Potential for Serious Injury in Commercial Trucking Collisions Even at Slow Speeds

Most every driver, young and old, has witnessed the aftermath of a minor fender-bender from time to time. Roadway accidents during the morning or afternoon commute or while taking a driving vacation are just one of the things we all expect to see on occasion. It’s a safe bet, as well, that most people are thankful for not being one of the injured parties in such instances, especially when a crash involves a large commercial motor vehicle.

Interestingly, what many motorists fail to comprehend is that fender-benders involving large trucks -- such as an 18-wheeler, fully-loaded tank truck or palletized flatbed delivery vehicle -- can result in serious personal injury, even at relatively low speeds. It is a sad fact that a percentage of severe or even life-threatening injuries can occur in what may appear to be a seemingly inconsequential collision. The bottom line is that victims of low-speed commercial trucking crashes can suffer fairly serious injury and sometimes long-term medical complications.

Individual drivers are not the only ones who may find it hard to believe that a low-speed accident could result in significant bodily injury. In fact, the legal experts at Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers, know that many times an insurance company will choose to deny a motorist’s injury claims simply based on the visible damage to the claimant’s vehicle. Even in cases of negligent driving on the part of a commercial truck operator, the victim may find himself on the hook for his medical expenses. But there may be recourse.

As professional litigators fighting for the rights of motorists injured by the careless or negligent actions of another driver, we feel there is little reason, if any, why someone who has suffered injury at the hands of a commercial trucker should suffer financially as well. As motorists ourselves, we understand how even a pleasant drive with the family can end with a trip to the local emergency room. Especially in cases of roadway collisions involving large commercial trucks, the chances for serious complications could be much higher than in a slow-speed car-to-car collision.

One reason why some accident victims may face resistance from insurance companies is because of the very design of modern cars. Most late model automobiles have been designed to sustain low-speed impact with little or no apparent damage to the vehicle body. Despite this, the occupants of a vehicle involved in a low-speed collision can indeed experience impact forces that can result in certain painful and occasionally debilitating injuries. While many passenger cars can hit a stationary object at upward of five miles-per-hour without showing visible damage, in vehicle-to-vehicle crashes it has been shown that damage may not always be evident even at combined impact speeds of 15 to 20 miles-per-hour.

Of course, when it comes to commercial trucking accidents, vehicle damage may certainly be evident, though the forces sustained by the victims may actually be worse than the physical vehicle damage may suggest. Even though it is well understood that equating damage to a victim’s car with the level of injury received by the injured party, legal departments at insurance companies make a living downplaying a claimant’s injuries in light of the “apparent” damage to that individual’s vehicle.

As attorneys representing trucking-related accident victims in cities like Baltimore, Rockville, Annapolis and Washington, D.C., Lebowitz & Mzhen understand that it is important to fight the perception that physical damage to a vehicle can be directly related to the bodily injuries sustained by the victims of a trucking-related beltway or interstate wreck. This point alone should be enough to convince many victims of Maryland traffic accidents to pick up the phone and contact an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Whether you or someone you love has been injured in a low-speed trucking accident or a high-speed passenger car crash, serious bodily injuries, such as internal bleeding, head trauma, bone fractures or spinal cord damage can lead to life-threatening complications or long-term medical conditions. As Maryland automobile and commercial trucking accident attorneys, Lebowitz & Mzhen believe that no victim of negligent driving body should be required to pay for hospital and doctor expenses required through no fault of their own.

When it comes to being injured as a result of another driver’s negligent actions, you can benefit from the professional advice and legal experience of a qualified Maryland personal injury attorney. We at Lebowitz & Mzhen are ready and willing to offer assistance to victims of passenger car, commercial truck and motorcycle collisions. Our goal is to recover monetary damages due our clients under the law. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding a specific accident-related injury or if you believe that you are a victim of a negligence-related commercial trucking wreck. Call us toll-free at (800) 654-1949 to schedule a no-obligation legal consultation. You may also email Jack Lebowitz or Vadim Mzhen to set up a one-on-one meeting to discuss your case.