You can typically recover economic and non-economic damages after a delivery truck accident. In addition to these, a judge or jury may award punitive damages to delivery truck accident victims if a liable party blatantly ignores the safety of others.
Talk with a delivery truck accident lawyer in Fort Lauderdale within days of your trucking collision. Your attorney can calculate your damages and explain what your case is worth. From here, they may encourage you to file a truck accident claim or lawsuit.
What Damages Can I Recover After a Delivery Truck Accident in Florida?
In Florida, you can ask for economic and non-economic damages following a delivery truck accident. Have a truck accident lawyer in Fort Lauderdale review your case. Your attorney may advise you to seek damages for various reasons, such as:
Pain and Suffering
The emotional distress, mental anguish, and physical discomfort from your delivery truck accident can affect you for a long time. Your lawyer wants to know about these and other emotional consequences you experience. That way, your attorney can account for your pain and suffering as they look at what damages you can recover in your delivery truck crash case.
Medical Bills
It costs a lot of money to pay for your medications, doctors’ visits, physical therapy, and other medical costs relating to your delivery truck collision injuries. Keep track of what you spend on medical care and treatments. Then, you can share your medical expenses with your lawyer, and they can include them in your damages request.
Lost Wages
You can’t work as you recover from a concussion, whiplash, or other injuries that you suffered in your delivery truck accident. Tell your attorney about your income losses. When you do, your attorney can add your pay stubs to their collection of evidence, strengthening your case for damages.
Asking for these and other damages is not a guarantee that you’ll get the delivery truck accident case results you want. Your lawyer can file your claim or lawsuit in alignment with Florida law. Once your case gets underway, your attorney can negotiate a settlement with a liable party or their insurance company. At the same time, they can prepare your case for trial.
What Damages Can I Get in a Delivery Truck Accident if Someone Else Is at Fault?
The damages you get will be based on whether you can prove that a liable party acted negligently. Your attorney will account for negligence in truck accidents as they craft their argument. They want their argument to show a judge or jury that the at-fault party was negligent and, as such, should be held responsible for your accident losses.
Proving negligence requires your lawyer to highlight how an at-fault party breached their duty of care. For example, most delivery truck drivers have to comply with hours of service (HOS) rules. In your case, the delivery truck driver involved in your accident didn’t. Since this driver chose not to follow these rules, they violated their duty of care, which contributed to your accident.
Outside of these things, your attorney wants the court to see that you are dealing with losses because of your accident involving a delivery truck. If the court believes a liable party was negligent, you will get compensatory damages. Along with these, if this party acted with malice or reckless disregard for your safety, you could recover punitive damages.
When Are Punitive Damages Awarded in Delivery Truck Accident Cases?
Punitive damages are rarely awarded in delivery truck accident cases. A judge or jury will order the party responsible for your delivery truck collision to pay these damages to deter them from committing future acts of carelessness or recklessness. Times when the court may be inclined to offer these damages to delivery truck crash victims include:
- A delivery truck driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of an accident.
- A delivery truck driver intentionally engaged in dangerous behaviors like speeding or aggressive driving.
- A delivery truck company hired a trucker without screening them, and this driver’s lack of training and experience contributed to an accident.
- A delivery truck company was aware of defective brakes or another vehicle issue and didn’t address it, and this issue played a role in an accident.
To get punitive damages, your lawyer will have to prove that a liable party’s actions involved more than just simple negligence. They may also have to provide the court with an abundance of evidence to illustrate that this party knew that their actions were dangerous.
Blakeley Law Firm Can Help You Recover Damages
As you think about the damages that you can recover in your delivery truck accident case, evaluate your legal options carefully. Partner with a delivery truck crash attorney who will give your case the attention it deserves. Your lawyer will position you to obtain damages that match your expectations.
Blakeley Law Firm has secured more than $250 million in compensation for delivery truck accident victims and others. Our personal injury attorneys will tackle the legal challenges you will face in your delivery truck crash case. To learn more, schedule a case consultation with us.
