Insurance Company Strategies After a Truck Accident

When you’re driving around Charlotte, no matter how carefully you operate your vehicle, there is always the possibility of being involved in an accident. Let’s say you were sideswiped by a semitruck on a North Carolina highway, and it caused a serious accident where you were seriously injured. The one bit of good news is that since they’re commercial vehicles, these trucks have large insurance policies. In the moments after the crash, however, their insurance company is already working to keep you from getting any of the money you are owed.

When you get into a collision with a big rig, your best option is to contact Charlotte truck accident lawyer as soon as possible. At Randall & Stump, Criminal Defense Attorneys, we know how this situation presents serious challenges to you and your family. To schedule a free consultation of your case, contact us today at (980) 237-4579.

What Tactics Do Trucking Insurance Companies Use?

In North Carolina, commercial trucks carry liability insurance policies of anywhere between $50,000 and $1 million. In some instances, there may be multiple policies, depending on the type of truck and what it was hauling. Here are five major tactics the trucking company insurer will probably be using against you:

Doctoring the accident scene.

Newer trucks are outfitted with “black boxes” that record traveling data, and many of them automatically dial out to the trucker’s insurance company upon detecting a crash. We have seen cases where the insurance agents reach the scene of the accident before emergency services, and they immediately begin working to alter the scene in their favor.

Claiming it was your fault.

Trucking insurance adjusters will deny their client was at fault, and claim you caused the accident. In North Carolina, this strategy is especially useful because of our state’s contributory negligence standard: if a jury finds you one percent at-fault for the accident, the insurance company will claim you should be barred from recovering any compensation.

Lowballing you.

The insurance adjuster may offer you a settlement right away, even while visiting you in the hospital, but they’re not being generous. They’re trying to make you go away. They’ll also warn you that there’s a strict deadline for accepting this offer, that you won’t get a higher offer than this, and that they’ll purposely drag on any court case for years to discourage you.

Spying on you.

Trucking insurance companies are technologically savvy. They’ll have employees monitoring your social media accounts, as well as anything you post or do online, and maybe have you followed or videotaped in person, looking for anything to use against you.

Tricking you.

If the insurance adjuster asks for your medical bills as you receive them, don’t hand them over. If the insurance company asks for a recorded statement, politely decline, and reach out to a Charlotte truck accident lawyer immediately. There are many tactics a trucking adjuster will use to trick you into giving them evidence against your claim, including:

• Pretending to befriend you
• Asking you the same question over and over
• Giving you false hope that they’re ready to settle
• Misrepresenting facts or laws to you

Why Truck Accidents Can’t Be Treated the Same as Car Accidents

When a big rig is involved in a collision with a passenger car, SUV, or pickup truck, it’s rarely a minor crash. Truck accidents can cause horrific injuries to drivers and passengers in smaller vehicles, such as:

• Crush injuries
• Amputation
• Organ rupture
• Internal bleeding
• Paralysis
• Spinal trauma
• Traumatic brain injuries

The costs for treating these injuries, as well as the psychological trauma that stems from these conditions, are astronomical.

How can you make sure the negligent trucker pays their share of your medical bills, vehicle repairs, and other costs from the accident? How do you take on a multi-million dollar trucking company and its powerful insurance company? While you concentrate on your recovery, let the attorneys from our firm tackle the legal aspects of your case. Contact us today to learn more about your options following a truck accident in or around Charlotte, NC.

Call Our Charlotte Truck Accident Lawyers for Help Today

You don’t need false hope after a traumatic accident. You need honesty and serious representation – especially if your case involves a semitruck and its insurance company. At Randall & Stump, Criminal Defense Attorneys, we have handled numerous catastrophic injury claims before, and we know how to counteract every tactic the trucking insurance company has to offer. We will review your case and determine what options you have moving forward.

To schedule a free, initial case evaluation, contact us today at (980) 237-4579.