Truck accidents cause the deadliest accidents in the United States, associated with the colossal bodies of these vehicles. Most accidents with commercial trucks often share commonalities. These common causes of truck accidents include factors like DUI, reckless driving, substance abuse, and drowsy driving.
Sometimes, victims fail to file a claim either because they’re discouraged or overwhelmed by the situation of the accident as a whole. We can’t imagine what you’re going through during that time, but also remember that you have to take legal action as soon as possible. The more you delay, the more legal repercussions you have to face.
Table of Contents
Statute of Limitations in States
Most states have a window of time that allows you to file your truck accident claims. Missing this window almost entirely deprives you of the right to compensation. There may be a few exceptions, like the discovery rule, in which the statute of limitations only applies from the date the victim found out they were injured from the accident (delayed symptoms).
Each state has a different statute of limitations, mostly between 2 and 3 years. Knowing your state’s statute of limitations is crucial in filing a claim as soon as possible.
Spoliation of Evidence or Evidentiary Decay
When you delay filing a lawsuit against the at-fault party, the presence of evidence becomes volatile over time. They may get lost or destroyed. This evidentiary decay can happen intentionally or accidentally through gradual movements in the long run.
Gap in Official Records
If you delay reporting the accident or filing the claim, everything about the accident becomes less certain, creating an evidentiary gap in your official legal and medical records, especially if you didn’t seek immediate medical attention.
This makes a favorable situation for the at-fault party’s defense attorneys and insurance companies to emphasize the gap and argue you didn’t file a claim immediately because you were guilty or shared liability and shift the blame to you easily.
Destruction of Trucking Company Records
The trucking company is obliged to submit or give you access to the records, such as driver logs and the driver’s drug test, right after the accident, but delayed claims make it easy for the company to destroy them.
The company is legally required to have these logs and records for 6 months, with a few exceptions, so delaying a claim allows the destruction of this crucial evidence.
Diminished Witness Memory
Most witnesses can only remember the scenes of the accident in full picture for only a few weeks. Fresh memories are stronger than diminished memories. Delaying makes witnesses forget about the accident, and sometimes it can be harder to track some witnesses over time.
Erasure of Truck Data
Most trucks today carry technology that allows us to see data and the driver’s actions during the accident through dash cam footage, GPS locations, and black box data. Your attorney can analyze the irrational driving or unusual logs in black box data to identify the at-fault driver’s negligence.
When you fail to file a claim soon after the accident, this crucial data gets erased after a few miles to eliminate old records or might even be intentionally deleted.
Lost Surveillance Footage Evidence
At the accident scenes, the presence of traffic cams and surveillance cams makes a big change for your case. These could have easily captured the at-fault party’s action, which favors your case more. This evidence is erased over time to get rid of old footage in many cases.
Conclusion
Delaying only makes everything complicated. You lose your entire right to receive fair compensation and seek justice.
As soon as you get into a truck accident, follow the necessary protocols like reporting it to the police and seeking medical attention, then call a truck accident lawyer to initiate your claim process, and the lawyer will assist you until you have received fair compensation.
Key Takeaways
- A delayed claim forfeits your right to compensation due to the statute of limitations if you crossed that window of time.
- The gap in legal records will be questioned by defense attorneys and insurance companies trying to make you look guilty.
- Crucial trucking company data like driver logs and drug tests are destroyed after a few months.
- Witnesses may forget the event entirely or most of the pictures after a few weeks.
- Truck data, such as the black box, GPS location, and dashcam footage, is erased after a few miles.
- Surveillance footage evidence at the accident scene may get erased after a few months to get rid of old footage.
