York Truck Accident Lawyer

If you have been injured in a truck accident, the driver and other parties may be liable for your damages. This means you may be eligible to receive compensation for medical bills, lost earning capacity, physical injury &/or disability, property damage and more, if you decide to file a lawsuit against the at-fault party. Truck accident victims that hire a lawyer to help represent their damages claims recover more financial compensation compared to those that do not have a lawyer.

You guys were amazing! You made a very tough situation, so extremely easy! So, thank you!
_{– Client of Schmidt Kramer}

At Schmidt Kramer, our York truck accident lawyers have many years of experience and we know how to conduct a thorough investigation of your accident to help build a strong case for your compensation claim.

We have a team of award winning lawyers including firm partner Scott B. Cooper – a past president of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice that has also served on the Executive Committee and Board of Governors.

There is no risk in contacting us to discuss what happened and your potential options for recovery. Your consultation is 100 percent free and comes with no obligation to take legal action. We provide our services free of charge, and do not assess legal fees unless you are fairly compensated for your injuries. We represent victims of truck crashes throughout York County, including crashes on Interstate 83.

Contact Schmidt Kramer today. Call (717) 888-8888.

Recovering Compensation for Truck Accident Damages

As each case is different, it can be difficult to determine the value of a case until we learn all of the details about the incident. Truck accident cases can be complex as in some instances, there can be more than one person responsible for the crash.

Some of the provisions our York truck accident attorneys may include in a damages claim include:

Medical bills – The truck that hit you was much larger than your vehicle, increasing the risk of severe or life-changing injuries. Fortunately, you may be entitled to compensation to cover the costs of your treatment, including surgery, hospital stays, prescription medications and physical therapy.
Lost earning capacity – If you suffered a severe injury, you may be permanently disabled. This could affect your ability to continue working in the same capacity as you did before the crash. You may be forced to work in a different industry or work fewer hours. Fortunately, our attorneys can pursue compensation for the effect this will have on your earning capacity.
Lost wages – You may miss time from work because of your injury. For example, you may be physically unable to work, or your doctor may tell you to stay home for a few days while you recover. Your York truck accident lawyer can pursue compensation for any wages lost because of your injury.
Pain and suffering – The physical and mental toll from severe injuries cannot be overstated. You may experience extreme pain and struggle to sleep. Some truck accident victims experience post-traumatic stress, causing them to relive the terrifying accident.
Property damages – collisions with commercial vehicles often result in significant property damage. Having an accurate estimate of the material damages can be a significant component in a compensation recovery.

A truck accident lawyer in York can review your situation to determine the damages you suffered and the value of those damages. Our goal is to pursue maximum compensation. While this cannot change what happened, we know compensation can be a big help to victims and their families after a serious accident.

Fill out a Free Case Evaluation form today.

How Long Do I Have to File a Claim?

Not long after a truck accident, you may be contacted by the trucking company or an insurance company for one of the liable parties in the accident. The representative will probably be looking to settle as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the representative will likely offer you much less compensation than you deserve.

This is why you should strongly consider discussing your claim with one of our York truck accident attorneys in a free consultation. We can determine your options for pursuing compensation. If an insurance claim is the way to go, we can ensure it is filed before any deadlines pass.

Accident victims may not realize there are sometimes deadlines for filing insurance claims. This is why it is best to contact a lawyer as soon as possible to determine your options. If you wait, we might miss the opportunity to pursue insurance compensation.

Another reason not to wait is because there is a deadline for filing a lawsuit over a truck accident. Pennsylvania’s statute of limitations for these lawsuits is two years from the date of the accident. Once this deadline passes, you lose the right to file a lawsuit.

You may be thinking this does not matter because you are going to file an insurance claim. However, the claims process can take time, and the statute of limitations will not stop running simply because we are pursuing insurance compensation.

The sooner you contact us, the more time we will have to pursue insurance compensation and file a lawsuit if we are unsuccessful. Our attorneys need time to conduct a detailed investigation to build a strong case.

Schedule your free legal consultation right now to determine your options.

Establishing Truck Accident Liability

When people get injured in accidents with large trucks, they often think the driver is liable. While truck drivers are often the reason for truck accidents, there may be other entities that could be held liable.

One of the benefits of having a trusted York personal injury lawyer representing you is that he or she can determine all the parties that could potentially be held liable for the accident. This can help us to determine who to pursue compensation from so we can obtain full compensation for all your damages.

Some of the parties that can be held liable for truck accidents include:

Truck Drivers

Many truck accidents are the result of reckless driving on the part of the truck driver. Examples of reckless driving that often result in truck crashes include:

Speeding
Drowsy driving
Distracted driving
Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs

Violating right-of-way laws
Tailgating another car
Turning too fast, resulting in a rollover crash

Drivers are under intense pressure to meet deadlines that are often unrealistic. This results in drivers speeding or staying on the road when they are tired, putting everyone else on the road at risk of being in an accident with the truck.

