Types of Commercial Truck Accident Cases We Handle in SC

Types of Commercial Truck Accident Cases We Handle in South Carolina

At the Lovely Law Firm, we represent the victims of all types of commercial vehicle accidents and understand the devastating impacts they can have on people’s lives.

We are dedicated to protecting the rights of victims who have suffered serious injuries in commercial truck accidents. We handle many types of commercial vehicle accidents, including the following:

Common Types of Truck and Bus Accidents graphic

Regardless of the type of commercial vehicle that struck you, we understand how to investigate truck accident claims in a way that increases the chances that our clients will recover maximum compensation. Here is a short description of each of the types of commercial vehicle accidents that we handle.

18-wheeler accidents

18-wheelers are commercial trucks that are capable of pulling several trailers. These trucks get their names because the tractors have 10 wheels while the trailers have eight. They transport many types of loads, and their weight will be determined by how many trailers are attached.

18-wheeler accidents can be caused by many different things, including driver fatigue, inexperience, poor training, violating safety laws, and maintenance problems.

We work to uncover the underlying causes of 18-wheeler accidents to strengthen their claims and abilities to recover compensation.

Big rig accidents

Big rigs are much heavier than passenger vehicles. Because of their large sizes and weights, they are difficult to safely stop and require greater braking distances. Big rigs have tractors with attached trailers. Accidents involving big rigs might be caused by inadequate training, negligent maintenance, driver negligence, defective components, and other problems.

We understand how to identify the causes of big rig accidents to help our clients hold all of the responsible parties liable.

Bus accidents

Buses are designed in such a way to minimize the chance that the passengers will be killed or injured in accidents. Despite this, people are injured or killed in bus accidents each year, and most of the victims are people in other vehicles. Some of the common causes of bus accidents include the following:

  • Driver distraction
  • Driver fatigue
  • Speeding
  • Driving under the influence
  • Aggressive driving
  • Inadequate training
  • Negligent inspections and repairs
  • Drivers pressured to work long hours

We handle all types of bus accidents, including shuttle bus accidents, school bus accidents, long-distance bus accidents, tour bus accidents, and city bus accidents. We understand the regulations that apply to buses and drivers and know how to investigate these complex accidents.

Cargo truck accidents

Cargo trucks are commercial trucks that are used to haul cargo and include many different types of vehicles. Each year, many accidents that are caused by cargo trucks happen because of improper loading. Improperly loaded cargo can shift during a trip, causing the truck to roll over, jackknife, or spill the load on the road.

The attorneys at the Lovely Law Firm are equipped to handle cargo truck accidents to help our clients to recover the compensation to which they should be entitled.

Concrete truck accidents

Concrete and cement trucks can cause catastrophic injuries and fatalities when they cause accidents. Under the FMCSA weight restrictions, fully-loaded concrete trucks can weigh 24 tons when they are operated on interstates. To get around the weight limits, some drivers try to stay off of interstates and use routes with lower speed limits.

On alternate routes, the drivers may be unfamiliar with the roads. The drivers might also exceed the speed limits to deliver the concrete on time. The weight of a concrete truck makes it more difficult to handle, and it has a greater risk of tipping over.

Our lawyers understand how to investigate accidents involving cement trucks to demonstrate the liability of the drivers.

Construction truck accidents

Many different types of construction trucks can be involved in accidents, including the following:

  • Backhoes
  • Cherry pickers
  • Cranes
  • Graders
  • Excavators
  • Cement mixers

These vehicles may be used on construction sites as well as on the roads to travel to and from construction sites. They have poor visibility and are difficult to maneuver.

Operators who have not been properly trained may place themselves and others at serious risk of injury or death. When accidents involving construction trucks occur, our construction accident attorneys conduct thorough investigations to build strong cases for our clients.

Coal truck accidents

Like other trucking companies, coal mining companies are strictly regulated under federal and state laws. These regulations apply to both the mining operations and the coal trucks that carry coal. When coal trucks cause accidents, there may be more than one liable party.

Our attorneys can work to identify all of the potentially liable parties that should be held accountable for their actions.

Delivery vans

Drivers of delivery vans are frequently expected to make deliveries on strict schedules. Because of the pressure on the drivers to deliver their products on time, they might be tempted to speed and take other risks while they drive. There are many different types of delivery vans and trucks, including the following:

  • FedEx
  • Box trucks
  • UPS
  • Furniture delivery trucks
  • Armored vehicles
  • Mail trucks

If you were injured in an accident caused by a delivery truck or van, the Lovely Law Firm has the experience that you need to hold the drivers and other parties liable to pay damages for your losses.

