What to Do After a Truck Accident: Essential Steps for Safety and Legal Protection

A truck accident can be a life-altering event, often leaving victims with physical, emotional, and financial burdens. If you’ve been involved in a truck accident in New Jersey, knowing what steps to take immediately can protect your health, rights, and potential legal claims. 

This guide outlines the essential steps after a truck accident to ensure your safety and protect your legal interests.

1. Ensure Safety & Contact Emergency Services

The first and most important step after a truck accident is ensuring your safety and the safety of others at the scene.

Here’s what you should do:

• Check for Injuries: Check yourself, passengers, and others involved in the crash for injuries. If anyone is injured, call 911 immediately. Even if injuries seem minor, it’s wise to get medical attention as some injuries, like whiplash or internal bleeding, may not show immediate symptoms.
• Move to a Safe Location: If possible, move your vehicle to the side of the road to prevent additional accidents. However, if the vehicles are too damaged to move or it’s unsafe to do so, stay inside with your seatbelt fastened.
• Call the Police: Under New Jersey law, you must report an accident involving injury, death, or property damage to the police. The responding officers will file an official police report, which will be crucial for future legal claims.

Why This Step Matters: Medical records and police reports are key evidence when filing a personal injury claim. Failing to document injuries immediately could hurt your case later.

2. Gather Information

Collecting information at the scene of the accident is essential for building a strong legal case. While it’s understandable to feel disoriented after a crash, try to collect the following details:

Key Information to Collect:

• Truck Driver’s Information: Full name, contact number, driver’s license number, and employer’s information.
  
• Trucking Company Details: Name, address, and contact information of the trucking company.
  
• Vehicle Details: License plate number, make, model, and color of the truck and any other vehicles involved.
  
• Insurance Information: Collect the insurance policy details of all parties involved.
  
• Witness Information: Get names and contact information for witnesses who saw the accident.

Why This Step Matters: New Jersey follows a modified comparative negligence rule, which means your compensation could be reduced if you’re found partially at fault. Having detailed information can help prove liability.

3. Document the Accident

Evidence fades quickly after an accident. Capturing as much documentation as possible at the scene will strengthen your legal claim. Use your phone’s camera to record evidence.

What to Document:

• Photos and Videos: Take clear photos of the accident scene, vehicle damage, tire marks, road conditions, and any visible injuries.
  
• Weather and Road Conditions: Was it raining? Was there poor visibility? Document the weather and road conditions as they may have contributed to the accident.
  
• Notes on the Accident: Write down your recollection of the events leading up to the accident. Include the time, location, and anything you recall seeing, hearing, or experiencing before, during, and after the crash.

Why This Step Matters: Photos, videos, and notes can be compelling evidence in your personal injury case, especially if the trucking company’s insurer tries to dispute your version of events.

4. Notify Your Insurance Company

After ensuring everyone’s safety and documenting the accident, notify your insurance company about the crash.

What to Do When Contacting Your Insurer:

• Report the Incident Promptly: Notify your insurer within a reasonable time frame, as many policies require prompt reporting.
• Stick to the Facts: Avoid making speculative statements about fault or injuries. Simply provide the facts and let your attorney handle the details later.

Why This Step Matters: New Jersey is a no-fault state, which means your insurance company is responsible for covering medical expenses up to a certain limit, regardless of fault. Your Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits kick in under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.

5. Consult with a Truck Accident Attorney

Truck accident claims are more complex than regular car accidents. Multiple parties may be responsible for your injuries, including the truck driver, trucking company, cargo loaders, and equipment manufacturers.

Why You Need a Truck Accident Attorney:

• Legal Expertise: New Jersey’s laws governing commercial truck accidents differ from ordinary car accident claims.
• Maximize Your Compensation: A lawyer can help you recover compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property damage.
• Protect You from Insurers: Insurance companies often try to minimize payouts. An experienced attorney will negotiate on your behalf.

Why This Step Matters: If you wait too long to seek legal representation, you may lose your right to file a claim. New Jersey’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims is two years from the date of the accident.

Final Thoughts

Truck accidents can be overwhelming, but knowing what to do can help you protect your health and legal rights. Prioritize safety, document the scene, and seek legal advice immediately. Trucking companies have teams of lawyers and insurers working against you, but with the right legal representation, you can level the playing field.

If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, contact the experienced truck accident attorney to discuss your case or call (856) 284-6446 to schedule a consultation.

See More: You can also hire a truck accident attorney in Newark.