Fatal Truck Accidents in St. Louis County
Commercial vehicles are heavy, bulky, hard to drive, and slow to stop. While they are crucial to our economy, their size and weight mean that any crash with a standard passenger car could turn deadly.
If you lost a loved one due to a fatal truck accident in St. Louis County, you might be feeling like you have no options for seeking closure and justice. However, if the wreck was caused by a truck driver’s negligence, your family can likely pursue compensation through filing a wrongful death claim. These cases can be challenging and emotionally taxing, but one of our commercial vehicle collision attorneys from Mutrux Firm Injury Lawyers is here to help.
Common Causes of Fatal Truck Accidents
Generally speaking, fatal tractor trailer wrecks are usually caused by the driver’s own negligence. For instance, a trucker might crash into a passenger vehicle when they take their attention away from the road, use their cell phone, or ignore traffic signals. In other cases, a big rig driver might cause a fatal collision by merging into oncoming traffic without adequately checking the surrounding lanes or their blind spots. Several deadly crashes happen each year in St. Louis due to distracted or inattentive driving.
In other cases, gross negligence might result in a wreck that kills another driver. For example, if a trucker stays on the road past their legal time limit or decides to get behind the wheel after drinking, they will likely need to assume all responsibility for the resulting accident.
If a decedent’s family is unsure about exactly what caused the fatal truck accident, a detail-oriented attorney in St. Louis County could investigate the crash scene, speak with experts, interview witnesses, or assess police reports to strengthen their clients claim.
Who Might Need to Assume Liability for a Deadly Truck Wreck?
Since a fatal truck accident is usually a bit more complicated than a standard car crash case, the relevant defendants might look different. Depending on the circumstances, there might be multiple parties that need to face responsibility.
To start, an individual trucker will likely need to assume liability for paying monetary damages if their negligent behavior played a central role in the fatal crash. In other cases, the commercial vehicle company responsible for employing the trucker might face some blame, especially if negligent hiring or improper training contributed to the accident. Finally, sometimes the commercial vehicle corporations even have separate business that own the actual crashed tractor-trailer. When this happens, a plaintiff might be able to target this third party with their wrongful death claim.
Having multiple parties face blame for a deadly wreck could be beneficial since it might boost the money that a claimant acquires. Involving multiple insurance policies could result in multiple awards; substantial compensation that repays for all aspects of a crash. A knowledgeable St. Louis County lawyer knows how to identify all the potentially liable parties and could use this tactic to strengthen a fatal truck accident case.
Call a Skilled Attorney about Fatal Truck Accidents in St. Louis
If you lost a family member or loved one to a commercial vehicle collision, you should remember that you likely have options for seeking justice. While the award from a wrongful death lawsuit can never replace the companionship you lost, it could provide money that repays for funeral expenses and previous hospital bills.
The challenging nature of determining liability for a fatal truck accident in St. Louis County makes working alone an uphill battle, but our legal representatives are here to help. A hardworking lawyer from our firm could exhaust all the options to make sure that your tragedy gets the attention it deserves. Contact the firm today to get started on your case.