Eau Claire Truck Accident Attorneys

Truck accidents change the course of a person’s life in a moment’s time. Without warning, you may suffer irreversible injuries, emotional trauma, and financial devastation. When an incident like this occurs, having our experienced, aggressive Eau Claire truck accident attorneys working on your behalf is crucial.

At Bye, Goff & Rohde, we do not let insurance and truck companies take advantage of victims. our top-rated personal injury lawyers can protect your rights and help you seek compensation from the trucker, trucking company, or another liable party. Contact our law firm today to set up a free consultation.

Truck Accidents Happen Too Frequently in Wisconsin

It is not uncommon to see a truck pulled to the side of Interstate 94 or along Highway 29. Yet, these 80,000-pound trucks traveling 60 to 70 miles per hour can easily cause serious damage to another vehicle, leading to devastating injuries.

Data shared by the State of Wisconsin Department of Transportation shows that 6,592 large truck crashes took place across the state in 2023, resulting in the death of 72 people and over 1,665 serious injuries. Each one of these incidents impacted the lives of many, and yet most victims have no idea how to seek fair compensation for the losses they suffered.

As experienced truck accident lawyers in Eau Claire, WI, we know that your injuries have changed your life and that no insurance company or adjuster is going to work by your side for truly fair compensation. We will be your ally throughout this fight.

Common Causes of Truck Accidents in Wisconsin

In areas like Eau Claire County as well as Chippewa County, the risk of being in a serious accident with a truck may be higher than you realize. There are several truck routes throughout the area, all of which increase the risk of trucks entering and exiting the highway. Some of the most common causes of truck accidents in our area include:

  • Reckless Driving: Brought on by speeding to meet time demands or frustrations with other drivers, reckless driving is a common reason serious truck accidents occur in this area.
  • Fatigued Drivers: Truck drivers must take routine breaks and have sufficient time off between shifts to ensure they get enough rest. Mistakes here can lead to loss of control over their vehicles on long stretches, putting others at risk.
  • Intoxicated Drivers: Truck drivers cannot use alcohol or drugs prior to or while driving. Any level of intoxication creates an increased risk of serious accidents due to loss of control over the vehicle or reduced reflex times to changing road conditions.
  • Poorly Maintained Trucks: Tire blowouts, brake failures, and poorly maintained engines create a hazard on roadways, as they can lead to sudden breakdowns and failures.
  • Cargo Mishaps: Often caused by poorly loaded cargo or improper adherence to best practices, these mishaps result in truck drivers losing control over their vehicles.
  • Road Conditions: Poorly maintained roads, such as those caused by weather events or due to potholes and debris, can create a serious risk of injury when the driver loses control over the vehicle.
  • Manufacturer Defects: Malfunctions in systems, including the steering or brake systems, can often lead to a serious risk of an accident if they cause the driver to lose control.

These are examples of common accident causes, but this list is not comprehensive. More so, most victims have no real idea what happened after their accident. You may know the truck driver is at fault, but you may not have insight into why. Often, there is more than one person or party to blame, and that means you deserve fair compensation from all parties at fault. Talk to our Eau Claire trucking accident attorneys today.

How We Get Evidence to Determine What Happened in a Truck Crash

As the victim of a truck accident, you may not have much information about what caused the incident to occur. You may know that the truck driver struck you, but you do not know that the driver’s brakes failed due to a manufacturer defect or that the technician failed to bolt a tire back into place properly.

It takes proof of the details of your incident to pursue fair compensation from all parties responsible. With our guidance, we will seek evidence and information that may not be readily available to victims directly:

  • Truck Logs: We seek out log books that document the driver’s breaks and time off, ensuring they meet the federal guidelines. We also know how to spot false inputs here.
  • Manufacturer Defects: Our experience and expert witnesses will help you identify the most common causes of serious vehicle failures, including manufacturer defects in design. We will research what occurred, why, and what evidence exists to back up your claim.
  • Driver Medical Logs: Truck drivers must be fit for the road, and that means maintaining specific health standards through routine physical examinations. We also want to know if the truck driver’s blood alcohol level was indicative of intoxication.
  • Accident Reconstruction: Our team has access to some of the most advanced technology for accident reconstruction. This allows us to reconstruct the accident to clarify what must have happened.
  • Poor Maintenance Logs: Truck companies and drivers must maintain a comprehensive outline of all maintenance and upkeep completed on the truck. These logs may be missing or may show gaps that create safety risks.
  • Distracted Driver Evidence: We will review text messages and communication logs, and look for evidence of a driver watching a podcast or holding a pet while driving. If your driver was distracted, we will do everything possible to determine what evidence is available to support this claim.

As a truck accident law firm in Eau Claire, our attorneys recognize that this evidence is critical, but not always available due to the privacy of truck drivers. Often, this information reveals who is at fault and to what extent. That is why it is so important for our attorneys to be aggressive in seeking a full understanding of what took place.

