Each state, including Illinois, has laws known as the statutes of limitations. These laws limit the amount of time that an injured party has to file a lawsuit.

It may seem that the laws are unfair and that you shouldn’t be up against a deadline when you are suffering from a painful injury. However, the law is meant to protect both you and the defendant by providing a time by which the case must be filed. It provides the defendant with some certainty about how long he may be financially vulnerable to a lawsuit and, more importantly, it provides you better access to high-quality evidence. Additionally, the sooner that you file a case the sooner you may be able to make a legal recovery to help with your physical and emotional recoveries.

How Long Do You Have To File A Truck Accident Claim?

If you were hurt in a truck crash, then you have suffered a personal injury and the Illinois Statute of Limitations for personal injuries applies to your case. In most cases, this means that you have two years to file a lawsuit. The two years runs from the time that the injury is discovered or the time that the injury should reasonably have been discovered. Most of the time, the two-year statute of limitations will begin on the day of the truck crash.

In limited circumstances the statute of limitations may be extended. This may happen, for example, if you were under the age of 18 or mentally incompetent at the time of the crash and your parent or legal guardian did not file a case on your behalf.

What Happens If You Miss the Deadline To File Your Truck Accident Claim?

If you file a lawsuit after the statute of limitations expires, then you should expect that the defendant will file a motion to dismiss with the court. The court will grant that motion and your case will be dismissed without you recovering any financial damages.

Don’t let this happen to you. Instead, learn how an Illinois truck accident case works and what you can do to protect your rights today by speaking with our experienced truck accident injury lawyers as soon as possible. Contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 for a free consultation.

You may have seen a truck accident happen and been traumatized, or you may love someone who was badly hurt or killed in an Illinois truck wreck. Either of these situations can be devastating and can have a significant impact on your life. However, they do not always give you the right to bring a lawsuit against the person who caused the crash.

Instead, in order to file a truck accident case in the state of Illinois, you must have legal standing. If you do not have legal standing, then the party that you name as the defendant will make a motion to dismiss your case—and the court will grant that motion.

Standing to Sue in Illinois Following A Truck Accident

Illinois law allows people to file personal injury lawsuits after truck wrecks when:

• They are adults who have been hurt in the crash.
• They are the parent or guardian of minor children (under the age of 18). Children do not have legal standing to bring their own lawsuits. If your child was hurt, then you may be able to file a case on behalf of your child. The damages in this type of case would be for your child’s benefit.
• They are the legal guardian of someone who was hurt in a truck crash. If you have legal guardianship of an adult, then you may have the right to bring a personal injury lawsuit on that person’s behalf and for that person’s benefit.
• They are the administrator of the estate of someone who died in a truck wreck. In this case, they may have the right to bring a wrongful death claim for the benefit of the estate and its beneficiaries.

If you believe that you have standing to bring a case, then it is important to take action immediately by talking to an experienced truck accident lawyer. An attorney can explain how Illinois truck accident cases work and what steps you need to take to move forward with a lawsuit and a potential recovery. Contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 to schedule your free consultation.

When a serious crash occurs, there is often more than one cause. Maybe one driver was speeding while the other driver was distracted. Perhaps, one driver was tired while the other driver under the influence of prescription medications. In these cases, more than one party may be at fault for the truck crash.

The percentage of fault that is attributed to each party must be negotiated during settlement talks or decided by the court, and the exact percentage is very important. It may determine the amount of money that you can recover in a legal case—or whether you can recover any money at all.

Illinois Contributory Negligence Law In Your Truck Accident

According to the Illinois Compiled Statutes (735 ILCS 5/2-1116 (c)):

• You cannot recover damages in a truck accident case if you are found to be 50% or more of the proximate cause of your injuries. In other words, if your actions or inactions made you primarily responsible for the accident, then you cannot recover damages from someone else.
• If you were partly at fault for the accident, but the percentage of your fault is found to be less than 50%, then you may recover damages for the injuries that you have suffered. However, your recovery will be reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to you. For example, if you are found to be 25% responsible for the crash and the trucker is found to be 75% responsible for the crash, then you may recover damages—but your total recovery will be reduced by 25%.

