New York Truck Accident Attorneys

If you or a loved one is involved in a truck accident, it is important to retain an attorney who is aware of the laws surrounding the operation of a truck. Because their size and weight place a special responsibility on the driver, heavy trucks are governed by rules laid out by the FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration). But, the dangers posed by a truck are not only confined to larger ones.  In fact, smaller trucks are still more likely to cause catastrophic injuries than regular cars. In a case our firm, Block O’Toole & Murphy, resolved for $14,000,000, our client suffered serious injuries, including a leg amputation, after being struck by a light pickup truck. This result demonstrates the perils potentially posed by all trucks.

The attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy are highly experienced in handling truck accidents. Discover how we work with truck accident victims and what to know when dealing with your own truck accident case.

Need to Know:

• Legal responsibility, or liability, can be complicated in truck accident cases, which is one of many reasons to hire an attorney early.
• Knowing what to look for is critical in a truck accident case, and the truck itself is an important source of evidence that must be preserved early.
• A thorough knowledge of the laws that govern how trucks operate is crucial to a successful resolution.

In This Article:

• Our Process for Preserving and Analyzing Evidence in a Truck Accident
• Who Is Legally Responsible in a Truck Accident?
• Case Study: $5,000,000 for Family of Client Killed by Sanitation Truck
• Case Study: $14,000,000 for Motorcyclist Who Lost His Leg to Pickup Truck
• Block O’Toole & Murphy: Our Record of Truck Accident Experience

Our Process for Preserving and Analyzing Evidence in a Truck Accident

Preserving Evidence

The attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy prioritize early investigation as a critical part of every personal injury case. In car crash cases, early investigation allows us to examine the scene before it has changed much, procure witness statements more easily, and secure accident footage before it disappears. While security footage from area restaurants or businesses has been an invaluable source of evidence in many motor vehicle accident cases our firm has handled, such footage may be automatically taped over or erased within a period as short as two weeks. It is essential to act quickly.

As soon as possible, we serve preservation letters to ensure that the truck and any other vehicles involved in the accident are maintained in the condition they were in close in time after the accident. Our intent is to make sure the condition they are in allows for a complete and fruitful expert examination.

Analyzing Evidence

While some evidence — such as video footage — is clearly discernible, other types of evidence require expertise to understand. For example, you may require an expert who can read sight lines — precise assessments of what the driver of a truck was, or was not, able to see from a particular location. Or you may need to analyze crush damage, assessing points of impact and the patterns they have left on the vehicle(s). Having access to the truck makes it possible to thoroughly conduct these assessments and provides material for an expert in accident reconstruction or biomechanical engineering to provide an explanation of what that evidence means.

It also gives us the opportunity to access one of our most valuable sources of evidence: black box data. Virtually all modern vehicles come equipped with EDR (Event Data Recording) devices that monitor speeding and slowing down, braking and turning, airbag deployment, and other actions of the driver in the moments before and during a crash. By preserving black box data and hiring experts who can extract and interpret it, we are often able to significantly strengthen our case, enhancing our ability to persuasively explain how a crash occurred.

Who Is Legally Responsible in a Truck Accident?

Identifying the right parties to sue in a truck accident is often complicated, and it’s likely to require information not available on a police report.

One of many factors that complicates truck accident liability is the Graves Amendment to the Transportation Act. This amendment to the federal Transportation Act holds that a company renting or leasing vehicles cannot be held vicariously responsible for the negligent operation of those vehicles, since it does not employ the drivers.

Let’s say a Penske truck is driving recklessly when it collides with your vehicle. While Penske does provide transportation services, it also rents and leases its trucks to third parties. If an employee of Penske was driving the truck that hit you, there is a good chance you will be able to hold Penske responsible. This is because the legal doctrine “respondeat superior,” which means an employer is legally responsible for the wrongful acts of an employee, applies to that type of situation.

On the other hand, suppose the driver leased the truck from Penske and otherwise has no relationship to the company. Unless you have proof that some action of the Penske company directly led to your accident, you will not be able to hold Penske responsible.

The company that employs a truck driver will typically be a responsible party. Some employers avoid this liability by making shrewd use of third-party delivery methods. One of these employers is Amazon, which has established a network of contractors through which it makes most of its deliveries.

