This blog was posted by Shaw-Cowart Personal Injury Attorneys in Austin, representing clients for car accident injuries, truck / 18 wheeler accidents, motorcycle accident injuries, work related accidents, wrongful death claims and much more in Austin and the surrounding areas

Why I-35 Through Austin Is a Truck Crash Hotspot

Anyone who drives I-35 through Austin knows how stressful it can be. Long lines of semis, sudden slowdowns, constant lane changes, and never-ending construction make this corridor one of the most nerve-wracking stretches of highway in Central Texas. For our Austin truck accident lawyers, those daily headaches have a very real cost — a steady stream of serious 18-wheeler crash cases involving commuters, families, and out-of-town travelers. Our lawyers see I-35’s reputation as a truck crash hotspot reflected in our caseload week after week.

I-35 is not just another freeway. It is the main north-south freight spine of Texas, carrying local traffic, regional delivery trucks, and long-haul 18-wheelers all on the same crowded pavement. When you combine that with complex interchanges and ongoing construction, it is not surprising that this corridor produces so many serious truck wrecks. Our Austin 18-wheeler accident lawyers have spent years dissecting I-35 crashes to understand exactly why they happen and how to prove fault when they do.

Several features of the I-35 corridor through Austin and the surrounding counties combine to make it uniquely hazardous for truckers and everyone around them. Crushing traffic volume from commuters in Buda, Kyle, San Marcos, Round Rock, and beyond packs every lane alongside local Austin traffic and interstate freight. Stop-and-go congestion means it is common to go from 65 to 70 mph to a complete stop with little warning — a recipe for […]

This blog was posted by Shaw-Cowart Personal Injury Attorneys in Austin – Truck/18 Wheeler Accident Lawyers, representing clients in Austin and the surrounding areas

Spinal Cord Injuries from 18-Wheeler Accidents

Spinal cord injuries from 18-wheeler accidents change lives forever in an instant. The massive forces generated when commercial trucks collide with passenger vehicles frequently damage the delicate spinal cord, causing paralysis and permanent disability that no amount of rehabilitation can fully reverse. These are among the most catastrophic outcomes in all of personal injury law, and they demand equally comprehensive legal representation. More about our truck and 18-wheeler accident lawyers in Austin here.

The spinal cord carries nerve signals between the brain and every part of the body. When 18-wheeler accidents damage this critical bundle of nerves, the communication pathway between the brain and the body below the injury site is disrupted — sometimes partially, sometimes completely. Spinal cord injuries from 18-wheeler accidents may cause total paralysis with no sensation or movement, or incomplete injuries that preserve some function while eliminating others. Either way, the consequences are permanent, and the financial burden of lifetime care is staggering.

According to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, vehicle accidents cause the largest percentage of spinal cord injuries in the United States. The catastrophic size and weight disparity between commercial trucks and the passenger vehicles they strike makes truck accidents particularly likely to produce these devastating injuries. When a fully loaded 18-wheeler — weighing up to 80,000 pounds — strikes a passenger car, the forces involved are sufficient to compress, sever, or permanently damage the spinal cord in ways that even the best medical care cannot repair.

Types of Spinal Cord Injuries Caused by Truck […]

18-Wheeler Accident Attorneys – Our Truck Accident Attorney is on Your Side

Though it may seem entirely obvious that you were blameless in your 18-wheeler accident, winning full compensation for your losses is neither guaranteed nor an automatic process. By law, the defendant or defendants in your case owe you nothing at the start. In short, to recover compensation for your losses, you have to fight for your rights.

The fact is, unrepresented big rig accident victims, that is to say, victims who choose to represent themselves, almost never receive the entire compensation that their cases merit. Often, an experienced 18-wheeler accident attorney can be the key to ensure you recover thousands or even millions of dollars for your injuries, rather than recovering nothing at all.

Despite the fact that receiving compensation for your losses in the aftermath of an 18-wheeler accident isn’t automatic, it doesn’t have to be difficult, either. Understanding your rights and making sure you have an experienced personal injury attorney at your side, you’ll greatly increase your chance of winning your case and holding the blameworthy defendants accountable for their misdeeds. In the information that follows, we’ll go over the basics of the 18-wheeler accident lawyer to help you understand your rights.

This article is meant to explain just the fundamentals of truck accident law. To learn more about the precise legal implications of your exact situation, call us toll-free. We’ll gladly answer your questions about tractor-trailer accident law and give you a free consultation.

The Importance of Litigation

Filing a claim or bringing a lawsuit against a defendant or against multiple defendants serves two crucial purposes. First, undertaking these actions will let you recover financially for the losses […]

Our Texas Truck Accident Injury Lawyer Discusses Common Unsafe Trucking Practices

Unsafe trucking practices lead to approximately 100,000 injuries and 5,000 deaths per year in the United States alone. These astronomical numbers are a somber reminder that this necessary part of modern living has its price. Large commercial trucks, 18-wheelers, semis, big-rigs, and other types of commercial vehicles can cause immense damage when even a small error occurs. Trucking accidents in Texas can be caused by any number of unsafe trucking practices.