For these reasons, determining the exact cause of your crash and the percentage of fault attributed to each party is very important.

Don’t Negotiate Liability on Your Own For A Truck Accident

An experienced truck accident lawyer can investigate what happened to you and make compelling arguments to the insurance company or to the court to ensure that a fair determination of fault is made. For more information about how a lawyer can help you protect your right to a fair recovery and how Illinois truck accident cases work, please contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.

A respiratory injury may not be the first type of injury that you think of when you think about truck accidents, but by now you know all too well that a respiratory injury can result from a truck wreck and that it can be very serious.

How Your Breathing May Be Affected by a Truck Crash

Generally, there are two different ways in which you can suffer breathing problems after a truck wreck. You may have breathing or respiratory injuries if:

• You suffer a lung collapse in the collision. Trauma to the chest can result in a lung collapse, which is also known as pneumothorax. When this happens the lung cannot inflate as it normally does when you breathe. The pressure in your chest can interfere with the blood flow to your heart. In addition to difficulty breathing, you may experience a drop in blood pressure and your organs may be compromised. If you experience pain when breathing, rapid breathing, difficulty speaking, or any other symptoms of a chest or lung trauma, then it is important to get prompt medical attention. Medical treatment, including hospitalization, may be needed to release the pressure in your chest, to allow you to breathe, and to allow blood to flow to your heart. Your recovery may take a long time, depending on the extent of the trauma to the lung.
• You breathe in hazardous cargo because of the collision. In addition to whatever trauma you suffer because of the collision, any chemicals, poisons, or infectious cargo on a truck could cause you to suffer respiratory complications. The complications may interfere with your ability to breathe and may be medical emergencies.

If you have suffered any breathing problems as a result of a truck wreck then it is important to contact an experienced lawyer as soon as possible. A full investigation needs to be done to determine which parties were at fault for the truck accident injuries that you suffered. Please contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 today for a free consultation today so that you can begin protecting your rights and your potential recovery of medical expenses, lost income, pain, suffering, and other damages now.

Federal, state, and local governments all need trucks to do the business of the government. At any given time, you may be on the road with mail trucks, construction trucks, snow plows, dump trucks, garbage trucks, tractor trailers, or other trucks. Just as with any other type of truck, an accident may occur if the trucker is negligent, if the trucker’s employer is negligent, or if there is a defect with the truck.

However, unlike other truck accidents, this time you need to pursue a legal claim against a government entity.

Some Rules Are Different When Your Claim is Against the Government

Generally, the government is protected from lawsuits by a legal doctrine known as sovereign immunity. Sovereign immunity prevents individuals from suing the government, unless there is a specific exception to the general rule protecting the government from such lawsuits. Like most legal doctrines, however, there are exceptions to this rule, and truck accidents are typically such an exception.

The Federal Tort Claims Act, for example, generally allows you to sue the United States government if you would be able to sue a private person for the accident that occurred. This means that if you would have a valid legal claim against a private trucker, trucking company, or maintenance company under the same circumstances then you may have such a claim against the government. Similar rules apply to state and local governments.

Assuming that you have the right to pursue a legal claim against the government after a truck wreck, it is important to know that special rules may apply. For example, you may be required to provide notice of your intent to pursue legal action in a shorter amount of time than the usual statute of limitations. In some cases, the standard of proof may also be different when your claim is against a government entity. This is especially common when your claim is against an emergency vehicle such as a fire truck.

Contact an Experienced Truck Accident Lawyer

Since the rules for pursuing a legal action against the government are different than they would be in a lawsuit against a private defendant, it is important to speak with an experienced truck accident attorney for help after this type of truck accident. For more information, and to schedule your free and confidential consultation, contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678. 

