Ontario Truck Accident Lawyers
Truck accident claims in Ontario often involve more than the conduct of one driver. A serious collision with a transport truck, tractor-trailer, dump truck, delivery truck, cube van or other commercial motor vehicle may require lawyers to analyze the trucking company, driver logs, hours of service, maintenance records, cargo loading, dispatch records, electronic vehicle data, fleet safety policies and available insurance coverage.
At Foster Injury Law, our personal injury lawyers can represent those who have suffered serious injuries in truck accidents across Ontario. These cases can involve catastrophic injuries, spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, fractures, crush injuries, amputations, chronic pain, psychological trauma and fatal accidents.
The early investigation can often become important. Key evidence could be in the possession of the trucking company, vehicle owner, maintenance provider, cargo loader, broker, shipper or another commercial party. Dash camera footage may be deleted. Electronic data may be overwritten. Inspection records, dispatch records and maintenance documents may need to be preserved before they disappear through ordinary business practices.
What Makes a Truck Accident Claim Different in Ontario?
A truck accident claim in Ontario involves both a no-fault accident benefits claim and a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault parties.
The injured person might require accident benefits for treatment, income replacement or attendant care while also pursuing a negligence claim against the driver, motor carrier or other responsible parties.
The trucking company, vehicle owner, trailer owner, maintenance contractor, cargo loader, shipper, broker or another commercial party may be legally responsible depending on the facts.
Ontario truck accident cases often require both insurance-law and tort-law analysis. The accident benefits claim can help with immediate needs. The tort claim addresses the harm caused by the parties responsible for the collision.
Commercial Trucking Claims Are Different From Ordinary Collision Claims
A transport truck or commercial vehicle is part of a business operation. That operation may include a motor carrier, dispatcher, fleet manager, maintenance contractor, cargo loader, broker, shipper, vehicle owner and insurer.
A driver may have made an unsafe lane change, followed too closely, failed to check a blind spot, driven too fast for the conditions, or continued driving while fatigued. The case could also warrant a review of the company’s role, including training, scheduling, dispatch pressure, supervision, maintenance practices, vehicle inspections, cargo loading and company safety policies.
Police reports look at the immediate information regarding the collision but do not not explain the commercial background that allowed the collision to happen.
Commercial Defendants and Insurance Coverage
One of the first steps in a truck accident case is identifying every party that may be legally responsible.
The truck driver may be liable if the crash was caused by careless driving, fatigue, distraction, impairment, speeding, an unsafe turn, an unsafe lane change, following too closely or failing to yield.
The trucking company might also be liable. A transport company may be responsible for the conduct of its driver, but the company’s own conduct may also need to be examined. This can include hiring, training, supervision, scheduling, maintenance and safety policies.
A serious truck accident claim could involve the vehicle owner, trailer owner, maintenance contractor, cargo loader, shipper, broker, parts manufacturer, another driver or, in some cases, a road authority.
Truck accident cases are more likely than most cases to involve more than one insurance policy. A commercial vehicle claim can involve the driver’s auto policy, the motor carrier’s commercial liability coverage, the vehicle owner’s coverage, trailer coverage, umbrella or excess insurance, and insurance connected to another responsible commercial party. Identifying all available insurance is especially important in severe injury cases since the losses might be much larger than a standard policy
Driver Logs, Hours of Service and Fatigue
Fatigue is a common issue in serious trucking cases. Commercial drivers will often spend long hours on the road. They might drive overnight, wait through loading delays, deal with poor weather, face delivery deadlines, or feel pressure to keep moving when rest would be safer.
When fatigue is suspected, driver logs and electronic records are very important. These records show how long the driver has been on duty, how much rest they had, where they were, and whether or not the trip complied with applicable hours-of-service rules.
The investigation might also assess the conduct of the motor carrier. Did the company monitor the driver properly? Was the route scheduled safely? Were delays handled responsibly? Was the driver placed under pressure to keep driving?