Asleep at the Wheel

Truckers earn their wages by spending time on the road and by quickly delivering their goods. This can be a recipe for disaster as it causes some truck drivers to overextend themselves and drive too long under poor, personal physical conditions. Likely causes of truck accidents often involve a driver falling asleep at the wheel, then causing devastating amounts of damage to both themselves and others. While these are well-known risks, Congress recently chose to actually extend the number of possible hours a truck driver is allowed to legally drive from ten hours to eleven hours. Adding that extra hour may not seem like much, but, in reality, it has been a continual cause for unsafe trucking practices.

However, there are rules and regulations stated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, or FMCSA, that define the necessary limits of fatigue and other factors relating to commercial truck drivers:

Article 392.3 – Ill or fatigued operator
“No driver shall operate a commercial motor vehicle, and a motor carrier shall not require or permit a driver to operate a commercial motor vehicle, while the driver’s ability or alertness is so impaired, or so likely […]

Satisfying the Burden of Proof

As we stated previously, in the state of Texas, the law does not require a defendant to pay a victim anything after he or she has been injured in a truck accident. The victim, or plaintiff, has to prove the defendant owes him or her compensation. And in order to get that compensation, the victim has to produce compelling evidence to sway a judge or jury. Evidence still needs to be produced even when negotiating an out-of-court settlement; the defendant or the defendant’s insurance provider must be compelled to negotiate in good faith; that won’t happen if you don’t have evidence on your side. In order to meet the burden of proof, you need to establish duty, breach, causation, and damages. These are detailed below.

Duty – The state of Texas has established that everyone owes everyone else a duty of care. In your case, you have to prove the defendant owed you the duty of providing for your safety by behaving in a responsible manner. There are different levels of duty of care that apply in different ways. In the case of motorists, all drivers owe all other drivers a duty of care to drive in a manner that is safe for everyone else on the road. In the case of a truck accident, this is a fairly easy element to establish.

Breach – You must next prove that the defendant (or defendants) breached that duty of care that you were owed. This breach typically occurs when a defendant places others in danger, either through an action that […]

Trucking Companies And Their Insurance Policies

The worst part is that you can’t just demand compensation from the court and think you’ll get it quickly. You must provide factual evidence that points out not just your losses but also how you came up with that value for those damages. What happens then is that defendants will likely fight about the total compensation owed by the plaintiff and then submit their own amount owed, which will likely decrease the overall amount of harm the plaintiff has endured. If you’re wanting to show how the defendant took the sneaky cheap way out, you must present unflappable evidence that prove your numbers are spot on.

What is the true cost of my case? Damages like pain and suffering and loss of earning capacity are very subjective and always up for debate, and they’re also nearly impossible to total for regular citizens. It’s complicated putting a value on pain and suffering or estimate lost earning capacity by figuring the overall value of potential raises and inflation. In the trial, you’ve got one shot to compile the amount of equitable compensation you should get. For the past 20 years, our 18-wheeler accident lawyers have been totaling damages and we have gained enough familiarity with cases such as yours to learn how to take all your losses and get an estimation of the compensation that will assist your family in getting the restitution they desire.

If you can’t show any of these four elements, you’ll probably fail at getting compensation for the harm incurred to you. You need the help of an 18-wheeler accident lawyer – especially if you […]

Truckers have a tough – monotonous Job

Truck drivers spend hours a day on the road moving goods from place to place. Unfortunately, the monotony of the trip coupled with long hours can result in drivers getting drowsy and even dozing off. This is extremely dangerous, as a truck driver who falls asleep behind the wheel could cause a serious or even deadly crash.

Our know that there are rules in place intended to limit the number of hours drivers work in order to prevent accidents caused by fatigue. A new study also shows that something besides simply limiting drive time could play an important role in preventing truck accidents.

Coffee To Fight Fatigue

It should come as no surprise that coffee keeps people awake and that caffeine is a stimulant. However, it may be surprising to some to realize just how big of impact caffeine can make on preventing truck accidents that occur due to fatigue. If you have been in an Truck Accident to fault of your own and been injured call our Personal Injury Attorney today!

According to Edmunds.com, a new study was conducted by an Australian researcher named Lisa Sharwood who works at the George Institute for Global Health. Sharwood’s study revealed that consuming a drink with caffeine in it could reduce the risk of a long-haul truck driving crash by as much as 63 percent.

This is obviously a dramatic decrease in the accident risk for a truck driver who is traveling long-distances. As a result of the major decrease, Sharwood indicates that the use of caffeine should be part of a wider strategy. Caffeine alone is not […]

Have you been injured in a Truck Accident on Texas Roads

How many of you can relate to being run down by an 18-wheeler? Have you ever been involved in an accident with one of these oversized trucks? If you have experience physical injury due to a semi truck accident, then we have some information for you!

If you have been injured in a trucking accident then we want to advise you to contact one of the Florida truck accident attorneys nearest you. By contacting a legal professional, you are better informing yourself of what you have in store in your future.

Unfortunately, trucking companies never want to pay for the damage that their vehicles inflict on the average driver. These companies generally want to put the medical expenses as well as the property damage expenses off on the drivers who certainly cannot afford to pay to get you back to the place where you were before your accident.

If you are facing this type of situation then we have a truck accidents attorney that would love to discuss your case with you. Before you shy away from meeting with an attorney, let us assure you that we are not asking you to fork out thousands of dollars that you do not have. We know that you are already facing tremendous debt and that you cannot afford to take on more debt.

Oftentimes, a truck accidents lawyer will not charge you to discuss your case with you. You might even be lucky enough to find an attorney that will represent you without charging you unless he or she collects for you. […]