Abogados de Accidentes de Camiones

Georgia Truck Accident Claims Statute of Limitations

Georgia law limits how long you can wait to file a lawsuit for your injuries in a truck accident. Time limits vary slightly depending on the particular situation, but in general, here’s what you need to know:

• Motor Vehicle Crashes and Truck Accidents: Two Years.
  If your bodily injuries arise from an accident in Georgia, you will have only two years to file a lawsuit against anyone involved who you believe is responsible. The clock starts ticking on the date of the accident. The time limit can be extended only in very limited circumstances.
• Property damage: four years.
  If your personal property (car and other personal items) is destroyed or damaged, you only have four years to claim compensation.
• Wrongful Death: Two Years from Death
  If a relative dies in a fatal truck accident, then you have two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit against those responsible for the accident.
• Municipal and government agencies: Six months to a year, depending on location.
  If the truck or other commercial vehicle that caused your accident was owned or operated by a government entity, such as a city or county government, things can be very different. In these situations, you may have as little as six months to notify the government entity of your claim. Therefore, you need to act quickly if you have been involved in such an accident.

Who Can Be Liable for a Truck Accident?

In a truck accident, it’s not just the truck driver who may be liable for negligence. Consider that many accidents are the result of driver error, but the underlying cause may be related to something that happened at the company’s headquarters, the loading dock, or even a repair shop.

For example, the following are other parties that could be liable for your injuries:

• Trucking Company: When an employee (the truck driver) is negligent, the boss is usually liable under a theory known as superior response, which is a fancy way of saying “the master is responsible for the servant.” Some trucking companies may try to avoid liability by labeling their drivers “independent contractors.” In many cases, careful investigation reveals that an independent contractor was actually an employee, despite what the company called them.
• Dispatchers/Agents:  Dispatchers and freight forwarders can sometimes be held liable if they push drivers to perform beyond their reasonable limits or even beyond the legal hours they are allowed to drive, leading to sleep-at-the-wheel accidents.
• Repair and mechanical companies:  Most large trucking agencies have their own maintenance crews that perform regular repairs, such as tire changes and brake work. Sometimes, companies cut corners by using aftermarket parts or by not repairing broken air lines and brakes, just to save money. Other times, they may subcontract repairs to other companies that work on projects independently, often leaving necessary work unrepaired altogether.
• Storage companies/shippers: When a truck driver receives a load at a warehouse, the company loading the truck is often not affiliated with the truck driver or the trucking company. Instead, these are customers who pay the trucking company to transport the load. Sometimes they get greedy and load more than they are allowed, just to save money. For example, by loading an extra pallet (perhaps an extra thousand pounds) on each load, a warehousing company could save tens of thousands of dollars or more each year. But this can cause the truck to exceed its legal weight and therefore be unable to stop in the event of a crash.

For these reasons, it’s important to have a local, personalized law firm that has been serving Douglasville since 1992. We have the experience and resources to handle cases of almost any size, and we choose to provide personalized attention—focused representation for each client. Call Sherrod & Bernard, P.C., today to speak with a truck accident attorney about your case.

Help With Wrongful Death Claims After Truck Accidents

After a truck death, it can be very difficult for the family to think about the legal processes of the accident. All surviving loved ones want is to grieve, heal, and spend time with family and friends. The idea of speaking to an attorney at a time of great personal pain can be uncomfortable or even embarrassing for some. Unfortunately, the law doesn’t care if you are uncomfortable or going through the worst tragedy of your life. The law requires you to take some action, or else you will lose your rights forever. Here are some things to consider if you have lost someone close to you:

• How will you pay for medical bills?  Most truck fatalities are very costly and result in large final medical bills for the family of the deceased.
• Will there be enough money to raise the children or support the family?  In some cases, the victim may be a source of income for the family. If so, a sudden and unexpected death can also be a financial disaster for the entire family.
• Who will care for the children?  If the victim was the primary caregiver for young children or the primary homemaker, the surviving spouse may be surprised to discover how expensive it is to pay someone to replace those duties.
• What will be left for the family?  By the time final burial and funeral expenses are paid, medical bills are covered, and time off for grieving is taken, how much will be left for the family’s future now that the loved one is gone?

A wrongful death case is not about revenge. It is about helping a grieving family and estate recover money due to the sudden and untimely death of a beloved family member.

Nothing can replace a person who is taken from us prematurely, but compensation through a wrongful death case can help the family move on and find closure.