Who Is Liable If You Are Injured in an Accident Caused by Falling Cargo?

 Posted on October 17, 2019 in Car Accidents

Getting into a car accident can obviously cause significant personal injury. Such an accident can also result in significant financial losses, as well. Even automobile accidents which are not your fault can end up costing you and your family thousands of dollars. Imagine this scenario: You are driving down the highway when a flatbed truck pulls in front of you. Suddenly, cargo from the bed of the truck comes loose, falls, and strikes your windshield. You veer out of control and crash your vehicle, resulting in significant vehicular damage and several broken bones. Who is responsible for your injuries and the damage to your vehicle? Often, the answer to the question of liability in loose-cargo accidents is not clear-cut.

Falling Cargo Can Cause Fatal Car Accidents

A 2016 study conducted by AAA found that falling cargo was a factor in over 200,000 crashes between 2011 and 2014. Improperly secured cargo was the most common cause of these accidents. Road debris resulted in roughly 39,000 injuries and over 500 fatalities during the same time period. Loose cargo and road debris can cause serious neck and spine injuries, broken bones, traumatic brain injury, and worse. Even more devastating, some people injured by loose cargo are left in thousands of dollars of medical debt and are unable to work.

Is A Truck Driver Automatically Responsible for Falling Cargo?

Many people who are injured in a cargo-related truck accident assume that the truck driver is at fault. While this is sometimes true, there are many other factors that one must consider when assigning blame in a loose cargo traffic accident. For example, say a motorist’s vehicle is struck with items falling from a flatbed truck carrying farm equipment. The loose cargo may be due to driver error, improper loading, faulty restraints, or issues with the farm equipment itself.

There are often many different individuals and companies involved in transporting any type of cargo which means that responsibility for an accident caused by falling cargo may lie with several people or organizations. Each party is also likely to have a separate insurance carrier, which makes such cases even more complex.

Contact a Rockford Truck Accident Injury Attorney for Legal Guidance

If you have been injured or a loved one has been killed in an accident caused by falling truck cargo, you may be able to receive compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. Contact Mannarino & Brasfield, A Division of Schwartz Jambois, to schedule a free consultation with an experienced Winnebago County truck accident lawyer. Call 815-215-7561 today.

Sources:

https://newsroom.aaa.com/2016/08/american-drivers-arent-securing-loads-road/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A4306-2004Sep8.html