SKIP TO CONTENTTruck accidents cause a lot of irreparable damage to you and your car. You need to seek compensation, but you don’t know how. When should you file a lawsuit after a truck accident?
An Oklahoma truck accident attorney can help you through this confusing time.
When You Should File a Lawsuit After a Truck Accident in Oklahoma
When should you file a lawsuit after a truck accident? Not every truck accident victim files a lawsuit, so how do you know if it’s the right option for you? Every situation is different, but filing a personal injury lawsuit can be beneficial to pursue compensation.
Low Settlement Offers
When you are in a truck accident, the trucking company’s insurance will contact you soon after with a settlement offer. When this happens, don’t immediately agree to a low offer. Remember that the insurance adjuster’s job is to save the company as much money as possible. They will generally try to lowball your initial offer.
You can use a truck accident attorney to try and negotiate with them, but this might only get you so far. If they are not considering all of your losses fairly, this is a good time to file a lawsuit.
Pursuing Compensation for Damages
A personal injury lawsuit is sometimes the only way to pursue compensation for all of the damages you suffered. You can work with an attorney to calculate your total losses. When you file a lawsuit, you can pursue economic, non-economic, and punitive damages.
Economic damages account for your calculable losses. These include tangible values like medical costs, property damage, and lost wages. Non-economic damages, on the other hand, are your intangible losses. After a truck accident, you might suffer pain, loss of quality of life, or mental anguish. Non-economic damages compensate you for those losses.
You can only pursue punitive damages in severe cases of negligence or intentional tort. If this sounds like your case, the court may award you additional damages to punish the liable party.
When you want to pursue these damages, you can do so through a lawsuit.
Multiple Liable Parties
Filing a lawsuit after a truck accident in Oklahoma may be warranted when multiple liable parties are involved. An insurance settlement offer will generally account for the trucking company’s liability. Other possible liable parties include:
- Truck driver
- Manufacturing Company
- Loading company
- Maintenance companies
Pursuing compensation from multiple parties can be accomplished with a personal injury lawsuit.
Timeline for Truck Accident Lawsuits
Now that you know what situations warrant a lawsuit, you might wonder how soon you should file one after your accident.
In Oklahoma, the statute of limitations is two years from the date of your accident. This means you should file your lawsuit as soon as possible. Two years can seem like a long time, but the claims process is long and complex. You don’t want to waste any time when doing the following:
- Investigating your claim and calculating damages
- Filing your complaint with the necessary parties
- Defending your claim
- Exchanging important documents and information between involved parties
- Mediation
- If necessary, go to trial
Contact an Experienced OKC Truck Accident Attorney To File Your Lawsuit
When should you file a lawsuit after a truck accident? Now. With an understanding of how long you have to file, your next step is to find reliable legal representation. At Bryan Garrett PLLC, we’re prepared to fight for you. Contact 405-725-2661 to schedule a free consultation.
