A collision with a tractor-trailer can be a life-changing event. If you are lucky enough to survive, the crash could cause you major disabilities. And if you lose a loved one in a truck accident, the impact on your family could go far beyond terrible grief and shock.
Living with a disability after a truck accident
As terrifying and violent as getting hit by a semi truck can be, most people survive such incidents. But the injuries can be especially severe, given the average commercial truck’s sheer size, weight and power when traveling at speed on a Lincoln highway. Not all injuries sustained in truck accidents heal. You could be disabled for years, possibly the rest of your life.
That could mean you can no longer earn an income through work. You might need to use a wheelchair, which means your home must be adapted to let you get around easily and access sinks, bathtubs, light switches and other fixtures. Everyday tasks that you once did for yourself without a second thought, like bathing and dressing yourself, preparing and eating food, and household chores, may now require someone else’s help. And you might not be able to help raise your children the way you used to. The loss of independence can take a toll on your mental health.
After a wrongful truck crash death
Losing a parent, spouse or child in an accident caused by a negligent truck driver or trucking company is intensely painful for the surviving family. Feelings of grief, anger and sadness can be overwhelming in the following weeks, months and years. Then there is the financial cost. The deceased might have received hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of medical care before they died. Now that they are gone, they cannot contribute to the household income. Nor can they help raise their children or provide companionship to their spouse.
Nothing can undo the results of a catastrophic truck wreck that should not have happened in the first place. But pursuing compensation from the driver, and potentially their employer, can help make up for the financial harm the trucker has caused you. A discussion with a personal injury attorney can start you on the path to getting fully compensated.