A Truck Accident Is Not Just a Bigger Car Accident: What Makes Illinois Trucking Cases Different
People sometimes look at a semi-truck accident and think it is basically a car accident involving a much bigger vehicle. From a lawyer's perspective, that is a mistake.
When I get a serious trucking case, there are questions I start asking that I would not necessarily ask in an ordinary rear-end collision. What electronic systems were on the truck? Were there cameras? Who employed the driver? Who owned the vehicle? Who maintained it? What was happening between the driver and dispatch before the collision?
Those questions matter because a commercial truck can leave behind an entirely different trail of evidence.
The police report is only one piece of the case
The Illinois crash report is important, and I want it early. But the responding officer usually does not have access to everything the trucking company has. The report may tell us who was involved and what the officer learned at the scene. It may tell us very little about what was happening inside the cab or inside the trucking operation before the impact.
In a serious Chicago truck accident, I want to know what exists beyond the report.
Commercial trucks can create their own evidence
Depending on the truck and the company, there may be forward-facing or inward-facing cameras, electronic logging information, GPS data, telematics, dispatch communications or other electronically stored information.
Not every truck has the same systems, and not every piece of data will matter. That is why the first job is figuring out what the company was actually using. You cannot intelligently ask for evidence if you do not know it exists.
The driver may be only part of the investigation
When a truck driver causes a collision, I also want to understand the company behind the driver. Who hired and trained the driver? What did the company know about the driver's history? What safety policies were in place? Were those policies actually followed?
Depending on the facts, the investigation may also involve the owner of the vehicle, maintenance issues or other people or companies connected to the operation.
Maintenance can matter too
A serious semi-truck collision is not always solely about driver conduct. If brakes, tires, lights or another mechanical issue may have played a role, inspection, repair and maintenance records become important.
That is one reason I do not like reducing a trucking case to the question of whether the driver received a ticket.
Timing matters because evidence does not wait
Video can be overwritten. Electronic information may be subject to retention limits. Trucks get repaired and put back into service. Witness memories fade. Company records are maintained under different policies.
There is no universal deadline for every category of trucking evidence. The practical lesson is that a serious truck accident should be investigated early enough to identify what may need to be preserved.
A truck case needs a truck-case investigation
A commercial vehicle case can involve the driver, the motor carrier, the vehicle owner, company policies, electronic evidence, maintenance records and commercial insurance. The facts determine which of those issues actually matter.
The goal is not to make every truck accident complicated. The goal is to make sure the investigation is sophisticated enough to find the evidence that is actually there.
If you or a family member was seriously injured in a semi-truck, 18-wheeler, delivery truck or other commercial-vehicle crash in Chicago or elsewhere in Illinois, contact Duran Law Offices at 312-300-0473 for a free consultation. Early investigation can make the difference in identifying evidence before it is lost.