Truck Accident on US Highway 27 in Lake Wales
According to The Ledger, a semi-truck crossed the center line and struck a motorcycle. This crash apparently resulted in a number of other crashes. The motorcyclist was killed by the accident. At least one more fatality has been reported. This accident is still under investigation.
Semi-trucks can do a lot of damage to others on the roadway. In this case, it is unclear why the semi-truck crossed the center line. Perhaps the truck driver fell asleep or just was not paying attention. Nonetheless, that action by the truck driver took two lives and changed many more. Many trucks carry a $1 million bodily injury liability limit or more. The law only requires that truckers carry limits of $300,000 per accident. This means that when there are several injured parties then the parties must split the insurance proceeds any way they can and pursue an excess judgment against the trucker if feasible. There are also instances where the trailer owner will have insurance as well. In those instances, even though the trailer owner bears no direct liability, the driver of the truck becomes an "insured" under the trailer owner's policy and, thus, the trailer owner's policy becomes "excess" over and above what the trucker had. The vast majority of trailers on the roadway are owned by larger corporations who lease them out for tax purposes. That larger corporation, usually a bank, has usually purchased that policy to protect itself from liability.
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury as a result of a truck accident, please see a personal injury or car accident lawyer for free advice. Should you decide to hire a lawyer for your injury case, those cases are normally done on a contingency fee basis meaning that there is no fee or cost unless there is a financial recovery.