As the driver of a car, a motorcyclist, a bicyclist, or a pedestrian, you cannot avoid all truck accidents. Many accidents are the fault of the trucker or the trucking company and there is little, if anything, that you can do to prevent those crashes from occurring. However, since you regularly share the road with trucks ranging from big rigs to box trucks, it is important to know what is within your power to do to avoid a crash and what to do if you are hurt by someone else’s negligence.

Four Tips for Preventing a Truck Accident

You can avoid dangerous truck collisions by:

• Being aware of—and avoiding—blind spots. There are some spots that truckers just cannot see, even with mirrors, due to the large size of the vehicle. Thus, if you are traveling on either side of or immediately behind a truck, you should be aware that a trucker may be unaware of your presence.
   
• Keeping a safe distance from trucks. Because of their size, trucks take longer than other vehicles to stop. Thus, it is important to keep a safe distance away from a truck that you are traveling behind to avoid being part of a collision if the trucker can’t stop in time to avoid a crash.
   
• Being patient and following the rules of the road. Do not let anger or impatience escalate into a dangerous crash.
   
• Be careful around trucks that are turning. Trucks often make wide turns and may be unable to avoid hitting you if you are in the way.

As always, it is also important that you are not distracted, drowsy, drunk, or otherwise negligent while you are on the road.

What to Do If You’ve Been Hurt in a Truck Accident

If the trucker’s or trucking company’s negligence left you injured, then you have the right to protect yourself by making a fair recovery. An experienced truck accident lawyer can help you investigate what happened and get the financial damages that you deserve. Your damages could include compensation for past, current, and future medical expenses, lost income, out-of-pocket costs, and pain and suffering. For more information, or for tips on how to protect your truck accident recovery, please contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 to schedule a free consultation.

Yes. The trucking company likely has a lot of information that could be potentially relevant to your truck accident claim. If you take the right action quickly, then you may be able to prevent that evidence from being lost or destroyed.

What Evidence Are We Talking About?

The relevant evidence that could be in the control of the trucking company includes (but is not limited to):

• The truck. The damage to the truck can provide valuable information about what happened in the accident. It’s important that any damage to the vehicles involved in the crash not be repaired.
• Driving logs. The hours the driver worked the day of and the week of the accident may be relevant.
• Electronic monitoring data. Anything about speed, time worked, and other data that is automatically recorded on the truck could be relevant.
• Cargo logs. The type of cargo, its weight, and how it is distributed on the truck could be relevant.
• Inspection reports. Truck inspection dates and results may be relevant to your claim.
• Maintenance logs. How and when the truck was maintained or fixed could be relevant to your claim.
• Alcohol and drug testing results. If the trucking company did any routine or unplanned alcohol or drug testing, or if they failed to do this kind of testing, it could be important to your claim.
• Other relevant information. Any other relevant information about the trucker, the trucking company’s procedures, or the accident could be important.

Depending on the circumstances, some or all of this evidence could be relevant to your recovery.

Let Us Help You Get the Evidence You Need

Our attorneys can send what is known as spoliation of evidence letter to the trucking company. This letter will request that all information that is potentially relevant to your claim be preserved. The consequences for destroying evidence once a spoliation letter has been sent can be significant. While there are sample spoliation letters available on the Internet, it is important that your letter be specifically tailored to your case and sent to the right parties. Our experienced truck accident lawyers draft and send appropriate letters on behalf of our truck accident clients.

To schedule a free consultation and to learn more tips for successful truck accident cases, please contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 today. 

The first thing that you should do is to call 911. This will allow the police and medical first responders to be dispatched to the truck accident scene and to handle the emergency. After that call is made and you are out of immediate danger, then it is important to collect as much evidence as possible if you are physically able to do so.

Get the Following Evidence If You Can

While you are still at the truck accident scene, it is important to:

• Take pictures. Pictures can provide valuable information about how the accident happened. You can use the camera on your cell phone to take photos of the position of the vehicles in the crash, the damage done to each vehicle, road conditions, weather conditions, and anything else that could be relevant to your recovery.
   
• Take note of the names and contact information for all of the witnesses. Anyone who saw the accident happen or who stopped to help after the crash could be a valuable witness. Make sure to get their names, phone numbers, and email addresses.
   
