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Large commercial truck drivers and trucking companies have to adhere to strict regulations when operating on the roadways of Arizona. However, when an accident occurs, and truck drivers and companies are blamed for the incident, there are several defenses that they could offer up to try to get out of paying compensation to injury and property damage victims. Here, we want to discuss the most common defenses put forward by truck drivers, trucking companies, and insurance carriers in these cases.
It is not uncommon for defendants in a vehicle accident claim to try and shift the blame onto the injury victim. This may work to some extent, but not as well as they think it might, particularly in Arizona. In this state, the law allows for a “pure comparative negligence” system. This means that a person can still recover compensation even if they are up to 99% at fault for the incident.
The total amount of compensation a person receives will be reduced based on their percentage of fault, but a truck company or truck driver cannot use comparative negligence to get out from paying any compensation at all if they were at fault.
Trucking companies may not be able to shift the blame onto the injury victim, but they may try to shift fault onto other parties involved. For example, if there was more than one vehicle involved in the crash, the truck company could try to blame the other driver.
Additionally, the trucking company could try to shift the blame onto the manufacturer of the truck or the trailer or any of the vehicle parts that could be implicated in causing the crash.
It is crucial for truck accident victims in Arizona to understand that they have a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit in these cases. The personal injury statute of limitations in this state is two years from the date an injury occurs. This means that a truck accident victim has a two-year timeframe with which to file a lawsuit against the alleged negligent driver or truck company, or they will lose the ability to recover any compensation at all.
The truck company or their insurance carrier may try to say that the crash victim did not take the steps necessary to reduce their overall damages. For example, if a truck crash victim fails to seek immediate medical care, or if they fail to follow their doctor’s advice, the at-fault party could argue that this caused the injuries to worsen and that they should not be responsible for paying compensation.
If you or somebody you love has been injured in an accident caused by the careless or negligent actions of a truck driver or trucking company in Scottsdale or Phoenix, you need to work with an attorney as soon as possible. A truck accident lawyer will be able to conduct a complete investigation into the case in order to obtain the evidence needed to prove liability. They will vigorously fight back against any defenses the truck company or truck driver put up to avoid paying compensation for the claim.