Truck Accident Attorney

Published on: January 29, 2017

Why Do I Need A Personal Injury Attorney?

The answer is simple, but to understand importance of the work they do, and the value they bring to their clients, you must understand a little more about the process of handling personal injury claims. It is no cake walk, even for experienced personal injury attorneys.

Notifying Insurance Companies and Establishing Communications Between the Parties

A personal injury attorney will notify the insurance providers of the claim for injuries and that the injured party is represented by counsel. This is true whether it is a motor vehicle accident, boating accident, commercial vehicle accident, or even slip-and-fall. These providers must be provided “notice” of the claims being made by the injured parties that were caused by their insured. In addition to notifying the at-fault parties insurer, the injured party will need to notify their own insurer of the possibility of any claims under their own UM/UIM in the event that the other party has no insurance or carries insufficient coverage to pay for the damages that have been suffered.

Published on: December 29, 2016

Negligence and Negligence Per Se: Parking 18-Wheelers and Tractor-Trailers on the Roadway

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Every now and then you may come across a semi-truck or car-hauler parked on the side of the road, or even partially in the road and think to yourself, “that is so dangerous,” or “they should not be allowed to do that.” Well, technically they aren’t supposed to do that. Section 545.301 of the Texas Transportation Code provides that an operator may not stop, park, or leave standing an attended or unattended vehicle on the main traveled part of a highway outside a business or residence district unless:

(1) stopping, parking, or leaving the vehicle off the main traveled part of the highway is not practicable;

(2) a width of highway beside the vehicle is unobstructed and open for the passage of other vehicles; and

Published on: November 15, 2016

Early Morning Travel Dangers: Fog

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

By and large, fall weather in North Texas is phenomenal. Highs in the low 70’s and the sun is still warm. Cool nights with just enough chill in the air to make you want to put a coat on, but not cool enough to actually make you go inside and put one on. It is a far cry from the 100 degree heat of the summer.

So, you could be thinking, how could such amazing weather lead to danger on the highway? It all has a little something to do with the dew point. The “dew point” is the point at which the air is holding as much water vapor as it can handle. In the fall in Texas, the days can still be fairly warm, but the nights are getting cooler. Because of this, we have a 20-30 degree temperature difference between the day-time high and the overnight low. This is the perfect combination to create foggy morning driving. If you live anywhere near a river, lake, or other body of water, it is likely that you are driving to work in fog every morning this time of year.

The simple and best advice for drivers who are concerned about driving safely in fog is to not drive when fog is present. Driving in fog is laden with variables that you cannot control: other drivers, animals crossing the road, poor visibility… the list goes on. However, if you must drive in fog, follow these safety tips:

Published on: April 19, 2016

Common Causes of Truck Accidents: Distracted Driving

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Distracted driving has become an absolute epidemic on American roads. Texting, Tweeting, Facebook, Reading, you name it, you can do it from your phone. Distracted driving kills thousands of Americans every year. According to stoptextsstopwrecks.com in 2013, 3,154 people were killed and an estimated additional 424,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. Although this represents a 6.7 percent decrease from 2012, there were 424,000 people injured in 2013, which is an increase from the 421,000 people who were injured in 2012.

Distracted driving affects Truck drivers as well. They spend more time on the road than we do. These operators, like all other drivers on the road, have a responsibility to stay focused on the road. You would think that driving a large vehicle with many blind-spots would force truck drivers to stay focused on the road. However, just like anything that becomes a habit, it is easy to go on auto-pilot and allow distractions to take our minds off of the task at-hand.

But the truth remains that operating a commercial vehicle requires a driver’s full attention, even if the person has years of experience driving these large, powerful vehicles. Any attempted multitasking while driving can prove dangerous for both truck drivers and other motorists on the road. Should a truck driver cause an accident because of these distractions, he or she should be held accountable for the injuries he caused.