• Record the truck driver’s name and license information. This will help you identify the driver again later.
   
• Write down the trucking company’s name and contact information. The trucking company is a potential defendant in the case and the insurance policy that covers the accident may be held by the trucking company. Accordingly, it is important that you have this information readily available as you move forward with a potential claim.

Of course, your physical condition and the specific circumstances of the accident may prevent you from gathering every type of evidence described above. However, this will not prevent you from filing a successful truck accident case.

Your truck accident lawyer will conduct a full investigation and determine what happened to cause your truck accident injuries. Then, you can take steps to pursue your recovery by filing a truck accident case and pursuing settlement negotiations.

For more information about how an experienced truck accident lawyer can help you get the evidence that you need to get the recovery that you deserve, please contact us online or call 800.800.5678. We would be happy to schedule a free consultation with you to discuss more tips for successful truck accident cases.

Yes. Even if the truck accident was not your fault, there are certain mistakes that can make your fair recovery more difficult. However, if you are aware of the potential mistakes that you can actively try to avoid them and thereby protect your legal rights.

Five Important Things NOT To Do After a Truck Crash

If you’ve been hurt in a truck accident, then we encourage you not to:

1. Apologize. Try not to say that you are sorry at the scene of the crash. It may be misunderstood as a claim of negligence rather than a simple statement about being sorry that the crash occurred.
    
2. Speculate about what happened. Do not make any guesses about why the truck crash occurred. The police will conduct an investigation at the accident scene and your lawyer will gather additional evidence in order to determine exactly what happened and who was at fault.
    
3. Discuss the accident with anyone other than your lawyer. Anything that you say may be misconstrued and used against you later. Thus, it is important to direct any insurance adjusters or anyone else who wants to talk about the crash to your attorney.
    
4. Fail to follow your doctor’s orders. Failing to follow your doctor’s treatment plan could hurt your physical recovery and it could make your legal and financial recovery more difficult.
    
5. Post on social media. Insurance adjusters and defense lawyers will be looking to your Facebook page, Twitter feed, Instagram account, and other forms of social media to determine the extent of your injuries. It is important not to post about the accident, your injuries, or any of your activities online.

While we encourage you not to do these things, we know that the time immediately following a truck crash can be confusing. One mistake may not jeopardize your entire recovery, but the steps that you take now to protect that recovery may be even more important. Following a truck accident you should speak with an experienced truck accident lawyer as soon as possible. Contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 for a free consultation today and learn more tips for protecting your truck accident recovery.

It can be difficult to think clearly after a truck accident leaves you injured and in pain. Your initial reaction is the right action—you should get immediate medical attention for your injuries. A doctor can help you manage your immediate pain, diagnose your injuries, and create a treatment plan so that you can recover to the maximum extent possible.

However, while getting good medical care is the most important thing that you can do to help yourself after a truck accident, it is not the only thing that you should do.

Three Other Things You Can Do After a Truck Crash

In addition to getting medical help, you can help protect your fair recovery of legal damages by:

• Collecting evidence. Any evidence that you can collect at the scene of the crash may be helpful. This may include (but may not be limited to) taking pictures of the accident scene and getting the names and contact information for any witnesses to the crash.
• Being careful about who you speak to and what you say. Insurance adjusters have a job to do and that job is to pay you as little as possible for your claim. In an effort to do that job, they may use your own words against you in a way that you did not mean for those words to be used. Be very careful what you say. Do not speculate about the causes of the crash and do not apologize.
• Calling an attorney as soon as possible. An attorney can talk to insurance adjusters on your behalf and make sure that all of your rights are protected throughout the litigation and settlement processes.

You’ve been through a terrible trauma. While these steps may seem simple enough to follow, there are many details that can help or hurt your potential legal claim. You should speak with an experienced truck accident attorney as soon as possible. Let us help you navigate the complicated steps that you need to take so that you don’t have to worry about making a potentially costly mistake. Contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation and to learn more tips for protecting your truck accident case.