Although Amazon Prime delivery trucks are among the most recognizable branded vehicles on the road, sometimes they are not directly owned by the company, allowing Amazon to deliver millions of packages per day while rarely being held financially accountable for any accidents that occur. Amazon’s sly tactics are being tested in the courts throughout the country and their ability to evade responsibility in many future cases may be curtailed.

A good attorney will help you to sort out liability in your specific case, and will be able to give you insight into when — and whether — you can also hold the company that contracts a third-party delivery business accountable.

Case Study: $5,000,000 for Family of Client Killed by Sanitation Truck

Most heavy trucks operate under the jurisdiction of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which lays out careful guidelines for truck drivers and the entities that employ them. Awareness of these guidelines has often allowed our attorneys to see how an accident might have been avoided.

In a deeply tragic wrongful death case handled by our firm, a garbage truck veered onto a sidewalk in Midtown Manhattan, killing a mother of four who was visiting from the UK. The driver of the truck had suffered a seizure after failing to take his prescribed medication, causing him to lose control of the vehicle. The company employing this driver claimed not to be responsible for the tragic death that his irresponsible actions had caused, stating they were unaware of his condition.

However, partners Daniel O’Toole and Frederick Aranki examined the driver’s employment history. They found that the driver had been terminated from a similar role in the past because he drove a truck unmedicated and had a seizure while driving. Had the hiring company done the same research our attorneys did — research they were required to conduct as part of the hiring process, according to the FMCSA — they would have known not to hire him. This information enabled us to settle on behalf of our client’s surviving family for $5,000,000.

Case Study: $14,000,000 for Motorcyclist Who Lost His Leg in a Crash Involving a Pickup Truck

In one of the largest truck accident cases our firm has handled to date, our client, a 23-year-old mechanic in Nassau County, was riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle to his girlfriend’s house. A pickup truck attempting a left turn ran over our client as he was passing through an intersection, amputating his leg at the hip. This violent loss of limb impeded our client’s mobility and affected his ability to sit upright for prolonged periods, disabling him not only from the physical work he was accustomed to, but from virtually all work.

This was another case in which witness testimony, combined with a careful accident reconstruction, proved valuable. A box truck was parked near the intersection at the time, and several workers associated with that box truck sprang into action when they saw what had happened. One of the workers wrapped our client’s leg in a sweatshirt to staunch the flow of blood, while another called emergency services. It was only the rapid action of these workers that prevented our client from bleeding to death.

They also served as witnesses to the accident. One of them testified that he had seen the driver of the pickup truck preparing to turn and had attempted to get his attention before he hit our client.

Between this testimony, our deposition of the defendant driver, and the accident reconstruction expert’s analysis, partners Jeffrey Block and Daniel O’Toole were able to determine that the driver of the pickup truck had been unable to see past the parked box truck. His decision to make the left turn despite his obstructed view cost our client his leg.

Although the negligence of the defendant driver was apparent, we had reason to be concerned that our client might not be properly compensated if his case was laid before a jury. Some drivers are biased against motorcyclists, assuming all motorcycle operators to be reckless and unsafe. And in this case, while our client had been, by all accounts, operating with perfect safety, his motorcycle was unregistered and uninsured.

Block and O’Toole understood that the question of whether their client’s motorcycle was registered had no bearing on the facts of the case: it was an avoidable injury to a person wearing appropriate safety gear and following all the rules of the road. The defendant truck driver was solely responsible.

O’Toole was able to obtain rulings stating that the registration and insurance status of our client’s motorcycle did not affect the case, and that those facts would therefore be kept from the jury in the interest of obtaining a fair result. Examining only the facts that pertained to the accident, the jury awarded our client with a verdict of $14,000,000.

Block O’Toole & Murphy: Our Record of Truck Accident Experience

If you or a loved one was harmed in an accident involving a truck, you will need a law firm with extensive experience in handling truck accident cases to protect your legal rights and make sure you receive the compensation you deserve. Our attorneys are committed to getting clients the results they need and have a strong record of truck accident settlements, including:

