415+ Google Reviews
There is no “average” truck accident settlement because the amount of compensation each victim receives depends on many factors specific to their unique case. A Rutherfordton truck accident lawyer can help you better understand these factors, including but not limited to:
- The costs of your medical expenses, lost wages, and other financial losses
- How serious your personal injuries are
- The physical and emotional consequences of your injuries
- The estimated value of future losses
The More Serious Your Truck Accident Injuries, the More Money You May Receive
Your potential settlement should reflect how much you have lost because of the crash. Therefore, as a general rule, the more injuries you sustain and the more serious those injuries are, the more money you could be entitled to recover. Consider the following hypotheticals:
- Person X suffers a concussion in a commercial truck accident. Person Y suffers a similar head injury, plus a broken arm. Since Person Y suffered multiple injuries, they may be entitled to a larger settlement from the responsible party’s insurance company.
- Person X and Person Y both sustained severe leg lacerations in a motor vehicle accident involving a large truck. While Person X will require amputation, Person Y will keep their leg with significant scarring. Person X’s injury is more severe and has permanent consequences, so they will likely recover more money than Person Y.
- Person X’s car was damaged in the crash, but with repairs, it is still usable. Person Y’s car was totaled and is beyond saving. Person Y will likely get more money for property damage than Person X.
Why There Is No Average Truck Accident Settlement
The above examples are oversimplified; most auto accident survivors suffer multiple injuries and losses across a range of categories. Nevertheless, they show why there is no “average” settlement for trucking accidents.
So many different elements determine how much you receive that the best way to ensure you seek a fair amount is by hiring a truck accident attorney to calculate your losses.
How Have Your Truck Crash Injuries Affected Your Quality of Life?
When calculating a fair settlement, personal injury lawyers must account for more than just the type of injuries involved. They also examine the impact those injuries have on the truck accident victim’s life.
Some of the common consequences of a truck accident include:
- A short- or long-term inability to go back to work, which reduces the wages you and your family depend on to live, deprives you of much-needed job benefits, and prevents you from advancing in your chosen profession
- Pain and suffering that diminishes your health and causes disruptive physical and psychological distress
- The loss of independence that comes with being unable to care for yourself following a catastrophic injury
- The inability to spend quality time with friends and family by playing games, going to social events, or providing guidance and assistance
Some Automobile Accident Losses Are Easier to Calculate Than Others
How do you determine what fair compensation looks like in your case? Regarding financial losses or property damage, it may be as straightforward as reviewing your bills, receipts, and pay stubs.
However, when it comes to intangible losses, such as emotional trauma or lost independence, the process becomes more complex. Trucking accident lawyers are trained to help people like you calculate both their economic and non-economic damages, allowing them to get every penny they deserve.
Personal Injury Lawyer Near Me 828.286.3866
The Long-Term Effects of Truck Accident Injuries
You will probably start your personal injury claim or truck accident lawsuit before fully recovering from your injuries. This is because of the statute of limitations imposed by each state. For example, both North Carolina and South Carolina require you to begin your case within three years of the truck accident, per N.C. Gen. Stat. §1-52 and S.C. Ann. §15-3-530, respectively.
You may naturally wonder how you can get a just settlement for your injuries if you are still learning what the long-term consequences of those injuries are. Again, this is where hiring an attorney may prove useful.
How Future Losses Affect Your Truck Injury Settlement
Your personal injury lawyer knows how to estimate the value of your future losses. For example, they might:
- Get a doctor’s expert opinion on whether you will ever fully recover from your physical injuries, what treatments you might need in the future, and what symptoms you may experience in the months and years ahead
- Talk to an economics or vocational expert about how injuries like yours may affect your career and your ability to support yourself and your family
- Review your income history and pre-accident career trajectory to determine how much you likely would have earned versus how much you expect to earn now
- Speak to your family and close friends about the changes they have witnessed in your behavior and abilities since the accident and what effect those changes have had on your life
What About Truck Accidents that Result in a Wrongful Death?
A wrongful death case differs from a personal injury case in that you must file a personal injury lawsuit on behalf of someone else (your deceased loved one) rather than yourself. In most cases, the loved one’s immediate relatives are entitled to financial compensation after such a crash.
Clearly, losing a loved one is the worst imaginable consequence of a truck accident. Calculating a settlement amount for a fatal truck accident may involve:
- Confirming with the proper authorities that the crash caused your loved one’s death
- Talking to you and the decedent’s other surviving relatives about all the joy, guidance, and affection your loved one brought to your lives
- Determining how much money the deceased would likely have earned over their lifetime and how much of that money would have gone to supporting their dependents
Combining a Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Case
What happens if you were injured in the same semi-truck accident that took your loved one’s life? Your truck wreck lawyer can help you figure out how best to file these cases and seek fair compensation for all your losses, which may include:
- Funeral expenses
- Burial expenses
- Medical expenses for both you and your loved one
- Loss of income
- Loss of consortium
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Emotional distress
- Property damage
Start Pursuing Your Truck Accident Settlement Today
Farmer & Morris Law, PLLC understands that every case is different, so instead of trying to determine the average settlement for a truck accident, we commit ourselves to providing personalized attention to each and every client. Call today for a free case evaluation with our law firm and learn how legal representation can benefit you. We have offices in North and South Carolina.