Dump truck accidents

Dump trucks can carry cargo weighing more than 50 tons and are difficult to operate. When dump trucks cause accidents with passenger vehicles, the smaller vehicles may be crushed. Dump trucks can also cause accidents when gravel, sand, or debris falls from the trucks onto the roads. These trucks have a higher center of gravity and are prone to tipping over when they are involved in accidents.

Our attorneys understand the devastation that dump truck accidents can cause and are dedicated to helping our clients to recover compensation for all of their losses.

Fuel truck accidents

Fuel trucks require their drivers to hold special endorsements on their CDLs to operate them because of the dangers that can occur when they are involved in accidents. Fuel trucks may cause spills and explosions in accidents. These trucks carry liquids or gases in a cylindrical container.

When the fuel trucks move, the liquid can slosh around and cause weight shifts that can make driving more difficult. In a collision, the impact may cause the flammable liquid to ignite and potentially explode. Explosions can result in fatalities, severe burns, and catastrophic injuries.

Garbage truck accidents

Garbage trucks are frequently encountered by people in their neighborhoods and on city streets. Trash trucks kill more pedestrians than other vehicles. Workers on garbage trucks also have a high risk of being seriously injured. Workers can be crushed between moving parts, suffer injuries caused by malfunctioning parts, be run over by the trucks, and other situations.

Most garbage truck crashes are preventable and are caused by malfunctions in the brakes, backup warning systems, loader arm equipment, and driver errors. Trash trucks often operate in the morning hours when people are leaving for school or work.

Logging truck accidents

Logging trucks are used to transport logs for processing. Like other commercial trucks, they can weigh much more than passenger vehicles. Logging trucks often transport logs on flat trailers that are secured with chains. When the trucks are improperly loaded or secured, the logs can fall off the trucks and crash into other vehicles.

The drivers are also susceptible to making similar mistakes as other drivers, including speeding, distracted driving, inattentive driving, aggressive driving, and others. If you are injured in a logging truck accident, the attorneys at the Lovely Law Firm are prepared to help.

Moving van accidents

Moving vans and trucks can range in size from box trucks that are designed to handle single apartments to large semi-trailers that can transport the belongings of people in large households. These vehicles might be operated by people who have rented them to move or by professional moving companies.

Our attorneys can help to identify all of the potential sources of recovery when our clients are injured in accidents involving moving vans or trucks.

Semi-truck accidents

Semi-trucks are combinations of tractors and one or more trailers that are attached behind them. These trucks may be used to transport many different types of cargo and are frequently found on interstates and rural highways.

The attorneys at the Lovely Law Firm thoroughly investigate semi-truck accidents to identify all of the parties that have contributed to the accidents’ causes so that our clients’ recovery rights can be protected.

Steel truck accidents

Steel trucks are large trucks that are used to transport steel. They are commonly used across the East Coast to deliver steel from foundries to manufacturing locations. Steel truck accidents can be catastrophic.

When the steel is not properly secured, the beams can fly off of the trucks in an accident and pierce the cabs of other vehicles. Steel trucks can also crush smaller vehicles, seriously injuring or killing their occupants.

Tanker truck accidents

Like fuel trucks, tanker trucks require their drivers to have special endorsements on their CDLs to drive them. These trucks have cylindrical cargo areas that can be used to haul all types of liquids, including milk, hazardous chemicals, fuel, and others.

Tanker trucks that are involved in accidents may cause spills that can endanger the environment and the health of everyone who is exposed. Flammable liquids can also ignite and explode in an accident.

Tow truck accidents

Tow trucks are used to pick up and haul away disabled vehicles. Accidents involving tow trucks can occur when other vehicles crash into trucks that are parked on the sides of the roads to pick up vehicles. They can also happen when the tow truck drivers merge back into traffic or when the drivers have improperly attached the vehicles that they are towing.

Tow truck accidents can cause serious injuries to people who are involved. Our lawyers fight to protect the rights of our clients who have suffered injuries in tow truck accidents.

Tractor-trailer accidents

Tractor-trailers are combinations of tractors with one or more trailers. They are used to transport a variety of goods across South Carolina and the U.S. Tractor-trailer drivers are often under time pressures to deliver their loads on time, and they may be fatigued from driving for many consecutive hours without adequate sleep.

Our attorneys understand how to investigate tractor-trailer accidents to uncover what led to the collisions so that our clients might recover all of the compensation to which they should be entitled.

Contact the Lovely Law Firm

The attorneys at the Lovely Law Firm have years of experience representing people in Myrtle Beach, the surrounding area, and throughout South Carolina who have suffered serious injuries or have lost loved ones because of the negligence of others in truck accidents.

Contact us today to schedule a free consultation so that you can learn more about your rights. Our commercial truck accident lawyers can be reached at 843.839.4111 or through our online contact form.

Every case is different. Results vary.