Waco Truck Accident

7215 Bosque Blvd #110

Waco, TX 76710-4020

Call (254) 615-0000

With no less than 8 Interstate LTL ("Less than Truckload") and 4 Interstate TL ("Truckload") trucking terminals, the Waco/Robinson/McLennan County area is "home" to a significant portion of the daily DFW - San Antonio commercial trucking traffic. When you consider that this same area is also spanned by both I-35 and US-77, it should be obvious that much of Central Texas' personal and recreational transportation shares the roadways with trucks that range in size from florist's delivery vans to tractor-trailer combinations that may exceed 60 feet in length and weigh more than 75,000 pounds.

As is the case nationwide, commercial trucking in Texas is surprisingly safe. This means that, per 100 million miles driven, commercial trucks are involved in fewer accidents with injuries than are privately-operated vehicles such as cars and light trucks. Unfortunately, in accidents involving a commercial truck and a private vehicle, the smaller vehicle and its occupants almost always suffer more damage!

Three questions that must be answered after a commercial truck accident

By its definition, an "accident" is just that: "… an incident that happens unexpectedly and unintentionally, typically resulting in damage or injury …" In personal injury law as it relates to commercial trucking accidents, every accident leads to three questions whose answers will often require a lawsuit.

• What happened?

Of these three questions, "what" is usually the easiest question to answer since that answer is usually obvious. As to the other two questions, they are where the disagreements usually arise.

• Who was at fault?

Most people outside the law enforcement and legal professions don't realize that accident investigations, witness statements, and police reports do not establish fault or liability. Such documents and statements are evidencethat is interpreted by a judge or jury to make a determination of fact which, in turn, is used to assign fault.

• What damages, if any, are to be awarded to whom?

Once fault is assigned, an accidental injury lawsuit then turns to determining which party is entitled to receive damages and in what type and/or amount. As explained below, the assistance of an experienced personal injury lawyer is critical at this stage of a lawsuit or negotiation.

Texas civil law, along with that of 32 other states and/or territories, recognizes what is known as a Modified Comparative Fault Rule: if a person is injured in an accident of any type in the State of Texas, he or she cannotrecover damages from the other party if a jury finds that he or she is 51% or more at fault for the accident. Furthermore, Texas law also requires that any damages awarded must be reduced in proportion to the plaintiff's contribution to that accident.

Why you need a lawyer after a commercial trucking accident

From what you have read thus far about "comparative fault" and damages, you can understand that Texas civil law is not exactly "friendly" toward accident victims. But there is one thing that you can always count on to work against you if you have been injured in a commercial trucking accident!

Every legally-operated commercial truck in the State of Texas that hauls general freight only (no passengers or hazardous materials) must carry a minimum of $500,000 of liability insurance. Since insurance companies make money based on the difference between the amount of money that they take in (as premiums) and the amount they must pay out (in claims), you can be assured that that a truck's insurance carrier will have plenty of insurance adjustors and lawyers whose jobs are to limit the amount of money that you receive to settle your accident injury claim!

And your best way to make sure that you keep your right to a fair settlement? Hire a lawyer of your own!

No Fee Unless YOU Win!

Just like you, we've read the newspaper ads and we've seen the television commercials where other lawyers make promises like "No fee unless WE win!" At the Doan Law Firm, we believe those other lawyers have it backward! What they should be promising is what we promise: If YOU don't win, WE don't get paid, because each case is about YOU!

When you hire the commercial trucking accident lawyer at the Doan Law Firm to represent you, we bring our years of experience investigating commercial truck accidents and managing personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits to YOUR side of the negotiating table after YOU were injured or lost a family member as a result of someone else's plain and simple carelessness or deliberate "cost-cutting" in the name of profit.

At the Doan Law Firm, we understand that being involved in a commercial trucking accident is usually enough physical, emotional, and financial trauma for anyone to bear. That is why, once we determine that you have a case against a commercial truck operator, we will never ask you to bear one unnecessary cent of additional expense in preparing your case for trial. Instead, we are willing to assume full responsibility for all aspects of preparing your case for trial in exchange for an agreed-upon percentage of the final settlement that we will win for you.