Bigger vehicles can easily cause severe injuries in collision scenarios. When a semi-truck strikes a passenger vehicle, the occupants of the vehicle are at risk of catastrophic injuries, including spinal cord injuries.
Incomplete spinal cord injuries may cause functional impairment and a host of challenging symptoms. Complete spinal cord injuries can cause irreversible paralysis. In both cases, the injured person may incur hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical expenses immediately after the crash.
They may also have substantially increased lifetime medical expenses, as well as reduced income because of the impact of their spinal cord injuries. Understanding the options for compensation after a commercial truck crash can help those with serious injuries recoup their losses.
Even commercial insurance may be inadequate
Spinal cord injuries are notorious for generating massive lifetime expenses. Trauma care, rehabilitative services, ongoing physical therapy and medical technology all contribute to total care expenses. The functional limitations produced by a spinal cord injury can also cause a lifetime reduction in earning potential.
Commercial transportation companies generally need to carry far more insurance than passenger vehicles. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires a minimum liability coverage amount of $750,000 for any commercial truck that weighs 10,001 pounds or more.
Many carriers elect to increase their coverage, but even large policies may not fully offset the total cost of a spinal cord injury. People must consider not just their existing medical expenses but also their lifetime care costs.
They also need to consider the lost wages they don’t earn, the cost of modifying a vehicle for safe transportation and the expenses associated with making a house accessible. All of that could easily add up to a seven-figure lifetime price tag.
In such cases, a personal injury lawsuit might be necessary, as insurance alone isn’t sufficient for all of the losses produced by the spinal cord injury. Drivers may be liable if they are independent contractors or owner-operators. Transportation companies often have liability as employers after drivers cause commercial vehicle crashes. There may even be outside parties that are partially liable for the crash.
Reviewing what caused a semi-truck collision, and the likely impacts of the spinal cord injury it produced, with a skilled legal team can help injured parties understand different options for pursuing compensation. Successful insurance claims and civil litigation can help defray the expenses produced by a commercial truck crash.
