Were You Struck by a Garbage Truck? We Want to Help!
Garbage trucks serve a vital service in our lives today. They keep our neighborhoods and cities clean, healthy and safe. These trucks are large, cumbersome, and make frequent stops. One moment, they’re stopping at driveways, picking up and dumping out trash cans. The next, they’re on a city street, emptying dumpsters. Garbage truck companies have service contracts to pick up garbage in residential neighborhoods and commercial accounts. This makes filing claims for garbage truck accidents complicated. Because of this, the help of an experienced garbage truck accident lawyer is essential.
So the question is, who is liable? Is it the private company that owns the truck? Or the homeowners group that contracts their services? Or the government that owns/operates the garbage trucks? Who do I file my garbage truck accident claim with?
Let Premier Law Group help! Anyone injured in a garbage truck accident needs the help of an experienced Seattle personal injury lawyer. Let us collect the evidence and do the paperwork with insurance claims adjustors. We negotiate for you, while you focus on getting well. That’s all we do!
Call Premier Law Group today at 206.285.1743 for a FREE Consultation! Our experienced truck accident attorneys will talk with you about your case.
The Danger of Garbage Trucks
We know that garbage trucks provide essential services. Their garbage pick-ups keep neighborhoods and cities clean. At the same time, these big cumbersome trucks are dangerous. Garbage trucks are known for causing serious injury accidents.
Here’s what makes these trucks dangerous:
- Blind Spots: Garbage trucks have blind spots on the right, left and rear sides. Truck drivers literally cannot see cars, bicyclists and pedestrians.
- Neighborhoods: Garbage trucks pick up garbage at the end of driveways in neighborhoods. They share the roads with car drivers, dog walkers, bicyclists, and children. Almost all are in one of the truck’s blind spots.
- Garbage Truck Rollovers: Garbage trucks are tall and have a high center of gravity. When the driver takes a turn too quickly, the truck can tip and create a rollover car accident. This is a major hazard for the truck driver and pedestrians alike.
Garbage truck drivers can never let their guards down. Their vehicles are big, clumsy, have terrible blind spots, and tend to roll over. Any negligence on the part of the driver will lead to a serious injury accident.
What Causes Garbage Truck Accidents?
Garbage truck accidents are caused by someone’s negligence. Figuring out who is responsible for the accident can be complicated. The most usual causes include:
- Garbage Truck Driver Negligence: Drivers suffer from tiredness, particularly during their early morning truck runs. It’s easy for truck drivers to be “distracted” while operating the truck – cell phone calls, dispatcher radio communications, etc. And drivers make errors in judgment. For example: misjudging the angles of a turn; not checking mirrors when backing up; and weather conditions.
- Defective Parts and Maintenance: When trucks are not maintained well, they cause serious injury accidents. For example: brakes fail; engines stop running; truck lift arms drop their loads; and road debris breaks/cracks windshields and mirrors.
- Private Truck Ownership: Many garbage haulers are private companies, as opposed to city/county government owned haulers. Private owners hire and train their drivers. They maintain their own truck fleet. When there’s poor employee training coupled with poor truck maintenance, serious garbage truck accidents occur.
- Government Truck Ownership: Many garbage haulers are owned by local government. The government is responsible for employee training and proper equipment maintenance. If they have poor employee training and lack of truck maintenance, the government is responsible for their truck’s accidents.
- Other Party’s Negligence: Garbage truck accidents are also caused by other people. Drivers and pedestrians have errors in judgment, too. They don’t consider the truck’s blind spots, or how long it takes a garbage truck to stop. They dart in front of the trucks and cause major serious accidents.
Figuring out who is at fault for your accident can be impossible to do on your own. That’s why working with an experienced garbage truck accident lawyer before you file a claim is so crucial.
Filing a Garbage Truck Accident Claim
Before a garbage truck accident claim is filed, a lot of investigation has to be done. First, talk with everyone involved in the accident. Get names, addresses, and phone numbers. If there are eyewitnesses, get their reports. If possible, take videos and pictures.
It’s important to get police reports. The police collect drivers licenses, vehicle registration information, and determine who caused the accident. Many times, insurance claims adjustors will look at the damages and write up their own reports.
In the meantime, you are injured. Medical bills are piling up, you cannot work, and you do not know how to gather the information you need. If your claim involves a city or county government, there are limitations on filing claims.
There is no time to waste! If you need to file a claim for a garbage truck accident, all evidence is important to building a strong case. This takes time and expertise in asking for the right information. An experienced Seattle truck accident lawyer has the skills and knows how best to perform this work.
Contact a Dedicated Garbage Truck Accident Lawyer!
We can help you! Don’t sign off on an insurance claim until you talk with us. Focus on healing, and let your lawyer collect evidence and handle the claim. Our job is to build a strong case and negotiate on your behalf. We work to get a fair settlement.
Call Premier Law Group! Get your FREE consultation with our experienced auto accident attorneys. You always work directly with an attorney and we are available to you 24/7. Call 206.285.1743 Today!