Atlanta Truck Accident Attorney

Truck Accident Lawyers Serving Atlanta Injured Victims

Atlanta began as a railroad town. It continues to be a major rail junction, but with the world’s busiest airport, Atlanta is now a city dominated by truck traffic. About 115 tons of freight move through and within Metro Atlanta each year. Three interstate highways converge in Atlanta, allowing trucks to haul the cargo that arrives or departs by rail or air.

Atlanta has seen a boom in warehouse and distribution center construction. It has also seen traffic snarls as hundreds of trucking companies compete for limited space on Atlanta’s roads and highways. Bottlenecks are common on I-285, I-20, GA-400, and I-75.

As trucks proliferate in Atlanta, so do truck accidents. Almost 12% of fatal collisions in Georgia involve a large truck. Thousands of people are seriously injured by Georgia truck accidents each year.

When accident injuries are caused by a negligent truck driver, our Atlanta truck accident attorney team help victims pursue fair compensation.

What Rules Require Truck Drivers to Drive Safely?

Georgia law allows victims of traffic accidents to obtain compensation for injuries caused by negligent drivers. That principle applies to drivers of trucks as well as drivers of 4-door passenger cars.

All drivers are required to obey Georgia’s basic traffic laws. Commercial truck drivers and the companies that employ them must also follow the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations set limits on the number of hours truckers can drive in a day. They also prohibit drivers from operating a commercial truck when they are too ill or fatigued to drive safely. According to IIHS, many drivers travel over the hours that they’re supposed to anyway.

The regulations require truck owners and drivers to inspect brakes, tires, steering, and other components to ensure that the truck can be operated safely. The regulations require truckers to distribute loads evenly so that unbalanced trailers do not tip over on curves. Drivers must also secure loads so that cargo does not fall from a truck into the path of an oncoming car.

Commercial truck drivers must have a valid commercial driver’s license. They may need to be certified for the particular truck they are driving. They must prove that they are medically fit to drive. Federal law requires commercial drivers to carry liability insurance with minimum limits of $750,000 to $5,000,000, depending on the kind of driving in which they are engaged.

Our Commercial Vehicle Rules FAQ explains the rules that apply to truck drivers in more detail. When truck drivers violate those rules, their violations are evidence of the driver’s negligence. Our experienced Atlanta truck accident attorney knows how to prove a truck driver’s negligence to Georgia juries.

How are Truck Accidents Different from Car Accidents?

The injuries caused by truck accidents are more serious and more likely to be fatal than car accident injuries. Occupants of passenger cars are protected from serious injuries by safety harnesses, airbags, and crumple zones. The weight and size of a large truck moving at highway speeds will easily defeat those protections.

The impact of a truck often causes car parts to dislodge and jagged bits of metal to fly into the passenger compartment. In addition to puncture wounds, truck accidents can lead to catastrophic injuries. We have helped families whose relatives were killed by truck accidents in Georgia.

Even at relatively slow speeds, truck accidents can cause serious injuries. When a passenger car causes a 10-mph crash in stop-and-go freeway conditions, the accident victim may escape with a mild injury. When a heavy truck causes a 10-mph rear-end collision, the force of the crash and the truck’s inability to stop quickly may result in a chain reaction collision that produces head injuries, broken bones, and other serious injuries.

The state of Georgia  introduced a Hands-Free Act to help prevent distracted driving. NU Property Casualty 360 explains that each time a driver is stopped for illegal use of their cellphone, he/she will be fined higher and higher amounts. This will hopefully lead to fewer truck accidents.

How Does Tobin Injury Law Help Victims of Atlanta Truck Accidents?

Our Atlanta truck accident lawyers help injury victims rebuild their lives. When injuries cause serious disabilities, rebuilding a life requires substantial resources. The victim of a brain injury may need speech therapy, vocational training, treatment by a neuropsychologist, and the assistance of a caregiver. Individuals with spinal injuries may need periodic wheelchair replacements, wheelchair-accessible vehicles, and home modifications that allow the injury victim to regain mobility.

All serious injuries require medical attention. Some require hospitalizations and multiple surgeries. We want our clients to obtain all the medical care they need to maximize their physical recovery. We help them obtain compensation to pay their hospital bills and to cover all the future medical treatment they are likely to need.

Rebuilding a life requires accident victims to return to the lifestyle they were living before the accident. We help accident victims recover their lost wages. When their injuries limit their ability to perform their jobs, we help them obtain the compensation they can use to acquire new job skills and to replace the likely loss of future income. Our Atlanta truck accident lawyers want injury victims to live productive lives.

Then there is pain and suffering. Recovering from emotional pain can be just as difficult as overcoming the limitations imposed by physical disabilities. To rebuild a life, Atlanta truck accident victims must overcome post-traumatic stress, depression, fear, and other psychological consequences of their physical injuries. We do our very best to help accident victims obtain the compensation that will improve the quality of their lives and account for the pain.

What Atlanta Truck Accidents Does Tobin Injury Law Handle?

Our Atlanta truck accident law firm represents victims of serious collisions with trucks. We help injury victims in Atlanta, surrounding communities, and all across Georgia.

Many of our clients are outside of Atlanta and are referred from other lawyers across Georgia because of our reputation for trying cases and winning.

We focus our practice on helping victims of serious injuries. We limit the cases we take so that each client receives our full attention and outstanding customer service. We try to help the clients who need us the most. We help injury victims who are facing substantial medical bills because of hospitalizations, surgeries, and the need for long-term treatment. When injuries are fatal, our team helps families get their lives back on track.

What Should I Do After an Atlanta Truck Accident?

A truck accident victim should listen to paramedics who arrive at the scene and follow their advice. If you do not leave the scene in an ambulance, remain at the scene until the police arrive. After answering the officer’s questions, go to the hospital to get medical care.

The truck driver’s insurance company will try to take your statement. They likely will even send a claims representative to the crash site. Don’t talk with them.

Insurance adjusters want to talk to accident victims before they get legal advice. Don’t. You should protect yourself by talking to an Atlanta truck accident lawyer before you speak to an insurance adjuster. Our injury lawyers are on the side of accident victims. The AJC is one resource for Atlanta residents to use to find more information on accidents in the area.

Contact an Atlanta Truck Accident Attorney at Tobin Injury Law Today

Insurance adjusters are on the side of saving money for insurance companies. You can contact an Atlanta truck accident attorney 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by calling 404-JUSTICE (404-587-8423) or using our online contact form. We offer free consultations and will be glad to answer your questions.