As a driver or passenger, you have likely shared the roads with tanker trucks in the course of your travels. These trucks are designed to haul liquids, gasses, or other materials in enclosed cylinder-shaped tanks connected to the truck’s cab–where the driver sits. Tankers can transport non-hazardous products, water for example, but often carry hazardous materials.
Having an accident with a truck is always dangerous, and tanker truck accidents are no exception. To fight for compensation for the damage you have sustained in an accident, reach out to a Mt. Pleasant truck accident lawyer from Shelly Leeke Law Firm. We have helped injury victims secure six- and seven-figure damage awards and will work to bring your case to the most favorable resolution possible. Partner with a Mt. Pleasant tanker truck accident lawyer from our team today.
Why Tanker Truck Accidents Are so Dangerous
Tanker trucks are massive. Upon collision, passenger cars, smaller trucks, and motorcycles are clearly vulnerable to severe damage, and more importantly, so are the occupants of those vehicles. When the tanker’s cargo is flammable or toxic, the dangers increase.
Possible Injuries Sustained in a Tanker-Truck Accident
The worst accidents lead to death, and if your loved one has been killed in a tanker truck accident, speak to a Mt. Pleasant personal injury lawyer about pursuing compensation in a South Carolina wrongful death case. For victims “fortunate” enough to survive a crash, injuries are often serious. Your attorney will consult with your medical team and other experts about your care needs, both current and future, and factor those costs into a settlement demand.
- Burns: Flammable cargo can ignite from sparks generated by a crash, leading to severe burns. Even if flames do not erupt, victims can come in contact with spilled chemicals and sustain chemical burns.
- Respiratory and Eye Damage: Victims may escape flames or direct contact with chemicals but can still inhale toxic fumes from spillage, sustaining damage to the respiratory system. Exposure can also cause temporary or permanent eye damage.
- Broken Bones, Lacerations, or Amputations: Motor-vehicle accidents come with the risk of bone breaks, cuts from sharp edges produced in the collision, or even amputations. Tanker-truck crashes elevate the risk of these injuries because of the vehicles’ massive size and weight.
- Other Catastrophic Injuries: traumatic brain injuries (TBI), spinal cord injuries, and other catastrophic damage are possible in a tanker truck accident. These life-changing injuries can leave victims with permanent cognitive and physical disabilities.
You Need Financial Justice to Secure a Stable Future
Securing financial justice is critical for tanker truck accident victims. Injuries sustained lead to a host of other consequences. Individual victims and their families deserve justice for their losses and the opportunity to restore stability to their financial future.
Consequences of a Tanker-Truck Accident
Injuries demand medical care. Interventions and rehabilitative measures are expensive. In cases where victims will never achieve total recovery, those care needs will be lifelong.
Victims will need time away from work to recover, incurring wage loss at a time when expenses are high. If injuries are permanent, victims may never be capable of returning to work or earning at the same level, creating more financial turmoil. Meanwhile, their changed abilities may require hiring others to take care of responsibilities they–the victims–used to manage independently.
Emotional distress often follows physical pain and is further intensified by financial worry. Victims and their families endure changes to their roles within the family, relationships, independence, and care demands, all while facing financial undoing. These collective consequences demand justice and economic restoration.
A Tanker Truck Accident Lawyer in Mt. Pleasant Will Manage Your Case from Start to Finish
Partner with Shelly Leeke as soon as possible after your accident. This way, your attorney will have time to carry out an investigation to identify the at-fault party, collect evidence, and still file within South Carolina’s statute of limitations, the legal deadline for filing with the courts as per Chapter 3, Statute 15-3-530 of the South Carolina civil code. If you are afraid you have missed that deadline, our team may find grounds for an extension, so do not assume you have missed your opportunity for justice.
After the investigation, your lawyer will file against the at-fault party and assess your losses without missing any details. Every accident claim is different, making it impossible to predict a settlement amount, but you can expect your lawyer to account for your financial losses and expenses and put a dollar amount on your pain, suffering, and diminished enjoyment of life. Following this, your attorney will send the at-fault party a settlement demand.
Your tanker truck accident attorney in Mt. Pleasant will strive to resolve your case through negotiations. While most injury claims settle out of court if the at-fault party does not offer a just amount or compromises the negotiation process, your attorney will lay out your options, and you may decide to take the case to court. You can count on Shelly Leeke to offer fierce, effective trial representation in an effort to secure a favorable verdict.
Potential At-Fault Parties
Holding the right party accountable is essential when pursuing a claim. For tanker truck cases, you must have a tanker truck accident attorney in Mt. Pleasant with comprehensive knowledge of South Carolina’s Civil Remedies and Procedures and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Planner, which establishes specific regulations for tanker truck drivers, cargo, vehicles, and companies. Depending on the specifics of your accident, at-fault parties may include:
- The truck operator.
- Trucking companies who fail to make their trucks safe.
- Vehicle or vehicle-part manufacturers.
- Vehicle inspectors or mechanics.
- A third-party driver, if another driver caused the crash.
- A government office, if unsafe road conditions or defective traffic signals contributed to the accident.
Consult a Mt. Pleasant Tanker Truck Accident Lawyer Today
Move toward recovery and a secure financial future through partnership with Shelly Leeke. An experienced Mt. Pleasant tanker truck accident lawyer from our firm is ready to provide you with effective, compassionate representation, fighting for the compensation you need and the justice you deserve. We do not settle for less than the highest settlement possible, and neither should you.
