{"id":2203,"date":"2016-05-23T12:25:06","date_gmt":"2016-05-23T19:25:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/az-personal-injury\/?page_id=2203"},"modified":"2022-09-29T09:51:56","modified_gmt":"2022-09-29T16:51:56","slug":"rear-ended-semi-truck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/az-personal-injury\/blog\/rear-ended-semi-truck\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Do if You’ve Been Rear-Ended by a Semi-Truck"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/h2>\n

Few drivers don\u2019t get nervous when surrounded by semi-trucks on the freeway, even though only about one in ten freeway fatalities occur with a large truck or semi-truck involved. However, semi-trucks can weigh up to 20,000 pounds and can take 2-3 times longer to stop than a passenger vehicle, making them very dangerous vehicles to be involved in an accident with.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re unfortunate enough to be involved in such an accident, it is important to know what legal steps you should take afterwards. If you are fortunate enough to have never dealt with a semi-truck accident, you can prepare yourself with the knowledge provided in this article. Accidents involving semi-trucks are not exactly the same as accidents involving the average passenger vehicle.<\/p>\n

Always Call the Authorities<\/h4>\n

Even if you\u2019re lucky enough to just get tapped by a semi-truck and neither party is in need of an ambulance, get yourself to safety and call the police. Proving your lack of involvement in a semi-truck accident is going to require a lot of evidence, so get the police involved immediately. If the driver is chronically negligent it is your responsibility to get their actions on record to prevent them from potentially injuring someone else.<\/p>\n

If the driver of the semi-truck decides to flee the scene or perhaps was completely unaware that they damaged your vehicle, do not pursue the semi-truck. Don\u2019t put yourself in a dangerous situation in an attempt to get their license plate number, either. Semi-truck transport routes can be traced and the driver can be named later on.<\/p>\n

Your duty at this point in the situation is to pull over, get to safe place, and call the police. This goes without saying, but if you or the semi-truck driver are injured in any way, call an ambulance. Your lives are much more important than figuring out whose fault the accident was.<\/p>\n

Understand Duty of Care and Driver Negligence<\/h4>\n

The driver doing the rear-ending in an accident is not always at fault. In many cases, though, a semi-truck accident is caused by driver negligence. Drivers of any vehicle have a responsibility to road safety known as \u2018duty of care\u2019. This duty includes being aware of surrounding vehicles, obeying traffic laws, and doing everything in the driver\u2019s power to avoid a collision or accident and maintain safe practices on the road.<\/p>\n

Semi-truck drivers have a broader list of responsibilities under duty of care for obvious reasons– they\u2019re driving enormous and dangerous vehicles. State and federal regulations and serious\u00a0methods of proving negligence are a part of a truck driver\u2019s duty of care. Before, during, or after the accident, did the semi-truck driver do any of the following things? If so, it is possible that they will be found negligent:<\/p>\n