18-wheelers are a common sight on Oklahoma’s roads as they perform essential functions across industries, and their presence continues to grow with the ever-increasing demand for overnight deliveries and online purchases. Though they help keep the economy healthy, 18-wheelers pose serious dangers for others on the roads. These massive vehicles cause massive damage when involved in crashes.
Partnering with an Oklahoma 18-wheeler lawyer is the best way to get the compensation you need to cover losses sustained in a truck accident. BDIW has the experience to take on big cases like yours and get big results. You can trust your Oklahoma truck accident lawyer to hold negligent parties accountable to secure the substantial settlement you need.
Oklahoma’s 18-Wheeler Crash Statistics
According to crash facts reported by the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office (OHS), a recent full year of data collection shows 4,784 large truck crashes statewide. These crashes produced:
- 75 fatalities in 73 crashes
- 1,663 injuries in 1,168 crashes
For that same year, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) reported that 4,998 large trucks and buses were involved in fatal accidents nationwide.
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SPEAK TO AN ATTORNEY TODAYEffects of an 18-Wheeler Accident on Victims
Since trucks typically weigh 20-30 times more than the average passenger vehicle, there is little protection for occupants of those smaller vehicles upon impact. It is not unusual for victims of 18-wheeler accidents to experience life-changing consequences.
Physical Consequences
It is hard to underestimate the physical damage a truck accident injury can cause. Sadly, these physical injuries often result in cognitive damage as well.
Truck accident victims can sustain:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs): a person’s ability to remember, process information, think critically and rationally, or communicate can be diminished or destroyed by TBI. Other bodily functions can also be damaged if the brain can no longer communicate messages to related parts of the body
- Spinal cord injuries: a person can be partially or fully paralyzed by this kind of injury. Spinal cord damage can cause a domino effect of other maladies, such as pressure sores and dysfunction in other body systems
- Broken bones
- Amputations or deep lacerations
- Burns: 18-wheelers may carry hazardous materials and are fueled by large tanks of gas. Impacts can cause explosions leading to serious burn injuries
- Damage to the muscles, nerves, tendons, internal organs, or other tissue
Financial Consequences
Injuries require medical care, and the types of injuries often sustained in an 18-wheeler accident require intense, long-term care. Victims may need around-the-clock care permanently if they are paralyzed or cognitively disabled.
The related medical costs will be insurmountable. The victim’s financial distress will be compounded by time missed at work and lost earnings. For those permanently unable to work, the future holds tremendous financial instability.
If you have been put in financial straits because of someone else’s negligence, the at-fault party owes you financial relief, and an 18-wheeler lawyer in Oklahoma will fight to make sure that party compensates you fully.
Emotional Consequences
Physical injury also brings emotional trauma. If your body cannot work the way it used to, leaving you unable to care for yourself independently, sustain gainful employment, interact with friends, show affection to loved ones, or otherwise enjoy life as you once did, the emotional impact is devastating.
An Oklahoma 18-Wheeler Attorney Can Help
By partnering with an 18-wheeler attorney in Oklahoma as soon as possible after your accident, you put yourself in the best position to receive a financial settlement to relieve some of your distress.
Identifying the Negligent Party
To collect a settlement, you must prove the at-fault party’s negligence caused the accident leading to your injuries and losses. BDIW has the resources to conduct a comprehensive examination of your accident, determine its cause, identify the at-fault party, and file a claim against that party.
In an 18-wheeler accident, the negligent party may be:
- The truck driver: if driver error, distraction, fatigue, or intoxication is the cause. The FMCSA has strict regulations governing driver behavior, and failure to comply leaves drivers culpable
- The truck company: companies must vet and train drivers, take unsafe drivers off the road, ensure vehicle maintenance, and require drivers to uphold strict regulations for hours of operation and rest
- Truck inspectors or mechanics: these entities must perform careful inspections or carry out repairs to keep compromised vehicles off the roads
- Government entities: different government offices keep streetlights, traffic signals, and roads in working condition. When they fail, and accidents ensue, those offices may be responsible
If any parties fail to comply with FMCSA, state, or other regulations, your attorney will identify that failure and hold negligent parties accountable.
Building Your Case
After identifying the negligent party (or parties), your 18-wheeler truck attorney in Oklahoma will file your claim against those parties within the state’s two-year statute of limitations. When you connect with an attorney promptly, you give them time to do an extensive investigation while still filing on time.
Your attorney will gather comprehensive evidence to support your claim, seeking information from:
- Accident witnesses
- Police reports
- Traffic and security footage
- The truck’s electronic data recorder (EDR) – the “black box”
- The accident scene itself
- Medical professionals, truck experts, and any other expert with relevant input
Making a Settlement Demand
By partnering with an Oklahoma 18-wheeler lawyer, you avoid the risk of undervaluing your losses. An experienced attorney knows how to assess your damages and will calculate a demand covering:
- All related medical costs, both present and future
- Lost income and, if applicable, lost future earnings and job benefits
- Property damaged or wrecked in the accident
- Other expenses incurred by the accident
- The extent of your physical pain, emotional suffering, and diminished quality of life
Insurance companies do not always play fair, making it ever more critical for you to have a skilled lawyer negotiating your settlement. Your attorney will not fall for unethical strategies often used by insurance companies to lower their payout or be intimidated into accepting an inadequate settlement offer.
While most truck accident claims settle out of court, your 18-wheeler attorney in Oklahoma is more than prepared to represent and fight for you at court proceedings should you take your case to trial.
We Provide the Representation You Need
From the first step of your case to its resolution, BDIW will provide you with the representation you need. We have a history of securing million-dollar verdicts for truck accident victims and are ready to fight for you.
Contact our firm to arrange a free consultation with an experienced, highly skilled Oklahoma 18-wheeler attorney. And if you cannot get to us, we will come to you.
