What To Do After a Truck Accident in Atlanta

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Whether you’re driving the truck or not, being involved in a truck accident increases the risk of developing psychological problems.

According to experts, truck drivers often face catastrophic injuries caused by their loaded trucks. This results in post-traumatic stress disorder, a.k.a. PTSD. Georgia is a no-fault insurance state, and drivers might need to sue their own insurance company to claim certain benefits, including psychological pain and suffering or medical bills for the treatment of PTSD.

Understanding Georgia Truck Accident Cases

As most drivers probably know, truck accidents can involve more than one liable party - such as the company or truck manufacturer. Finding other parties partly at fault helps to cover the tremendous damages that truck accidents can cause. However, commercial trucks' weight and size cause tremendous damage and severe injuries regardless of who is found at-fault.

Truck drivers can themselves be victims of extensive injuries, and no-fault insurance typically covers driver injuries. Types of trucks include:

• Commercial service vehicles
• Delivery trucks
• 18-wheeler trucks
• Semi-trailers
• Tractor-trailers
• Box trucks
• Dump trucks
• Refrigerated trucks

Trucks vary widely in size and purpose, and tractor-trailers weigh between 70,000 and 80,000 pounds. When these kinds of trucks collide with a family vehicle weighing between 3,000 and 4,000 pounds, car passengers tend to suffer catastrophic injuries or death.

Covering Yourself as a Professional Driver

If you drive a truck, you will be closely investigated after an accident. Your logs will be analyzed to ensure that you took anti-fatigue breaks and didn’t work more than the maximum hours. As a professional, you can help your case by showing professionalism after an accident. Here are the following steps you should consider to be best practices that any driver should follow after an accident:

• Call the Police and Emergency Services. You can usually call 911 when on the road. The dispatcher will route your call to the appropriate services for the police, fire truck, and an ambulance.
• Seek Medical Attention if Injured. No matter how mild your injuries might seem, you should seek medical attention if injured. The other items on the list can wait until medical professionals have seen you and offered you first aid. Unfortunately, many injuries don’t generate immediate symptoms, so it is best to go to the hospital for a lengthy check-up if paramedics or doctors recommend so.
• Document Accident Information. If you didn’t suffer any injuries, it’s important to take some time to document the circumstances of the accident. Describe briefly in writing what you remember, road and weather conditions and what third-parties did that might affect liability. Taking photos of the scene is highly recommended. Try to get contact information from the other driver and any witnesses. Get the other driver’s name, address, phone numbers and insurance company information.
• Get Your Truck Examined and Appraised. It’s critical to get your vehicle examined before driving anywhere other than getting the vehicle out of the road. The damages must be estimated carefully as part of your insurance claim. Follow any specific procedures required by your insurance company.
• Avoid Admitting Any Liability. You should keep quiet about liability by not admitting any fault or accusing the other driver. Emotional responses might reveal your courtroom strategy or come back to damage your court case. You should also avoid posting any information on social media. Even an innocuous admission of feeling fine might damage your compensation case.

After an accident, the most important thing to do is to hire an attorney and follow their recommendations. Choosing a skilled Atlanta truck accident lawyer from Bader Scott Injury Lawyers protects your rights and ensures that you receive compensation for any injuries or psychological damage you might suffer.

Find an Attorney Who Can Help

Experts recommend you hire a law firm you have worked with before. However, if this is your first time, it is best to take a little time to find the best attorneys for your needs. They have to work in the areas of your interest (truck accidents, personal injury, insurance claims, etc.), have an outstanding track record of cases, prove knowledge and experience in the field, come with excellent credentials, and more.

If you are the victim of a truck accident, it is important to save as much money as possible, so make sure you get a law firm that offers a free initial consultation and works on a contingency fee.

About the author:

With a BA in communications and paralegal experience, Irma Dengler decided to make the best of her writing skills. She decided to turn complicated legal matters into something more

palatable for the masses. Therefore, Irma became a law communicator who writes about everyday problems so everyone can understand them and take the appropriate action. She specialized in personal injury cases, as they are more common than anyone thinks, but her areas of expertise also include civil law, criminal law, insurance-related issues, and more.