San Francisco Injury Attorney Discusses Trucking Accidents

Strategies and tips for taking on trucking companies in personal injury lawsuits.

A commercial truck driver on the Bay Bridge this morning went over the edge of the bridge at the new S curve crashing 200 feet below causing his death.  This is the first fatality since the changes to the Bay Bridge.  There have been 42 crashes, however, since that section of the bridge opened on September 8 of this year.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the trucking accident took place at about 3:30 a.m. this morning.  The big rig was traveling westbound on the upper deck when the truck went over the north side of the bridge.

As reported by the San Francisco paper, the truck driver was an independent contractor who had recently purchased the truck.

Caltrans has had numerous complaints about the section of the bridge.  There has also been a sharp increase in accidents since it opened.

Suppose you witness a terrible personal injury accident in San Francisco – like a pedestrian getting hit by a bus – and it gives you nightmares, cold sweats, and makes you fear buses or even pedestrians.  Can you sue because of your obvious emotional distress or trauma?

The answer is probably not.  However, lets change our personal injury accident up a little.

Let’s say you are waiting for the bus, because your mother is on it, and you witness the same accident.  And when the bus driver slams on the brakes in an effort to avoid the pedestrian your mother is knocked to the floor and injures herself.  And let’s assume you see her fall and you have all the same emotional distress issues as in the first scenario.  Now can you sue?  You betcha!

If someone witnesses an injury inflicted upon someone with whom they have a close family relationship, then that person would have a right to recover damages for the resulting emotional distress or trauma.  And, of course, if you suffer a personal injury yourself you can recover for any emotional distress or trauma that you suffered due to your own injuries or accident.

Trucking accidents are catastrophic and complex.  The average commercial truck or big-rig weighs 70,000 pounds when fully loaded and is over 70 feet long.  At 55 miles an hour an 18-wheeler will travel the length of a football field before it can be stopped.

When 18-wheelers and cars collide the consequences are devastating.  And going in to litigation against a trucking company the company holds all the cards.  However,  if the right focus is made on the right information at the right time, you can greatly improve your odds of success against the trucking company.

This video describes some of the information and focus that you will need.  I hope it helps – good luck.

As a San Francisco personal injury attorney I know dealing with liens, especially Medicare liens, can be a nightmare.  It doesn’t need to be, however.  There are a couple of easy and simple things that you can do early in your case to help deal with reducing and ultimately resolving any Medicare liens on behalf of your client.

This involves establishing contact early the appropriate Medicare office as well as reducing the lien.  I hope this video helps.

Trucking accidents and the lawsuits that they can create are highly complicated – they require extensive use of experts, often involve traumatic brain injuries, and are strongly defended.

This video explains the issues involved in trucking accident lawsuits.  If you or a loved one has been injured in a trucking accident in the San Francisco area or anywhere in California, call me at (415) 293-8231, and let’s see what can be done to help you and your family.

You need to contact a San Francisco injury attorney immediately – one that is familiar with trucking accidents and the lawsuits that follow.  Just as with any personal injury lawsuit, you have two years from the date of the accident in which to file your lawsuit.

However, in trucking accidents, federal regulations require that certain evidence only be maintained for a limited amount of time.  Trucking companies have no interest in keeping this information beyond that limited time because it often works against them.

For instance, the truck driver’s log may be destroyed after six months if an attorney does not take appropriate action to keep the log available to investigators.

I understand how trucking companies operate and defend against accident cases because I represented trucking companies in catastrophic injury cases before opening my own practice.

If you or a member of your family have been injured due to a truck accident in the San Francisco area or throughout California, call me at (415) 293-8231 and let’s discuss your accident in detail.

Or you can e-mail me at info@burlisonlaw.com.

If you are injured in a trucking accident in San Francisco, or anywhere in California, and the accident was the fault of the trucking company, then the trucking company is responsible for your medical bills.  However, the company may not pay your medical bills right away.  If you have health insurance either on your own or through your work, your insurance company will take care of your medical bills in accordance with the terms of your policy.

Of course, your insurance company will then have a right of subrogation (a right to be reimbursed) for any funds that they have paid on your behalf due to the negligence of the trucking company.  A personal injury attorney can help you negotiate any subrogation lien your insurance company or any other state or local entity (like medicare, medical, or a local hospital) may have once your case (should you decide to pursue one) is resolved.  I have done this for many of my clients.  And I have often been able to substantially reduce the liens that these entities had.

The important point is that you worry first about getting the medical care you need.

If you or a member of your family have been injured in a trucking accident in San Francisco or anywhere in California, give me a call at (415) 293-8231, I would like to help.

Or you can e-mail me at info@burlisonlaw.com.

Yes.  In any personal injury action you have a right to make a claim for past and future medical expenses, past and future loss of income and loss of earning capacity, past and future pain, suffering and emotional distress, certain other economic losses, and depending on the facts potentially punitive damages.

However, trucking accidents, and any potential lawsuit arising from one, are different from automobile accidents in many important ways.  Trucking accidents in the San Francisco area often involve catastrophic injuries and unfortunately often fatalities.  These cases involve different experts and many different legal issues.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident involving a commercial truck in the San Francisco area, give me a call at (415) 293-8231 so we can discuss your accident in more detail.

Or you can e-mail me at info@burlisonlaw.com.

Yes.  In addition to the normal rules of the road that all vehicles and drivers in San Francisco and all over the country must follow, commercial trucks must follow the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrations regulations regarding commercial trucks and how they are operated.

Federal laws dictate how much insurance a truck must have, the hours of service in which a truck can operate, and the type of materials that the particular type of truck can transport.

If you or a member of your family has been injured in a trucking accident in the San Francisco area and you need help, give me a call at (415) 293-8231 so we can discuss your accident in more detail.

Or you can e-mail me at info@burlisonlaw.com.