Truck and Bus Accidents

Truck Accident Injury Lawyer for Northern Virginia and Washington, DC

If you need an attorney, call the Law Offices of Jeremy Flachs today – 703.879.1998

There are unique aspects to tractor trailer, bus and other vehicles regulated by local, state and federal law. For example, many trucks, tractor trailers and buses have event data recorders, sometimes called the “black box”. These recorders contain data from the sensors and computers in the truck or bus. They can tell you the speed of the truck, tractor trailer or bus before impact, when the brakes were applied and with what effect on the vehicle, the speed at impact, throttle application, and seatbelt usage, and in some cases the tire pressure, steering, cruise control, ABS and airbag information. Because of its complexity, most dealers and vehicle repair shops do not have the equipment or expertise to download the data. This means that it is important to hire an expert. It is also always prudent for a Northern Virginia personal injury lawyer to investigate whether the crash was caused by sleep or inattention on the part of the tractor trailer, truck or bus driver. Drivers are required to complete and maintain daily logs which reflect hours on the road and hours sleeping. But because these logs can be destroyed after 6 months, it is advisable to retain an attorney quickly to preserve this evidence. An investigation of tractor trailer, bus and truck accidents also requires discovery of the driver’s training and qualifications, drug and alcohol test results, witness statements, vehicle inspections, the rig truck’s contents and the weight of those contents, and vehicle maintenance and repair records. Because the trailer is sometimes leased separately from the tractor, and because both can be rented or leased from the company shipping and receiving the goods, an investigation must be made as to ownership and right of control of the vehicle. This is also important for the determination of liability insurance coverage to compensate for personal injury or wrongful death. With multiple owners and leases, tracing the insurance coverage can be difficult. Because large trucks and tractor trailers hauling goods can weigh up to 80,000 pounds (40 tons), they are very dangerous instrumentalities and if driven or maintained carelessly, they can inflict catastrophic damage and injury. The Law Offices of Jeremy Flachs can represent you or your loved ones if injured by a truck or tractor trailer. We can recover your past and future medical bills and lost earnings. We can also recover for your permanent physical injury, or for the death of a loved one. Damages for personal injury will include pain and suffering, mental anguish and emotional distress. The Law Offices of Jeremy Flachs is here to represent you and recover damages for personal injury or wrongful death caused by the negligent maintenance or operation of a tractor trailer, truck or bus.

If you’ve been injured in a truck and tractor trailer accidents in Fairfax, Annandale, Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, Reston, Centreville, or other parts of Northern Virginia, or in Washington, DC (District of Columbia), the Law Offices of Jeremy Flachs can quickly assess your injury claim and help you determine if all of your legal rights to compensation are being met.

There are numerous federal regulations which govern interstate trucking. These regulations pertain to almost every part of the trucking industry, including driving time manifests recorded by the driver, maintenance records and drug and alcohol testing after a collision. Most trucks and tractor-trailers are equipped with data recording devices which record speed, braking distance and other critical facts relevant to determining the cause of a collision. It is important that this data be secured as soon as possible and most attorneys handling cases of this nature will retain expert witnesses to assist with these matters.

Taking the word of an insurance adjuster is seldom in your best legal and financial interests. In the event of injury to your person from a truck and tractor trailer accidents, Jeremy Flachs is the Virginia attorney you can trust to collect fair and reasonable compensation. Whether you’ve been injured as a driver, passenger, pedestrian or bicyclist in a truck accident, it is well worth your time to review the details of your case with the Law Offices of Jeremy Flachs. The review, which is free, will equip you with a good understanding of your legal options as you work through the stages of your injury claim. For a free truck and tractor trailer accidents injury legal consultation, contact Jeremy Flachs today.

2018 Virginia Truck and Bus Accident Facts

Below are some statistics concerning Truck and Bus Crashes in Virginia in 2018. To see the full report on truck accident statistics, visit the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles online.

• Large Trucks/Tractor Trailers – Virginia reported that in 2018 there were 11 fatalities and 354 injuries to large truck drivers and their passengers.
• Bus Crashes – Virginia reported 579 bus crashes in 2018 which included 1 death and 284 injuries.

Trucks Carry Wider Responsibilities on the Road

Trucks can pose serious hazards to drivers of passenger vehicles and motorcycles, especially at the dangerous speeds of highway travel. As the nation’s capital and a nexus for the major interstate highways along the East coast, tens of thousands of trucks from across the U.S. arrive in or pass through the DC Metro Region everyday. Given this fact, and the chronic congestion on the Beltway, 66, 95 and other major routes in our region, it’s important for all drivers to practice caution when sharing the road with trucks. Trucking companies that send their trucks on interstate delivery routes are subject to the regulations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Established in 1999 as an agency under the U.S. Dept. of Transportation, the FMCSA monitor and enforces key safety factors in the interstate trucking industry, including hours of service for drivers, the handling of HAZMAT shipments, NAFTA rules, and drug and alcohol testing of truck drivers. The FMCSA’s mission is to make road travel safer for American citizens. But as more than 677,000 companies have trucks traveling interstate roads, and with more than 8 million trucks on American highways, fulfilling that mission is an ongoing challenge for the FMCSA. Drivers and passengers involved in a collision with a truck can hold the truck driver and the truck driver’s employer accountable for any act of negligence that contributed to an injury. However, establishing and proving the negligent act usually requires an attorney experienced in litigating truck accidents.

In Northern Virginia, Jeremy Flachs is an attorney that understands the serious commitment trucking companies must undertake to ensure that their trucks and drivers are fit for sharing the roads with drivers in Virginia and D.C. He also knows that, in an effort to save money, time or both, many trucking companies ignore important rules and regulations. If you’ve been injured or have lost a loved one in a truck accident, Jeremy Flachs can take charge of your case, assert your rights to compensation, and hold those responsible for the injury fully accountable.

Library for Truck and Tractor Trailer Accidents

• The FMCSA: Protecting Drivers, or Asleep at the Wheel? Description: The fatality rates in truck accidents are substantially higher than in vehicle-to-vehicle collisions, as is the rate of catastrophic injuries involving brain injury, spinal cord injury, dismemberment and other serious injuries. Ensuring that the high costs of medical care and other costs of an injury or death are honored by the insurance companies involved requires skilled and aggressive legal counsel. For residents of Virginia and D.C., the Law Offices of Jeremy Flachs is a firm which will provide this.
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