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Truck Wreck Justice 

An auto accident can be a frightening, overwhelming experience. But a 

 can be truly life-altering due to the sheer size and force of these massive vehicles.

Still, despite the violence of most of these collisions, sometimes people walk away seemingly unharmed. But in many cases, these victims have significant injuries that are masked by shock and adrenaline. Some injuries take days, weeks, or even months to manifest the full range of their symptoms and disabling effects.

The following hidden injuries are common after a semi-truck crash. If you are experiencing any of the symptoms described below, you should seek immediate medical attention and contact a skilled and experienced truck accident lawyer.

Traumatic brain injuries can lead to severe cognitive and emotional problems, so if you’re experiencing any of the following symptoms after a truck wreck, you may have suffered a traumatic brain injury.

Many of these symptoms could also be related to a blood clot or other potentially fatal injury, so schedule an appointment with your physician as soon as possible.

Back injuries are common following a semi-truck crash, but symptoms sometimes don’t present immediately. If you’re experiencing pain, numbness, or tingling in your arms, legs, or feet, you could have a herniated disc in your lower back. Similarly, pain and discomfort in your neck and shoulder could indicate that you have a herniated disc in your upper back.

Also, if you’re suddenly feeling weakness in your muscles, you might be experiencing atrophy due to a herniated disc. Meet with your primary care physician to discuss a referral to an orthopedic specialist or neurosurgeon to treat the herniated disc.

Not all semi-truck injuries are physical. These crashes often lead to mental health consequences like depression and anxiety, which can have severe and even life-threatening consequences. If you’re struggling at work, having a hard time relating to your family and friends, or simply not enjoying life the way you did prior to your accident, you should seek mental health treatment from a trained professional.

Whiplash is a neck muscle injury that victims often suffer after a severe impact. Symptoms often include:

Neck, should, back, and arm pain and stiffness

Many crash victims often downplay whiplash, but this injury can have lasting effects, so you should seek treatment soon after your semi-truck accident.

While most of the injuries on this list will not prove directly fatal, internal bleeding is a different matter. Internal bleeding may produce relatively minor symptoms until it suddenly becomes life-threatening.

Abdominal pain or swelling could be symptomatic of internal bleeding, so if you’re experiencing these symptoms, you should visit the emergency room immediately. Other internal bleeding symptoms include bruising, dizziness, and fainting. Again, if you are experiencing abdominal discomfort or any other post-crash symptoms, please don’t hesitate to seek medical attention right away.

A crash with a semi-truck is one of the most traumatic events most of us could ever experience. Many victims of these violent collisions suffer with post-traumatic stress disorder. Symptoms of PTSD include nightmares, flashbacks, anger, an inability to cope with daily life, and an increased fear of driving.

PTSD is nothing to be ashamed of — confronting it takes bravery. So, if you feel you might be dealing with PTSD (or any mental or emotional difficulties) after a wreck, please contact a trusted psychiatrist or other mental health professional. A qualified expert can diagnose the problem and create a treatment plan to help manage the issues you’re experiencing.

7 FAQs About Truck Wrecks and Victims’ Rights

Visit a Medical Profession Immediately Following a Semi-Truck Crash

All of the symptoms and injuries listed above can have severe and lasting effects on your physical, mental, and emotional health. If you’re experiencing pain, mood swings, cognitive issues, or discomfort following a semi-truck crash, you should make an appointment to visit your primary care physician for a thorough exam. Depending on your symptoms, your doctor can refer you to a specialist for further treatment and prescribe appropriate medication.

After you’ve received medical treatment, contact an experienced truck accident lawyer as soon as possible. A skilled attorney can investigate the causes of the crash, protect your rights, and fight to get you the justice and compensation you deserve.

Contact Seattle Truck Law Today If You’ve Been Hurt in a Trucking Accident

If you or a loved one has been injured in a crash involving a large truck or bus, please contact Morgan Adams and the Seattle Truck Law team today. We’ll listen to your story and advise you about your legal options during a free consultation. When you choose us to represent you, we’ll investigate all the causes of the crash that injured you and pursue every available option to get you the compensation you deserve.

To schedule your free initial consultation today, please call 

complete our quick and easy online contact form

. The sooner you reach out, the sooner we can move to preserve evidence and make sure your rights are protected, so call us right away if you need help.

The content provided here is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject.