Who Could Be Responsible for Your Truck Accident and Injuries

One of the components of proving your right to fair compensation is demonstrating that all parties are responsible. It is not always accurate to assume that the truck driver is solely at fault. Consider the parties that could be responsible:

  • The Truck Driver: For reckless driving, intoxication, aggressive actions, and fatigue
  • The Trucking Company: If the truck company knew the driver was a risk for previous incidents, failed to monitor hours of service rules, or hired a driver without critical truck driving skills
  • Manufacturing Companies: If a component of the truck failed to work properly or there was a flaw in the design of the vehicle, the manufacturer could be responsible
  • Cargo Loading Companies: A third-party cargo loading organization could be responsible for not following best practices in securing cargo
  • Cities and States: Failure to maintain safe road conditions could fall on the shoulders of the city, county, or state

With evidence developed from our investigation, you can expect our truck accident lawyers in Eau Claire to determine who is responsible. When we maximize this insight, we protect your right to fair compensation. Do not settle your case until you know what your case is actually worth based on all parties that failed you.

Common Types of Truck Accidents We Handle

Truck accidents causing serious injury and even the loss of life are often preventable incidents. After your accident, the police and, potentially, the state’s highway patrol responded, gathered evidence, and created a police report detailing what occurred. If you were hurt in an accident involving any one of the following types of truck accidents, we encourage you not to file a claim until you speak to our truck accident attorneys for guidance:

  • Jackknife accidents
  • Head-on collisions
  • Side swipe accidents
  • T-bone accidents
  • Rear-collisions
  • Underride accidents

We will gather police evidence, photos, and witness statements to determine what occurred and then build your case for fair compensation.

Serious Injuries Associated with Truck Accidents

Victims of truck accidents in our area often suffer from serious injuries that create long-term recoveries and catastrophic, or permanent, losses. If you have any of the following injuries, we encourage you to speak to an attorney about all of the losses you have. Do not settle for just your medical bills when. Our trucking accident lawyers can help you with the following:

  • Traumatic brain injuries, including any strike to the head
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) brought on by the accident
  • Spinal cord injuries, including those resulting in long-term paralysis
  • Complex fractures requiring surgery
  • Lacerations damaging muscles and nerves
  • Amputations
  • Burns causing disfigurement

The risk of catastrophic injuries is very high. These are injuries that you never fully recover from and often impact your life in numerous ways. Some of the most common include amputations, disfigurement incidents, loss of hearing or vision, and full disability. Our truck accident attorneys will gather insight from your doctor about how well you will recover from these injuries.

Determining the Losses for Your Truck Accident Injuries

Victims of an 18-wheeler accident deserve fair compensation for any losses they can demonstrate. Our attorneys will work to understand the complexity of your injuries as well as the impact those incidents will have on your future. Examples of some of the losses you may have include the following:

Economic damages such as:

  • Medical bills from emergency care
  • Hospitalizations and surgeries
  • Medication costs
  • Rehabilitation and physical therapy costs
  • Future medical needs
  • Expected in-home care needs
  • Property damage to your vehicle or other assets
  • Lost wages from being unable to work
  • Loss of earning capacity if you cannot go back to the same work

In cases of catastrophic injury, you could be suffering serious injuries that are hard to put a value on. In cases involving permanent disability, we make sure you receive compensation that meets your financial needs on an ongoing basis.

Non-economic damages may include:

  • Emotional trauma and pain, including anxiety, depression, and PTSD
  • Pain and suffering from the incident and throughout your recovery
  • Loss of quality of life
  • Disfigurement
  • Loss of engagement in life
  • Loss of consortium

These losses are very real and quite impactful. Though they are harder to put a value on, they are critical claims you should be making as a part of your truck accident claim. We can help you.

Loss of Life in a Truck Accident

Collisions with large commercial trucks can cause the loss of life. When it happens to your family, do not trust the trucking company and its insurance company to treat you fairly. Instead, let our legal team work for you.

Our wrongful death attorneys fight for families who’ve lost loved ones in big rig accidents. If your immediate family member lost their life as a result of a truck accident, we will seek fair compensation based on their age, financial losses, pain and suffering, and loss of wages. We also pursue damages for immediate family members who may not have access to the expected financial support.

How to Seek Compensation for Your Truck Accident Losses

Meet with our truck accident attorneys to discuss your case during a free consultation. Our legal team will review the information you provide and start working on developing a clear understanding of what happened and why. We can then use that information to seek a robust claim, including all of the losses you have.

We do not encourage you to speak to the insurance company without legal representation. In most cases, our attorneys will negotiate a fair settlement with the truck company out of court. However, if that is not possible, we have the experience necessary to take your case to court and fight for you as well.

Contact Our Experienced Eau Claire Truck Accident Attorneys

Let our legal team answer your questions and provide you with insight into what your legal rights are. Then, let us get to work fighting for you. With our experienced Eau Claire truck accident attorney by your side, you can be confident in your case. To meet with Bye, Goff & Rohde during a free consultation, contact our law firm today.