Truck drivers who are tired have some of the same problems as those who are intoxicated. They have a slower reaction time and struggle to be attentive to what is happening around them, particularly any cars around them. Trucks take longer to slow down or make other maneuvers that could prevent a crash, so the driver having a delayed reaction time can dramatically increase the risk of a crash.

Fatigue also makes it more difficult for drivers to judge the distances between vehicles and make sure to do all the things necessary to be a defensive driver, like checking blind spots or watching for hazards in the roadway in front of them.

Some drivers compensate for fatigue by using amphetamines to give them more energy. If the driver in your accident was taking these drugs, he or she could be held liable for your damages.

Our York truck accident lawyers know how to conduct a detailed investigation to find out if the driver was breaking any laws before the crash. This includes reviewing records from his or her employer, taking pictures at the scene, obtaining video footage and consulting with experts to reconstruct the accident to determine what occurred. We will also help you collect the accident report from the police department in York County that responded to the accident.

Trucking Company

If our truck accident attorneys in York can prove the trucking company made dangerous or illegal demands from the driver, it could potentially be held liable. For example, maybe the trucking company did not tell the driver to speed or drive recklessly, but the demands placed on him or her were so intense that reckless driving was more likely to occur.

There are also truck accident cases where the company violated trucking industry regulations in the pursuit of profit. For example, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has hours of service regulations for truck drivers. These rules place certain limits on the number of consecutive hours drivers can spend behind the wheel.

Some of these hours of service regulations include:

Drivers carrying property can drive no more than 11 hours after being off duty for 10 consecutive hours
Drivers cannot drive if they have been on duty for 60-70 hours over seven or eight consecutive days
After being off duty 10 consecutive hours, drivers cannot drive more than 14 hours after coming on duty

The trucking company could also be held liable for failing to comply with maintenance requirements or inspection deadlines required by federal regulators.

For example, trucking companies must do an inspection of each segment of a combination vehicle at least once every year. Trucking companies must ensure the inspectors they use are properly qualified. Brake inspectors must have completed a state, federal agency or union training program.

When drivers inspect their vehicles and they report defects or deficiencies, the motor carrier must certify that the defect has been fixed.

Trucking companies could also potentially be held liable for not having required brake systems. Different types of brake systems must be in compliance with certain sections of federal regulations.

Cargo Companies

A common cause of truck accidents is cargo falling off or out of the trailer. Sometimes cargo hits other vehicles or a truck is overloaded, and the extra weight causes a rollover accident.

Another company besides the driver’s employer may have loaded cargo into the truck. We can review your situation to determine if the cargo company violated regulations when loading the truck.

Federal regulations have specific requirements for loading cargo into a truck, including how much can be loaded and how it must be secured to ensure it stays on the truck and does not put the truck at risk of causing an accident.

According to FMCSA regulations, there are three ways to transport cargo (Section 2.2.1 of the Driver’s Handbook on Cargo Securement):

Cargo is contained by structures with adequate strength, meaning it cannot shift or tip and is restrained against horizontal movement by other cargo or the structure of the vehicle.
Cargo is contained by adequate structures or a combination of structure, blocking and bracing.
Cargo is immobilized within a vehicle by tiedowns and using one or more of these methods: blocking, bracing, friction mats, other cargo or void fillers.

Manufacturer of the Truck or any Parts on the Vehicle

Sometimes the driver or his employer are not at fault for a truck crash. There are situations when a defective part on the truck led to the accident. For example, maybe the brakes were defective or maybe some part of the engine was defectively manufactured or designed.

If this happens, we may be able to pursue a defective product claim against the manufacturer or designer of the product in question.

Other parties that could potentially be held liable for a truck accident include the owner of the truck or trailer or the company that leased the truck or trailer. Sometimes the employer of the driver does not own the truck. There are also cases when the truck or trailer was leased from another company.

Our York truck accident lawyers can review the situation to determine if these other parties have any liability for your damages.

Schedule a free consultation today by calling (717) 888-8888.

Types of Truck Accidents

There are many different kinds of truck accidents caused by negligence. This includes the following kinds of accidents:

Underride crashes – This type of accident occurs when a car crashes into the back of a truck and slides under the trailer. This puts the driver at risk of serious injury or death. Sometimes these crashes are caused by truck drivers slamming on the brakes without warning.
Jackknife accidents – If the trailer swings out to form a 90-degree angle with the cab, it is called a jackknife accident. This often happens when truck drivers slam on the brakes or lose control of the truck.
Brake-failure accidents – If the air brakes fail when a truck is traveling down a hill, the driver has no way of stopping the truck. This could result in drivers being rear-ended by a vehicle that weighs significantly more than theirs.
Rollovers – Trucks that are overloaded with cargo sometimes rollover, particularly on the highway. These accidents are also caused by drivers taking a turn too fast.
Blind-spot collisions – Trucks have large blind spots and if drivers are not careful, they can crash into cars next to them when changing lanes. This puts the driver of the passenger vehicle at risk of severe injury.
Rear-end crashes – Sometimes truck drivers are not paying enough attention or are going too fast and they cannot stop before plowing into the back of a passenger vehicle. If the truck is traveling at high-speed, anyone in the car could be killed or have life-changing injuries.