• $13,000,000 settlement for the surviving parent in a fatal truck rear-end accident case
• $9,750,000 settlement for driver whose tow truck was flipped over guardrail by a Mercedes-Benz
• $6,000,000 settlement for NYC Transit bus passenger injured in a bus and truck collision
• $5,500,000 recovery awarded to man who sustained injuries after his pickup truck was sideswiped by a dump tractor trailer
• $6,000,000 settlement in Brooklyn case for a bus passenger who suffered shoulder and back injuries after the bus crashed with a flatbed truck
• $5,500,000 awarded to man who was driving a pick-up truck when he was sideswiped by a tractor trailer
• $4,750,000 settlement for a 51-year-old worker who needed multiple surgeries after he was struck by an NYC sanitation vehicle at a Brooklyn intersection
• $4,400,000 settlement for an NYC sanitation worker whose truck tipped over on an icy road after his supervisor instructed him to go out without properly chained tires
• $3,750,000 for laborer struck by reversing truck while removing guardrail on roadway
• $3,500,000 settlement for a bus driver rear-ended by an NYC sanitation truck in Brooklyn
• $3,000,000 for driver injured when his vehicle collided with an 18-wheeler that made an unexpected left turn without using the left turn directional
• $3,000,000 for a scooter operator injured when a sanitation truck, illegally driving in the bicycle lane, ran her over
• $2,760,000 settlement for a front seat car passenger injured when the vehicle collided with a United Parcel Service truck
• $2,750,000 settlement for a driver who was pushed off the road in a violent collision with an NYC sanitation truck
• $2,625,000 for loved ones of a married couple who died in a tragic rear-end crash involving a tractor trailer
• $2,550,000 for four plaintiffs injured in a collision with a flat-bed truck
• $2,500,000 for a pedestrian struck by a large truck that ran over her leg in Brooklyn
• $2,500,000 for a driver whose vehicle was struck on the passenger side by a concrete mixing truck
• $2,300,000 settlement in wrongful death of cyclist run over by box truck
• $2,270,000 verdict for a bus passenger who suffered injuries to her cervical spine after the bus rear-ended a tanker truck
• $2,225,000 settlement for woman whose vehicle was side swiped by a tractor trailer, causing injuries to her cervical spine
• $2,000,000 settlement for man who suffered neck and shoulder injuries requiring surgery after his vehicle was rear-ended by a box truck
• $2,000,000 in Queens case for a front seat passenger in a car that was struck on the front passenger’s side by a truck
• $2,000,000 settlement for commuter hit by a dump truck while bicycling to work
• $1,975,000 for 50-year-old man who was a back seat passenger of a vehicle that collided with a moving truck at an intersection
• $1,850,000 settlement for a 38-year-old woman who was sideswiped by an 18-wheeler while driving on the Throgs Neck Expressway
• $1,850,000 for woman who sustained cervical herniations when a delivery truck started backing up and crashed into her vehicle in the Bronx
• $1,850,000 settlement for client disabled from work after his vehicle was struck by an irresponsibly-merging tractor trailer
• $1,800,000 settlement for an NYPD Sergeant hurt in a collision with a Freightliner truck
• $1,750,000 for married couple who suffered cervical herniations after they were struck in the rear by a New York City sanitation truck
• $1,750,000 settlement for mother injured when dump truck collided with the passenger’s side of her parked car
• $1,700,000 for pedestrian who had to undergo surgeries in both her cervical and lumbar spine after she was struck by a left-turning truck
• $1,700,000 for a driver who was struck in the rear by a tractor trailer oil tanker while he was stopped at a red light
• $1,675,000 settlement for driver who injured her neck when her car crashed into a delivery truck attempting to make a left turn in front of her
• $1,640,000 in a Supreme Bronx case for a taxi passenger injured when the taxi was struck in the rear by a tractor trailer
• $1,600,000 settlement for passenger injured in collision with beverage truck in Queens
• $1,500,000 for a motorcyclist struck by a fire truck on Governors Island
• $1,500,000 for a pedestrian struck by an NYPD tow truck while she was attempting to cross the street
• $1,250,000 in a Queens case for a man who was sitting in his vehicle at a red light when he was rear-ended by an NYC sanitation truck
• $1,200,000 settlement for union longshoreman who suffered neck and back injuries after his car was hit by a box truck on the Long Island Expressway
• $1,000,000 settlement for a 43-year-old mechanic who was rear-ended by a tractor trailer on the highway, leading to back pain that required surgery
• $1,000,000 settlement for union worker whose vehicle was rear-ended by a box truck in Queens

Our attorneys serve all five boroughs of New York City as well as the entirety of New York State. Contact the attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy to receive a free legal consultation by calling 212-736-5300, or by filling out our online contact form.