Commercial truck accidents often result in catastrophic injuries for the other parties involved in the crash. If you were injured in an accident, your financial footing can quickly disappear between your medical expenses and missed time from work. Fortunately, an experienced truck accident lawyer in Watertown can help you secure compensation to cover your losses.
Hoy Law is the only law firm in South Dakota with board-certified truck accident lawyers on staff. Our experience handling these types of cases will help us build a strong case on your behalf so you can recover the money you need and deserve. Reach out to us today to schedule a free case evaluation with one of the Watertown personal injury lawyers from our team.
Don’t Delay When Pursuing Compensation After a Truck Accident
After suffering injuries in a truck accident, you need to take action quickly. Under the South Dakota personal injury statute of limitations, truck accident victims must file a lawsuit within three years from the date of their accident. If you don’t file before the deadline, you could be out of options for recovering compensation.
Hiring a lawyer immediately after your accident will also help ensure that the evidence in your case is protected. Trucking companies often send a team to the accident site to erase evidence that could be used against them. An experienced truck accident attorney in Watertown can help prevent this from happening.
When you hire a lawyer, they will send letters to the trucking company to retain evidence such as camera and black box recordings. Once directed by legal counsel, the trucking company must retain all evidence or face further legal action.
For a free legal consultation with a truck accident lawyer serving Watertown, call 605-334-8900
Damages an Experienced Truck Accident Lawyer in Watertown Can Help You Secure After a Collision
After suffering serious injuries in a truck accident, you will have the right to pursue a wide range of damages from the liable party. To allow yourself to recover the full value of your claim, you will need to identify all the damages that apply to your case.
While it will likely be easy to identify many of the damages that apply, some can be much more difficult to work out without prior knowledge of how these cases are handled. Fortunately, with the help of an experienced attorney who will review your accident and the losses you incurred, you should be able to figure out the exact damages you can claim.
Compensatory Damages
Compensatory damages are monetary compensation for all losses incurred by a truck accident victim. They are split into economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages are the losses you incur that impact you financially after an accident. The money awarded for these damages is meant to replace your financial losses dollar for dollar.
Non-economic damages, on the other hand, are focused on the losses that impact your quality of life. Because of the profound nature of these damages, the money awarded for non-economic damages is often significant. The most commonly available compensatory damages following a truck accident include:
- Emotional distress
- Permanent disability
- Property damage
- Lost wages
- Decreased earning ability
- Loss of companionship
- Mental anguish
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium
- Medical bills
- Future medical expenses
When you hire an attorney to help you recover money following a truck accident, they will thoroughly investigate the crash and review all of your resulting losses. Your lawyer will also determine all the damages you qualify to claim to give you the best odds of a positive case result.
If you lost a loved one in a truck accident, you can file a wrongful death claim to recover damages that aren’t covered in standard personal injury cases, such as funeral and burial costs. An experienced Watertown wrongful death lawyer can help you with your claim.
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are completely separate from compensatory damages. Rather than compensating accident victims for their losses, punitive damages punish the liable party for causing the accident. The court only considers punitive damages in extreme cases involving gross negligence or malice.
Watertown Truck Accident Lawyer Near Me 605-334-8900
What You Can do to Help Your Compensation Claim Following a Truck Accident
The most important step you can take to help ensure a favorable outcome to your case after your crash is to hire an experienced truck accident lawyer serving Watertown. Once you have secured the service of an attorney, they will take charge of your legal case. However, there will still be things you will need to do to protect your right to compensation.
You must follow your doctor’s orders and adhere to your treatment plan. If you don’t, the result could be a misdiagnosis or a worsening of your original injury. The party at fault for your initial damages will not be liable for any further damages you incur as a result of failing to follow medical advice.
You should never let financial concerns prevent you from getting the medical treatment you need. At Hoy Law, we can help connect you with options so you can cover the cost of your medical expenses while waiting to collect compensation from the liable party, in certain cases.
Click to contact our Watertown Personal Injury Lawyers today
Secure Legal Representation from an Experienced Truck Accident Attorney Serving Watertown Today
After sustaining severe injuries in a truck accident, recovering compensation from the at-fault party can be essential for your long-term financial health. The best way to improve your chances of getting the money you need is by hiring an experienced truck accident attorney in Watertown. At Hoy Law, our legal team will use every available resource to win your case.
Schedule a free case consultation with a member of our legal team by contacting us today through our website or over the phone.
Call or text 605-334-8900 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