Our truck accident attorneys in York are prepared to handle cases involving a variety of accidents. Contact us today to find out if you may have a valid claim against the driver or another party involved with the truck or trailer.

Call Schmidt Kramer right now at (717) 888-8888.

Contact a York Truck Accident Lawyer Today

Truck accidents are some of the most dangerous motor vehicle accidents that occur on Pennsylvania roadways. Victims should consider contacting an attorney to learn about their rights in the aftermath of these accidents.

You may be entitled to compensation for your damages, including medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost wages. Our attorneys can review your situation to determine if another party was at fault for the crash and the best way to pursue compensation.

We will guide you through every step of the legal process to obtain the fair compensation you deserve. This includes launching a thorough investigation into the crash, collecting evidence, negotiating with insurers, and taking your case to trial if necessary.

Your consultation is free and comes with no obligation. You will not be charged legal fees unless you receive compensation at the end of the legal process.

Fill out a Free Case Evaluation form today or call us at (717) 888-8888.

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Schmidt Kramer, P.C.partner Gerard C. Kramer won a personal injury action for $10,043,952.13 in Northumberland County on behalf of a volunteer firefighter who was the victim of Intentional Tort. The 50-year-old volunteer firefighter was seriously injured when a barn collapsed, causing a spinal injury which left him a paraplegic. The claim was brought against the arsonist who intentionally started the fire. It is believed that the verdict is the highest ever in Northumberland County.
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Yesterday a Judge in Union County (Lewisburg, PA) awarded a couple from New Berlin, Pennsylvania, over $4,000,000 because the husband was shot while turkey hunting.You might ask yourself, how does a turkey hunting accident end up with that type of verdict? In order to understand the verdict you would have to know our clients. They are good people who had their life wrecked. Plus, you would have to know the defendant, who should not have been hunting with a gun because he was prohibited after a previous criminal conviction.It is a good verdict, because the Judge was able to do two things with his decision. First, he communicated to two very good people that their losses were something that those of us on the outside could appreciate and value. Mike Hobbins (our client) is a 51 year old guy who lost his sight because a convicted felon --who should not have even possessed a gun-- went hunting illegally, and broke with impunity the most fundamental rule in hunting: identify your target before you pull the trigger. The Judge accepted the financial loss Mr. Hobbins' suffered, but listened closely to the evidence of less tangible losses. When Mike broke down on the stand, because his daughter would end up walking him down the aisle at her wedding, as opposed to how it was supposed to go, the Judge was listening. When Mike could not keep it together, because of how emasculating it was for him not to be able to provide financially for his family, the Judge was listening. It was facts like these that the Judge cited to support the $2,000,000 award for non-economic damages. Second, the Judge wanted to send a message. Union County is a hunting county. Many of the residents hunt there, and people from outside the area come to Union County to hunt. It was my impression, from the Judge's statements as he rendered his decision, that he wanted to send a message to the people in Union County to protect them in their sport. The rules in place to restrict people convicted of crimes not to have a gun are not to be broken. Hunting is serious and you have to identify your target before you shoot. When you turn your back on the rules that are set to provide safety in a sport, you risk being an example. Here, the $1,000,000 punitive damage award sends that message loud and clear.When it really comes down to brass tacks, the right action was taken against a Defendant who may never truly appreciate what kind of impact his reckless choices caused.At Schmidt Kramer, we are injury lawyers. That means we work with people who were hurt in car accidents, who were hurt by the neglect of nursing homes, or those that were seriously injured because of the reckless, thoughtless acts of others. If you or a loved one have been injured in Pennsylvania, we may be able to help. While the verdict yesterday is not one that is representative of every case we do, it does show that serious and dedicated representation can bring good results.Joe ChapmanJanuary 18, 2013
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$2,200,000.00 Auto Accidents
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$1,200,000.00 Personal Injury
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Testimonials

Greg W
Badreddine Saadoune
Michael Kosik was great, I couldn't have asked for a better lawyer. He worked to make sure my medical bills were adjusted appropriately to state law (since I was a victim) and worked hard to make sure I got an appropriate settlement. He is a very kind and understanding person who took the time to explain everything to me in great detail.
Darryl
Jessica Mitchell is lovely, she took care everything in a wonderful way. Definitely I would recommend her.
Mogart Febres
Abbie Trone!! I love her!! She’s amazing! She made everything easy. She was very nice to me! She took very care of my case & If need be i will use her again!!
Desiree Cannon

York PA Truck Accident Lawyers