What happens when a trucking company tries to blame another driver for an accident? At Sepulveda Sanchez Law, we made sure the people responsible paid for their mistakes.
This local San Joaquin County case involved a commercial tractor-double-trailer truck stopped on the I-5 Northbound in Stockton, California. The truck’s air brakes had failed and the truck driver had also failed to move the stranded vehicle off the road.
Our client was driving home from work at midnight when he rear-ended the truck. Because the truck had no warning lights, flashers, or warning signs up, our client was unable to see the vehicle in time to avoid the crash. Our client suffered serious injuries to their legs in the impact.
When our client tried to get compensation for their injuries after the accident, the trucking company tried to avoid taking responsibility by deflecting the blame back on our client.
Fighting Back for Our Client
When it came time to determine who was at fault, the truck driver claimed that the vehicle’s hazards were on and they didn’t have enough time to put out warning signs.
To complicate matters even more, the police report from the scene of the accident also claimed that our client was 100% at fault because they were driving “too fast for traffic conditions.”
Even though the deck appeared to be stacked against us, we knew from looking at the facts of the case that the truth was not what it seemed – and we could help our client prove it.
We filed our case in spring 2022 and it was resolved in just over one year in June 2023.
How Expert Testimony Helped Our Client’s Case
Expert testimony can make or break a personal injury case. In this particular situation, we hired trucking experts to determine why the air brakes failed on the highway.
One big question was whether the truck drivers on shift completed all of the necessary pre-trip inspections on the vehicle as required under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Act and the California Commercial Driver’s Code. These laws are in place specifically to protect motorists from incidents that could be avoided if the right precautions are taken.
In addition to expert testimony, we took testimony from the trucking company employees. We carried out depositions going over exactly what the drivers did from the start of their pre-trip process to when they became aware of the low air pressure warning on the brakes.
In the end, our case was strong enough to flip the original script and win.
Winning Compensation for Our Client’s Injuries
In a successful personal injury lawsuit, the financial compensation you receive should be enough to “make you whole” – to offset the effect of the injury on your life.
That means covering your medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses for the present and the foreseeable future – plus any income you lost and lost future earnings. Your recovery should also reflect non-economic damages like pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life.
We resolved this client’s case with a $10,000,000 settlement in their favor, paid out by the trucking company’s underlying and excess insurance policy coverage.
If you need justice after an accident, we can help. Contact us now to get started.