Decatur
Truck Accident Lawyer

If you have been in an accident with a semi-truck, it’s in your best interest to talk with a Decatur truck accident lawyer.

At John Foy & Associates, we’ve been advocating for truck accident victims in the Decatur area for more than 20 years. We know that a full financial recovery is essential for accident victims. In most cases, we recover far more than the insurance company would ordinarily be willing to pay.

What Damages Can You Recover If You Are in a Truck Accident In Decatur?

Accident victims in Decatur are entitled to full financial recovery for all expenses related to the accident. We routinely help our clients seek costs for:

• Medical treatment, such as doctor visits, emergency treatment, and surgery
• Prescription medicine
• Rehabilitative and physical therapy
• Repairing or replacing a car
• Lost wages, if workdays were missed because of the accident

At John Foy & Associates, we want you to regain your health and make as full a recovery as possible. We know that serious injuries can require months or years of treatment, surgeries, and physical therapy. 

That’s why we won’t pressure you into taking a quick settlement from an insurance company but instead will help you get a full medical assessment of your injuries and the true cost of your treatment. Then we will put pressure on the insurance company to pay for all your expected costs.

Should You Hire a Lawyer for a Truck Accident?

We all want to believe that insurance companies will take care of us in times of need. But they don’t always live up to that promise. Insurance companies operate for profit and their goal is to make money. One way they do this is to pay as little as possible to people who have claims. 

We’ve talked to many people who accepted the insurance company’s initial offer, only to learn that they needed additional treatment that would cost tens of thousands of dollars more than they received from the insurance company. Truck accident lawyers in Decatur understand how insurance companies operate and the tricks they use to avoid paying you what your claim is really worth. 

We know how to advocate for you and get the insurance company to negotiate. At John Foy & Associates, we start by sending an accident investigator to collect the evidence we need to build a strong case. Our investigation alone is often enough to convince the insurance company to increase its offer significantly.

What Can a Decatur Truck Accident Attorney Do for You?

When you contact one of our truck accident lawyers, the first thing that they will do for you is talk. They’ll provide a free initial consultation so you can tell your story and they can assess your case. When you agree to hire them, they will get to work to prove that you were the victim of negligence.

To do that, they will:

• Investigate your crash and gather evidence
• Calculate how much you’re owed in damages
• Negotiate with the other party’s lawyer and the insurance company
• Fight for you in court, if necessary

If you’re worried about paying expensive lawyer fees for a case you might not win, don’t be. Our Decatur personal injury attorneys work on a contingency-fee-basis, which means they don’t take anything upfront. They only get paid if you win your compensation.

Can You Recover Money without Suing Anyone?

Most truck accident cases never end up in court. Usually, we gather evidence and show the insurance company just how much your injuries will cost. We also prove to them that you are not at fault, and thus not legally responsible for the injuries caused by the accident. 

Once an insurance company sees that we have a strong case that we might win in court, it is often willing to offer much more money to avoid going to court.

Sometimes, however, the insurance company won’t increase its offer. If this happens, we will explain your options and you can decide whether to file a lawsuit in the Dekalb County courts. If you do go to court, rest assured that our experienced litigation team will handle your case every step of the way.

What Is the Average Settlement for a Truck Crash?

It’s impossible to know how much your settlement will be without knowing the details of your case. That’s because, just like each truck crash is different, each claim is different as well. Any number of factors could affect your settlement, including:

• The extent of your injuries
• The amount of negligence shown by the other party and yourself
• The number of liable parties involved
• The cost of your medical treatment
• How long you have to miss work

Because of the number of factors that go into deciding your settlement, there’s no one average number that will help you understand what to expect. Instead, getting an initial consultation with an experienced lawyer can help. Our team can assess your case and tell you how large your settlement might be.

What Does a Truck Accident Lawyer in Decatur Cost?

We don’t believe in making accident victims pay up-front fees. We want to help you recover from your injuries, and we don’t think it’s right to ask you to pay out of pocket just to get the compensation you deserve. Instead, we have a fee structure that anybody can afford:

• Your initial consultation costs nothing.
• You have no out of pocket costs while we handle your case.
• You pay nothing, ever, unless we win money for you.

If we do recover money for you, we will take our fees as a percentage of the amount we get. We think this is the fairest way to do business.

Are 18-Wheeler Accidents Worse than Other Kinds of Accidents?

Any accident can be bad, but because of its size and weight, an 18-wheeler is particularly dangerous. A semi-truck carrying a full load can weigh in at 40 tons, and that’s more than 20 times the weight of an ordinary car. When you collide with something that big, the results can be catastrophic.

There are other characteristics of semi-trucks that make them especially dangerous:

• It’s hard for them to stop quickly.
• Drivers may have reduced visibility.
• They may be carrying hazardous or flammable cargo.
• If a semi “jackknifes” or tips over, it can cause serious damage.

Semi-truck drivers are also subjected to long hours and grueling schedules, which can make even the most careful driver prone to mistakes. Driver fatigue is a factor in many 18-wheeler accidents.

Rules Truck Drivers Must Follow on the Road

In any personal injury case, you must prove that the other party’s negligence caused your damages. To do that, you must show that they failed to uphold a duty of care, which is the reasonable level to which a person is expected to treat others. If the other party failed to uphold that duty, then they are liable for your injuries.

When on the road, truck drivers are held to a higher standard than most other motorists. That’s because, due to the destructive nature of semi-trucks, more can go wrong. If a truck driver fails to follow the rules of the road and work regulations, then they are breaking the duty of care.

Rules that truck drivers have to follow include:

• Road laws such as speed limits and drunk driving restrictions
• Distracted driving laws
• Regulations regarding fatigue or illness that could restrict their ability to drive
• Inspection standards, including making sure the brakes, steering system, and tires are functional
• Standards for securing cargo and distributing it evenly
• Work hour restrictions and scheduling rules that keep drivers from having to speed or work to exhaustion

Other Parties Who May Be at Fault

The above rules can be applied to carrier companies, part manufacturers, or other parties. If anyone responsible for putting that truck on the road failed to uphold the standard of care, then they could be liable for your damages.

A truck accident attorney in Decatur will know what to look for to prove negligence. Our firm has 20 years of experience helping accident victims, and we know how to find the responsible party and hold them accountable.

Talk to a Decatur Truck Accident Attorney Today for Free

If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, you must act quickly to avoid missing deadlines for filing your claim. The Decatur truck accident lawyers at John Foy & Associates are happy to help. 

We will give you a thorough consultation, free of charge, to explain your rights and your options. Call us or fill out the form to your right and get your FREE consultation today.