Our Family Has Given A Voice To The Injured For Over 50 Combined Years

Fighting For You After A Commercial Truck Accident

If you have been in an accident with a commercial truck, you most likely came away from it with severe damage to your car and possibly severe injuries, as well. These vehicles tend to be much larger than passenger vehicles, leaving you and your car little chance of escaping unscathed in a collision. Such accidents involve some complicated legal issues, however, and you may need an experienced attorney who knows how to handle commercial accidents.

Our personal injury attorneys at Goldstein & Goldstein, LLP, have spent their careers helping victims of commercial vehicle negligence get back on their feet after devastating collisions. We can build a convincing case on your behalf that will persuade commercial vehicle operators and their employers to pay you the compensation you need and deserve.

Determining Driver And Company Liability

Questions of liability become complicated with commercial vehicles because several parties could be involved, including:

  • The driver, if self-employed
  • The company employing the driver
  • The company that owns the truck
  • The company that loaded the truck
  • The company that provides maintenance on the truck
  • The insurance companies for these entities

As you can see, the list keeps growing because different companies may be involved with a single delivery. Our attorneys understand how to navigate these connections to determine liability.

Companies, such as UPS, FedEx and Amazon, must follow a host of federal regulations when employing and overseeing commercial drivers and commercial vehicles. Most companies also have their own internal guidelines regarding accidents, insurance and paying on claims. For example, UPS keeps accident statistics for its entire company. Their vehicles collect electronic data, which can be useful in a lawsuit.

What Do You Have To Prove For Your Claim?

Unlike car-on-car accidents, for which most injured parties must prove permanent injury in order to claim monetary compensation, New Jersey law does not require injured motorists to prove that they suffered a permanent injury to obtain monetary compensation in cases of commercial vehicle negligence. This means that if a commercial vehicle strikes your vehicle and injures you, the other driver, the other driver’s employer and the commercial vehicle owner can all be held accountable for the full value of your injuries and damages. There is no “verbal threshold” that allows insurance companies to preclude your recovery for pain and suffering.

What Qualifies As A Commercial Vehicle?

Commercial vehicles come in many shapes and sizes, from pick-up trucks and delivery vans to 18-wheelers. Technically, any vehicle owned by a company and used to carry out company business is a commercial vehicle and subject to certain federal regulations. Some vehicles have become more prevalent than others on New Jersey roads, however, such as:

  • United Postal Service (UPS) and Federal Express (FedEx) delivery trucks
  • Amazon delivery vehicles of all sizes
  • Retail delivery trucks and vans
  • Semi trucks, 18-wheelers and other tractor-trailers
  • Construction vehicles like dump trucks, pay loaders and graders
  • Tow trucks and utility maintenance vehicles

Although the largest of these vehicles have the capacity to cause the most damage in a collision, many of these trucks are larger than a regular passenger vehicle and can cause severe damage in a crash.

Reach Out Today To Discuss Your Case For Free

The attorneys at Goldstein & Goldstein, LLP, have more than 50 years of combined experience advocating for the rights of private motorists who have been injured by commercial vehicle operators and their employers. Let us help you pay your bills and put a difficult situation behind you. For a free, no-pressure consultation with an experienced attorney, contact us online or call 973-675-8277 today. We have offices in East Orange but do most of our work in Newark, New Jersey, and we are able to communicate in Spanish and French Creole as well as English.