent. Some examples are whiplash or even internal injuries. Therefore, don’t simply assume that you are alright just because you don’t have any intense pain at first.
Call the Police and Request a Full Crash Report
Truck crashes usually will require police intervention. It is very important to stay on-site until a police report has been made. This police report serves as the official record of what took place during the crash. In these truck crash scenarios, there can be minor aspects recorded by the police that end up being important in the future, including signs of driver fatigue and cell phone use. If a police report is available, make sure to get a copy of it.
Document the Scene Before Anything Changes
Evidence is important in any kind of case. They can provide reliable information that can support your claim.
Take pictures of the vehicles and the road conditions. Make sure to include the skid marks, cargo spillage, and any visible damage from different angles. If there are company names or logos on the truck, take a photo of that too. Get contact information from any witnesses nearby.
Truck crash scenes get cleared quickly once traffic needs to move again. Therefore, this evidence is often only available in the first hour or two after impact.
Understand Why These Cases Move Differently Than a Car Accident Claim
There are specific regulations for commercial trucking that do not usually apply to ordinary car accidents. This includes hours of service laws, cargo securing regulations, and electronic logs. Showing that a trucker was distracted (from a cell phone or other distraction like a dispatch computer) usually involves demanding documents that the truck company does not want to provide.
That is one big reason truck crash cases tend to do better with attorneys who focus specifically on this kind of law, not general injury work. Firms like Barnes Law Group and Marietta truck accident lawyer John R. Bevis often handle those federal trucking regulations when building a claim, and the same overall regulatory framework is what shows up no matter what state the crash happened in.
Preserve the Trucking Company’s Records Quickly
Trucks have electronic devices that could record if the truck driver was distracted at or near the time of the crash. Dashcam footage and dispatch communications may have a record of such information. But it’s important to obtain these records early because these data are usually retained for only a limited period.
A written preservation request, sometimes called a spoliation letter, has to be sent out fast so the carrier doesn’t keep overwriting or deleting it over and over. This is usually one of the very first things an attorney does once they are formally retained for a truck crash case.
Get Medical Care and Keep Following Up
Go to the hospital immediately despite the belief that you can leave the accident site without help. There are injuries caused by truck accidents that only surface after several days, particularly those injuries sustained in the spine, neck, and head.
Keep every record of treatment, prescribed meds, and also the time you missed from work, because those documents connect your injuries to the crash and help support whatever claim comes next.
Consult an Attorney Before Talking to the Trucking Company’s Insurer
Usually, drivers are the usual suspects that bear the liability of a truck accident. But there are several other parties that could be held responsible. This includes the trucking company and the cargo owners. But claim adjusters are experienced at reducing how much is paid out.
Consulting a lawyer is important before making a recorded statement or approving a settlement. They will focus on the distracted driving case and help you with your claim.
While the evidence is still available, you can establish your position early. It is advantageous for you to secure your claim before the deadline for preservation requests passes.
