At the heart of The Big Apple, Manhattan is home to many residents, businesses and venues. The commuting workforce and tourists boost the number of people in Manhattan at any given time. Large trucks transport cargo and equipment to various destinations and play an integral part in Manhattan’s economy.
Unfortunately, truck accidents often have devastating consequences. Although Manhattan only covers 22.83 square miles, you might be surprised at how many truck accidents happen in this borough.
How Many Truck Accidents Happen in Manhattan?
The New York Police Department publishes monthly motor vehicle collision reports. For the 12-month period ending February 29, 2024, there were 15,982 collisions in Manhattan.
The NYPD categorizes large commercial vehicles as those with six or more tires; a staggering 1,385 of Manhattan’s collisions involved this type of vehicle. This translates to an average of 115 large truck accidents every month, nearly four per day.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s 2022 crash summary for New York reports that 6,878 collisions happened statewide. These crashes caused 123 fatalities and 4,854 injuries.
A single truck accident can have far-reaching implications, often resulting in severe injuries and even fatalities. If you or a loved one have been affected by a truck collision, contact Cellino Law today. We can assist you in securing the compensation you deserve.
Why Are Truck Accidents So Dangerous?
A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. The average length is 72 feet, with a height of 13.5 feet and a width of 8.5 feet. Passenger vehicles are significantly smaller and weigh much less than trucks.
When a truck collides with a car, especially at higher speeds, its weight creates an extremely high impact force. This force can crush smaller vehicles and their occupants, push or drag cars and cause much more severe injuries.
Do You Have To Hire a Truck Accident Lawyer?
You don’t have to hire an attorney to help with your truck accident claim, but we can usually obtain significantly more compensation for you than if you handled your case alone.
When you hire a truck accident attorney from Cellino Law, we want to make your claims process as easy as possible for you while we fight to uphold your best interests. We will:
- Offer legal advice and explain relevant information
- Take care of case-related administrative tasks, such as completing and filing all necessary paperwork on your behalf
- Handle all communications with insurance company representatives
- Thoroughly investigate your accident, gathering evidence to hold the at-fault parties accountable
- Negotiate a favorable settlement offer or file a civil lawsuit and take your case to court
Truck accident claims have several potential complications, and most people lack the experience and legal knowledge necessary to reach a favorable outcome.
What Are Some of the Potential Complications With Manhattan Truck Accident Claims?
Most truck accident claims include at least one of these complications that you’ll have to deal with yourself if you don’t have competent legal representation.
Claim Valuation
You won’t know if a settlement offer is fair if you don’t know the value of your case. There are various economic and non-economic damages to consider. Insurance companies are aware of how much you might obtain, but they usually offer significantly less.
Economic damages reimburse you for truck accident-related expenses, such as medical bills, lost wages, replacement services and property damage. Non-economic damages compensate you for how the accident and your injuries affect your quality of life; these include pain and suffering, losing your ability to enjoy life, damage to personal relationships and PTSD. In rare cases, you might also receive punitive damages.
Your Cellino Law legal team will assess your claim and tell you how much compensation you should receive. We will then pursue the maximum amount on your behalf.
Government Agency Involvement
Various government agencies own or operate vehicles. They are also responsible for designing and maintaining roads, ensuring that traffic signals operate properly and similar project management.
When a government agency’s negligence contributes to causing an accident, you can file a claim for compensation. However, these cases have more requirements, stricter protocols and shorter filing deadlines.
Insurance Company Reluctance To Pay
Insurance companies are notorious for trying to avoid paying valid claims. They often try multiple strategies to accomplish that goal, including intentionally offering much less than you deserve, assigning an undeserved degree of fault to you, tricking you into signing binding legal documents that relinquish your rights and even denying claims outright.
Because damages in truck accident claims are usually high, liable insurers are even more reluctant to pay. However, you don’t have to accept initial settlement offers, more than your fair share of liability or claim denials.
Multiple Liable Parties
Unlike most passenger vehicles, a commercial truck has multiple parties that might be liable when the truck causes an accident. An investigation may reveal that the driver, trucking company, parts or truck manufacturers, cargo loader or truck maintenance company share blame.
Pure Comparative Negligence
New York follows pure comparative negligence statutes when more than one party shares the blame for causing a motor vehicle accident. You can seek compensation even if you are 99% at fault, but there’s a catch. Your percentage of fault lowers your payout.
If you are 15% responsible for your truck accident, you can only receive 85% of your total damages. Refusing to accept more fault for your accident is critical because it directly impacts your settlement amount.
Proving Negligence
Accusing the truck of causing your accident isn’t enough to make the responsible party pay. You need evidence to prove negligence.
As the foundation for most personal injury claims, negligence refers to failing to act as a reasonable person would in the same situation. To prove negligence, you must show that:
- Someone owed you a duty of care.
- That party breached their duty of care.
- You sustained injuries.
- Your injuries and related damages are a direct result of the breach.
If more than one party shares the blame, you must prove negligence for each.
Statute of Limitations
A personal injury claim, such as those involving truck accidents, usually starts by filing an insurance claim. Each insurance company has deadlines and procedures to follow. The claims process is often lengthy because investigations, gathering supporting evidence and settlement negotiations can take a lot of time when done properly.
A statute of limitations is a deadline for filing a civil lawsuit. In New York, the standard statute of limitations is three years from the date of your truck accident. However, some exceptions may apply that decrease this filing deadline.
It’s usually better to reach a favorable settlement agreement through negotiations, but you don’t need to wait too long to file a lawsuit if insurance companies refuse to offer reasonable compensation for your damages. Once the statute of limitations passes, you usually lose your right to file a lawsuit.
How Can Cellino Law Help With Your Manhattan Truck Accident Claim?
When Cellino Law is on the job, we won’t let insurance companies take advantage of you. The original Cellino Law Firm was founded in 1958, so we have decades of experience and proven results. We have helped others with over $2 billion in settlements, recovering millions more. You need an experienced advocate to protect your best interests, and Cellino Law is waiting to assist you.
Contact Cellino Law today to request your free case evaluation. Someone is available to speak with you 24/7. We don’t ask for upfront fees, and you don’t pay unless we win.