All About Moving Truck Accidents
Posted on Oct 18, 2012 2:20pm PDT
In Eureka, Montana, an overturned truck caused a lot of attention this month when the contents spilled out onto the road. The moving truck was driven by employees who worked for Two Men and a Truck moving company. The employees both had seat belts on when the large semi-truck toppled over, which is why they were not injured. The family who had loaded the moving van and were expecting their items to arrive were gravely disappointed to find that many breakables had shattered and furniture had been ruined. The truck driver claims that the load was top heavy. He says that he was driving the speed limit when leaving the neighborhood but the truck car was not able to shift weight as the driver turned around a sharp curve. It caused the vehicle to roll over onto a neighbor’s lawn, causing property damage.
The moving truck company involved in the accident is currently trying to figure out how to proceed as a result of the accident. They assume that they will have to reimburse their client for all lost items, and reimburse the neighbors for the property damage. An online contractual option offered by Two Men and a Truck says that there is full-replacement value coverage. The moving company is still seeking an appraisal on items lost as they try to uphold their promise without losing too much money. The company claims in contracts that they will replace the full value of the load that was on the truck at the time of the accident, not just the items that were damaged.
In addition to replacing items for the client, the company will have to reimburse the workers for any damages. While they were not injured, if either worker finds later on that he suffered whiplash or that he broke a bone and didn’t realize it at first, the company will need to grant workers compensation. There are strict policies regarding commercial car accidents that must be followed whenever a worker is injured while operating a company-owned vehicle. While some moving truck accidents are the employees fault, there are other accidents that are a renter’s fault. When you rent a U-Haul or another moving van to tote your stuff from one place to another, you are assuming the responsibility as a driver. Chances are that you probably signed contracts before renting the van that detailed what would happen in the case of an accident.
Because renting a moving van involves allowing an average driver to operate a large vehicle, there is always the potential for an accident. In a moving truck accident, a variety of people can be held liable. The driver of the rental truck will be responsible if he or she was driving the car recklessly. If you were trying to be cautious and weren’t used to maneuvering such a big vehicle, then you may be able to avoid taking the blame in a crash. Instead, the owner of the rental truck might be the one who needs to reimburse both you and the other driver in the wreck.
This is especially applicable if the truck malfunctioned or you were not warned about an abnormal function on the truck. If the items in your rental truck weren’t properly packed, and caused the truck to have an uneven weight distribution, then you may be able to sue whoever packed the truck for you. When you rent one of these moving vans you should be given a quick crash course in how to operate them.
If you have been involved in a moving van accident and are confused about what to do, then contact a car accident attorney. There are often a lot of legalities when it comes of one of these crashes. You have a contract to adhere to, an insurance policy to work with, the rental company’s insurance policy to contact, and a host of other issued that can make things tough. Having a legal representative on your side to take care of the messy work can be invaluable. Use this directory to find a car accident attorney near you today to work through your moving van accident.