What Happens In Accidents Involving Rental Trucks

If you’re involved in an accident while operating a moving truck or van, you should first contact the rental company and inform them of the accident. Your next call should be to a Dallas personal injury attorney. You need experienced truck wreck lawyer Brian Brunson, because in many cases, the insurance company may try to deny a claim or offer you a settlement amount far less than what you deserve for your injuries and/or damages. Accidents involving rental vehicles can be especially tricky and the last thing you want to do is go at it alone. You should be focusing on healing and taking care of your family. If you’ve been injured while driving a rental truck, contact us today for a free consultation.

Some of the more popular truck rental companies include:

• U-Haul
• Penske
• Budget
• Ryder
• Enterprise

Who Can Be Held Liable

When you’re injured by a negligent driver while operating a rental truck, by law you can pursue a claim against the at-fault driver and/or their insurance company. *be advised that if you are injured by someone driving a rental truck, you can file claim against the driver’s insurance company. It may also be possible to seek compensation through the insurance provided by the rental truck company if the driver elected for the insurance coverage. Sometimes this rental insurance is optional and sometimes it’s not. This can get confusing and is just another reason you need an experienced rental truck accident attorney on your side.

If the accident was the result of a mechanical failure on the truck, the rental company may become liable at that point due to their negligence in properly maintaining the vehicle. If the accident was caused by faulty equipment or maintenance, then the driver of the rental truck is likely not liable and therefore the responsibility falls on the hands of the rental truck company.

You May Need To File a Lawsuit

If the rental company’s insurance company denies your claim, or a settlement amount cannot be reached amongst the parties involved, you will likely have to file a lawsuit to seek compensation. Our law firm will take the necessary steps to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve. Lawsuits can be lengthy and stressful, but we, along with other trained professionals can investigate your claim and determine the best course of action. Before filing suit, we will work with you to determine the amount of compensation we intend to seek.

Rental Truck Accidents Can Be Extremely Serious

Similar to 18-wheeler accidents, accidents involving large rental trucks can be highly devastating due to their large size and weight. Most passenger vehicles only weigh a few thousand pounds, while rental trucks can easily weigh 10,000 – 20,000 pounds or more when loaded. In addition to their sheer size and weight, the fact that anyone (often over age 25) with a standard Class C license can rent a large moving truck, there is a high likelihood that the operator of the rental truck is not properly trained or experienced in driving large commercial-type vehicles. This can obviously lead to big problems when it comes to negotiating road obstacles or inclement weather. Large trucks respond differently than smaller cars.

What the Statistics Show Us

According to the National Safety Council (NSC) a total of 4,965 people died in large-truck crashes in 2020. These accidents occur more often than you think. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, roughly 12% of the population moved in a year’s time and many of these moves involve a rental truck. Simply taking into account the number of people on the roads and the number of those who are in the process of moving, you can begin to see why rental truck accidents are so common.

There is some good news. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) the roughly 5,000 fatalities which occurred in 2020 is a 5-percent decrease from 2019.

Contact Us If You’ve Been Injured in a Rental Truck Accident

We proudly serve the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and surrounding areas, our office supports the legal needs of a wide variety of clients. Let the Law Office of Brian Brunson be your advocate in your time of need and help you put your life back together. If we can’t win or settle your case, you don’t pay a dime! We know it can be daunting to take that first step after you’ve been hurt. Contact Brian Brunson today. We can help, when no one else will.