As soon as a truck wreck happens, the trucking company goes into critical response. If the trucking company and their driver caused a wreck that injures someone, that injured person is not worried about anything other than hoping they are alive. In the meantime, the trucking company is working. Often truck driver is provided with a business card-size note of who to contact with the trucking company after a wreck. That person, who is often the Safety Director for the trucking company, is then generally advised to get in touch with certain folks to initiate the response team. For example, the insurance company may be contacted, and they have teams, including lawyers, investigators, reconstructionist experts, and third party adjusters available to be on scene at a moment's notice. A lawyer working for the insurance company and/or the trucking company will go out to the site of the wreck to gather evidence. Now this may sound like an innocent endeavor, and of course the defense lawyer must follow the rules of ethics; however, by having a lawyer at the scene investigating the wreck, the trucking company can then attempt to protect certain information that is obtained by claiming that it is privileged in the event a lawsuit is filed. The trucking lawyer can also assist the driver in dealing with law enforcement. Drivers are routinely advised to “not admit guilt or assess blame. In some cases, it can be wise for the driver to inform an officer that the carrier's attorney must first be contacted.” (See Transport Topics: 9/1/2021).
In essence, the minute after a truck wreck takes place, most trucking companies are investigating and preparing.
As a result, a person injured in a trucking wreck should have their own team engaged as soon as possible. Who is there for you after a wreck? We know who is there for the trucking company, their driver, and their insurer, but who is there for you and your family? At The Hamilton Firm, we represent individuals injured in truck wrecks. We are there to try to balance the scales.