Tanker Truck Accidents & Related Lawsuits
Although tanker trucks are not the largest trucks on the road, they may pose high risks to people in their vicinity because of their cargo. Many tanker trucks carry flammable or toxic substances, such as gasoline, ethanol, industrial chemicals, and radioactive materials. These can cause fires or explosions in accidents, which can lead to severe burns and other painful injuries that require extensive treatment. Tanker trucks are also relatively prone to rolling over because the sloshing liquid in a tanker that is not fully loaded can cause a driver to lose control as the weight shifts. If a tanker truck accident involves a spill, secondary accidents may occur as drivers slip on fluids or crash into other cars or obstacles as they swerve around the spill.
Truck drivers must carefully operate tanker trucks to avoid posing a risk of injuries to other people on the road. Drivers who speed, drive while intoxicated or excessively fatigued, or get distracted by cell phones or other non-driving activities may cause a serious crash in a matter of moments. Moreover, some tanker truck accidents and spills may occur when the tanker is not closed, or when the tanker contains a defect that allows its contents to leak out.
Legal Claims Based on Tanker Truck Accidents
Injuries resulting from a tanker truck accident may be permanent or even fatal. A victim or their family can receive compensation if driver error caused a crash. They also can sue a trucking company or a truck manufacturer if they played a role in an accident. A trucking company even may be liable based solely on careless actions by a driver. A victim can establish this type of liability by proving that the company employed the driver and that the driver was on the job when the crash occurred.
When a victim suffers a tragic loss of life, their family members potentially can recover compensation through a wrongful death claim. These damages may include not only the financial support provided by the victim but also more subjective losses, such as loss of consortium for a spouse or loss of guidance for young children. Meanwhile, the estate of a victim can recover compensation for losses that the victim could have recovered had they survived, such as lost wages and the costs of medical treatment between the injury and the death.
Cases arising from tanker truck accidents must be brought within the applicable statute of limitations. This is a state law restricting the time within which a victim can file a personal injury lawsuit. If a victim does not file their claim before the statute of limitations expires, a trucking company or another defendant probably can get the case dismissed. In addition, evidence necessary to prove liability may decay or disappear soon after a crash. Anyone considering a claim thus should seek legal counsel promptly. Truck accident attorneys usually offer free consultations and do not charge fees for their services unless they recover compensation for a client.