6 Hidden Injuries to Look Out for After a Semi Truck Crash

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has announced upcoming changes to Hours of Service rules for truckers. These changes will take place on September 29, 2020, and they are designed to give drivers greater flexibility and control over their schedules. However, the changes also put ordinary drivers at 

significant risk for a deadly truck wreck

Hours of Service rules determine the maximum number of hours that a trucker can drive before they’re legally required to take a break, and these rules are a critical piece of what it takes to keep our roads safe. Keep reading to find out more about the upcoming changes.

How the Hours of Service Rules Are Changing

The Hours of Service (HOS) rules exist to ensure that drivers have adequate time to rest, relax, and recharge. The upcoming changes supposedly give drivers more flexibility. But the reality is that the existing HOS rules are based on decades of careful study into how long truckers can drive without becoming dangerously fatigued, and any change that relaxes those rules is cause for concern.

Here are the changes coming to a highway near you.

On-duty limits for short-haul operations will increase from 12 to 14 hours and from 100 air-miles to 150.

Truckers can drive up to two more hours in bad conditions.

In addition to an 8/2 split for the required 10 hours of rest, drivers now have an option for a 7/3 split.

Rest break will now be required after eight hours of driving time instead of eight hours of on-duty time. Also, periods where the driver is on-duty but not driving will count toward required rest breaks.

While advocates of the HOS changes say they give drivers more ownership and flexibility about when they drive, the new rules don’t do enough to prioritize safety. The new HOS rules go against our best information about how to fight truck driver fatigue and give unsafe companies more options to push drivers beyond their limits.

Plenty of highway safety advocates have lined up to protest the HOS changes. In June, The Teamsters joined the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways, Parents Against Tired Truckers, and the Truck Safety Coalition to petition the FMCSA to reconsider the changes.

“The weakening of the hours-of-service rules will undoubtedly endanger the lives of truck drivers and the citizens with whom they share the roads every day,” the organizations wrote in their joint petition. “Despite claims that these revisions will empower drivers to make independent choices to address fatigue more efficiently, the repeated mention of traffic, foul weather, and detention time belies this claim as the agency’s actual justification for this proposed change to the hours-of-service rules.”

While all of the changes are likely to contribute to more truck crashes, the worst change is probably the new, lax rule about driving in bad weather and other conditions. Driving in poor conditions is extremely stressful and draining for a truck driver. Stress causes people to fatigue more quickly, which increases the risk of making a mistake behind the wheel. And when you’re driving an 80,000 pound, fully loaded semi-truck and trailer in bad weather, there is no room for error.

The decision to add another sleeper split also makes little sense. The current 8/2 split rule already causes confusion and HOS violations, and adding another split option further complicates what should be a simple, sensible requirement for 10-hour rest breaks.

Do Truck Companies Pressure Drivers to Break the Law?

Fatigue Is a Common Cause of Truck Wrecks

The HOS rules were designed to fight truck driver fatigue, and loosening those rules is likely to increase the number of dangerously fatigued truckers on our roads. According to a study by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (the same body that sets the hours of service laws), 87% of large truck crashes are caused at least in part by driver error. In the study, the FMCSA defined the most common errors as poor decision-making, failure to recognize a dangerous situation, and failing to perform adequately while behind the wheel. All of these errors are impacted by fatigue; the more tired a driver is, the more likely they are to make these kinds of mistakes and cause a deadly collision.

Hurt in a Crash With a Semi-Truck in Washington? Call Seattle Truck Law

At Seattle Truck Law, we have years of experience fighting and winning on behalf of truck crash victims. Not only do we fight tooth and nail to make sure victims have the financial resources they need to recover, but we also advocate for safe driving laws that protect drivers like you on Washington roads.

When you work with Seattle Truck Law, you can expect compassionate but aggressive legal representation that includes investigating every possible cause of the crash. To schedule your free consultation with an experienced truck wreck attorney, call Seattle Truck Law today at 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (2007). 

The Large Truck Crash Causation Study – Analysis Brief.

 Washington, DC: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Retrieved from 

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety/research-and-analysis/large-truck-crash-causation-study-analysis-brief

Schremmer, M. (2020, August 7). FMCSA plans to roll out new HOS rules on Sept. 29. 

https://landline.media/fmcsa-plans-to-roll-out-new-hos-rules-on-sept-29/

Trucking Hours of Service Regulations Are Changing Again — and Not for the Better

Truck Wreck Justice is the online home of Truck Wreck Justice, a personal injury law firm with a primary focus on large truck litigation.

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