Evidence can often include electronic logging device records, dispatch messages, GPS data, fuel receipts, delivery documents, trip sheets, cell phone records and communications between the driver and their company.
Maintenance, Inspections and Mechanical Failure
Sometimes maintenance evidence is significant in truck accident cases.
Commercial vehicles require regular inspections and maintenance. Brakes, tires, steering systems, lights, mirrors, couplings, trailers, underride guards and other safety components need to be analyzed closely
Maintenance evidence is more likely to be relevant when a crashes involve brake failure, tire failure, loss of control, jackknifing, runaway trailers, unsafe turns, poor visibility or a truck that could not stop in time.
Cargo Loading and Securement
Cargo changes the risk created by a truck. An overloaded truck takes longer to stop. Improperly balanced cargo can affect turning, braking and rollover risk. Unsecured cargo can shift during travel or fall from the vehicle. This will sometimes cause trucks to tip over.
Cargo issues are often the responsibility of a warehouse, shipper, broker, loading company or transport company. This is be important where a collision involves a rollover, jackknife, sudden loss of control, fallen cargo, trailer instability or a truck that could not brake safely.
The best Ontario truck accident lawyers will know to examine what was being transported, who loaded it, how it was secured, whether the vehicle was overloaded, whether weight distribution was safe, and whether anyone identified a problem before the truck entered the road.
Black Box, ECM and Electronic Evidence
More and more often, commercial vehicles contain electronic evidence that can help explain what happened before a crash.
The vehicle's monitoring systems will often include information regarding braking, throttle position, engine activity, sudden deceleration, GPS movement, telematics data, dash camera footage or other event information.
Knowing what the truck was doing in the minutes and seconds before impact is obviously very significant. We often find that this information will end up contradicting statements made by witnesses at the scene of the crash.
Electronic evidence is not always preserved automatically. Some systems overwrite data after a certain period of time. This is often true of video footage. The trucking company or a third-party fleet management provider will often be control of the electronic evidence.
Top truck accident lawyers will ensure to write letters to anyone potentially in possession of this information to ensure it is preserved.
Truck Accidents and Serious Injuries
Truck collisions often cause very severe injuries because of the size, weight and force of commercial vehicles.
A person in a passenger vehicle may suffer a traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, multiple fractures, internal injuries, burns, crush injuries, amputation, chronic pain or psychological trauma.
When truck accident injuries are serious, they require evidence about future care, income loss, loss of competitive advantage, attendant care, rehabilitation, housekeeping limitations, medication, psychological treatment and the long-term impact of the injuries.
Where the injuries are severe, the case may also involve Ontario’s catastrophic impairment framework. A catastrophic impairment designation can significantly affect the level of accident benefits available after a motor vehicle collision.
Accident Benefits and Tort Claims After a Truck Accident
A person injured in a truck accident may have both an accident benefits claim and a lawsuit which is commonly referred to as a tort claim.
Accident benefits are available through Ontario’s no-fault insurance system. Fault does not prevent an injured person from applying for accident benefits. Depending on the injuries and available coverage, accident benefits may help pay for medical and rehabilitation expenses, income replacement benefits, attendant care, examinations, treatment and other available benefits.
The tort claim is a lawsuit against the at-fault party or parties. In a truck accident case, those parties could be the truck driver, trucking company, vehicle owner, maintenance contractor, cargo loader or another defendant.
Both claims are important. Accident benefits can provide support while the injured person is trying to recover. The tort claim addresses the harm caused by the negligent parties, including pain and suffering, income loss, future care costs and other losses.
For more general information about motor vehicle accidents in Ontario, you can review our Ontario car accident lawyers page.
Truck Accidents Involving Pedestrians, Cyclists and Motorcyclists
Truck accident claims are not limited to people inside passenger vehicles.
Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are especially vulnerable when a commercial driver makes an unsafe turn, fails to check a blind spot, reverses without proper care, opens a door, changes lanes unsafely or fails to yield.
These cases can easily be severe even at low speeds. A large to a personal outside of a vehicle with little physical protection.
