Every motorist owes a duty of care to other people sharing the road to pay attention and drive responsibly. Commercial truck drivers are held to an even higher standard of care. Unfortunately, some truck drivers breach that duty by not paying full attention to their driving duties, which can result in distracted driving truck accidents in Hitchcock.
If you believe the driver who caused your accident was distracted, our dedicated team of truck collision attorneys at Schechter, Shaffer & Harris might be able to help you obtain compensation for your losses.
Kinds of Distractions That Truck Drivers Face
Truck drivers face all the same distractions that other motorists face, such as the following:
- Texting
- Talking on the cellphone
- Changing the radio station or volume
- Turning up the heat or air conditioning
- Eating or drinking
- Personal grooming, such as fixing their hair or checking their teeth in the mirror
- Smoking
- Searching and reaching for objects inside the truck
- Rubbernecking or looking at other things occurring on the road or the side of the road
Along with the above-listed common driver distractions, truck drivers also face additional distractions. Most truckers drive alone for long hours, which can lead to boredom and fatigue. To fight off sleep, they might try to distract themselves, which can cause them to lose focus on their driving duties, and lead to a distracted driving trucking crash in Hitchcock. Truck drivers frequently drive on unfamiliar roads, so they need to rely heavily on navigation systems or maps to plot their routes.
They also need to continuously monitor their vehicle’s complex systems. Truckers often need to communicate with their trucking company by using the dispatch radio. When they reach their destinations, they need to input information about their deliveries into their onboard computer. However, some choose to input that information while driving in order to save time. Our team will investigate to determine what really happened.
What Happens if You Were Partly to Blame for the Truck Crash?
Many times, multiple people are partly at fault for a trucking accident, even when it appears that a distracted truck driver was the reason for the crash. Sometimes, the truck driver and trucking company share the blame with a third party, or even with the injured claimant. If the defendant argues that your actions played a role in causing the accident that led to your injuries, you might still be eligible to pursue a lawsuit, as long as you were 50 percent or less responsible for causing the accident. However, a court would likely reduce the amount of compensation that you could recover as damages in proportion to your percentage of fault.
For instance, if a court determines that your speeding was 25 percent to blame for the truck crashing into your car, while the truck driver’s texting was 75 percent at fault, you could potentially recover 75 percent of your losses from the trucking wreck. If a court determines that your drunk driving was 60 percent to blame for the crash, while the distracted truck driver was 40 percent at fault, you would not be able to seek damages under Texas’ modified comparative negligence rule because you were more at fault.
Our local legal team could help you understand how comparative negligence rules might affect your recovery of damages. We could advocate on your behalf for a fair settlement or damages award.
Meet with a Hitchcock Attorney About Distracted Driving Trucking Crashes
Distracted driving truck accidents in Hitchcock can have life-altering impacts. You deserve the chance to fight back for compensation for your physical, emotional, and financial losses. Meet with one of our personal injury lawyers at Schechter, Shaffer & Harris today.