Truck collisions involving pedestrians and cyclists are likely to raise issues involving intersection design, crosswalks, bike lanes, construction zones, loading areas, delivery routes, visibility and blind spots.
We often see these trucks cause motorcycle crashes may due to unsafe lane changes because of the tiny size of the motorcycle compared to the length of the truck.
Fatal Truck Accident Claims
Some truck accidents result in fatal injuries. When a person dies in a truck collision, certain family members may have a claim under
Ontario’s Family Law Act. These claims may include damages for loss of care, guidance and companionship, as well as certain financial losses and expenses. The estate of the deceased also has a claim for pain and suffering that they sustained prior to death.
Read more about how claims work when the victim dies at our Ontario wrongful death lawyers page.
Fatal truck accident cases require careful, technical investigations because the injured person is no longer available to explain what happened. Physical evidence, witness statements, police evidence, reconstruction evidence, electronic data, company records and maintenance documents become uniquely important.
Compensation After a Truck Accident
The compensation after a truck accident depends on the injuries, the liability evidence, the available insurance, the person’s recovery and the long-term prognosis.
Lawsuits will often claim for damages for pain and suffering, past income loss, future income loss, loss of earning capacity, medical and rehabilitation expenses, future care costs, attendant care, housekeeping and home maintenance losses, out-of-pocket expenses, and family claims under the Family Law Act.
In serious injury cases, future losses may be the largest part of the claim. A person may need treatment, medication, equipment, home modifications, support services, vocational help or reduced work duties for many years.
When Should You Contact a Truck Accident Lawyer?
You should contact a truck accident lawyer as soon as possible after a serious collision involving a transport truck, tractor-trailer, dump truck, delivery truck, cube van or other commercial motor vehicle.
Early legal involvement can help preserve evidence before it is overwritten, deleted or lost. This is especially important for dash camera footage, ECM data, electronic logging records, dispatch messages, inspection records and maintenance documents.
You should obtain legal advice early if the injuries are serious, someone died in the collision, a commercial vehicle was involved, the police investigation is ongoing, the trucking company or insurer has contacted you, you are being asked to give a statement, you are missing work, or you are unsure which insurer should handle accident benefits.
Speak With an Ontario Truck Accident Lawyer
If you or a family member was seriously injured in a truck accident in Ontario, Foster Injury Law can help.
Our Ontario personal injury lawyers handle serious truck accident claims involving commercial vehicles, transport companies, catastrophic injuries, fatal collisions, highway crashes, vulnerable road users and complex liability issues.
Contact Foster Injury Law for a free consultation with an Ontario truck accident lawyer.
FAQ
Are truck accident cases different from car accident cases?
Yes. Truck accident cases often involve commercial defendants, driver logs, hours-of-service records, maintenance documents, cargo loading issues, company safety policies, electronic vehicle data and multiple layers of insurance. The trucking company’s conduct may be as important as the driver’s conduct.
Who can be sued after a truck accident in Ontario?
Truck accident claims can potentially involve the truck driver, trucking company, vehicle owner, trailer owner, maintenance contractor, cargo loader, shipper, broker, another driver or another party that contributed to the collision.
Can a trucking company be responsible for driver fatigue?
Yes, potentially. A trucking company may be responsible if unsafe scheduling, poor supervision, dispatch pressure, inadequate monitoring or failure to follow hours-of-service rules contributed to the collision.
What evidence should be preserved after a truck accident?
Important evidence may include dash camera footage, ECM or black box data, driver logs, electronic logging records, GPS data, dispatch messages, inspection reports, maintenance records, repair invoices, cargo documents, training records and safety policies.
Can I claim accident benefits after being hit by a truck in Ontario?
Yes. If you were injured in a motor vehicle accident involving a truck, you can apply for accident benefits through Ontario’s no-fault insurance system. Fault does not prevent an accident benefits claim.
What if a family member died in a truck accident?
Certain family members may have a wrongful death claim under Ontario’s Family Law Act. These claims can include damages for loss of care, guidance and companionship, as well as certain financial losses and expenses.