San Francisco Truck Accident Lawyer
Callaway & Wolf is a San Francisco truck accident law firm that understands how a serious truck accident can completely disrupt your life. You could be coping with significant physical injuries, emotional trauma, high medical expenses, vehicle damage, and lost wages. Callaway & Wolf can be part of the team that helps you recover and regain control of your life.
Truck accidents are often more complex than regular car crashes due to the size and weight of the vehicles involved, as well as the numerous parties who may be at fault. Whether it’s a negligent truck driver, a trucking company cutting corners, or poor vehicle maintenance, we are here to help you hold those responsible accountable for your injuries.
This page outlines how our lawyers in San Francisco can step in to support you if you feel those responsible for the truck accident are not fulfilling their obligations, and help ensure you get the compensation you deserve across San Francisco, CA.
Truck Accident Law Firm Serving All Courts in San Francisco, California
Callaway & Wolf is a San Francisco truck accident law firm that knows how overwhelming a truck accident can be. You may be dealing with serious physical injuries, emotional trauma, sky-high medical bills, vehicle damage, and lost income. Callaway & Wolf can be part of the team that helps you piece your life back together.
Callaway & Wolf specializes in representing truck accident victims throughout San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area. Our office is located at 1388 Sutter St., Suite 1010, San Francisco, CA 94109. If you or a loved one were seriously injured due to the negligence of a truck driver, trucking company, or any other party, we are here to help you obtain the financial compensation you need to move forward.
If you or a family member has been injured in a serious truck accident, contact Callaway & Wolf at 415-541-0300 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation. Let us handle the legal details, so you can focus on recovering and getting your life back on track.
Recent Review:
“Boone Callaway and the team at Callaway & Wolf have been great to work with: supportive, professional, and successful in helping me through a personal injury claim. I would highly recommend them.” – Gerhard Z.
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Causes of Truck Accidents with Pedestrians
In accidents in which cars or pedestrians are struck by large trucks, the physics of a very massive vehicle striking a person or passenger car mean that the impact force is much more than normal, resulting in greater injuries. Even a very low-speed impact from a very heavy vehicle can cause severe damage. The extra mass in trucks also makes them much slower to stop than a passenger car. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) require tractor-trailer trucks to be able to stop within 335 feet from a speed of 60 M.P.H. This is much longer than the average stopping speed for a passenger car.
The heavier a truck is, the longer its stopping distance will be. Thus, to avoid injury accidents, trucks need to allow significantly longer following distances. Particularly in the San Francisco Bay Area, where freeways are crowded, though, many truck injury accidents result from truck drivers failing to allow enough distance between their vehicles and traffic ahead.
Additional Factors in Trucking Collisions
In addition to long stopping distances, large trucks have massive blind spots, further increasing the number of truck injury accidents. Another factor in many injury truck accidents is driver fatigue. In a truck injury case, investigation into the driver’s schedule and time behind the wheel can be important in proving negligence. There are Federal rules governing the time that long-haul truck drivers may work. These rules restrict the hours of work, limiting time on the road, and mandating a certain amount of rest within any 24-hour period.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has compiled Heavy Truck Research here.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Rules for Truckers
Specifically, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s rules limit commercial motor vehicle drivers to 11 cumulative hours driving in a 14-hour period, after which drivers must have a rest period of at least10 consecutive hours. Drivers working in “daily operation” cannot work more than 70 hours within any 8-day period. In a truck accident case where driver fatigue is a suspected factor, it is important to obtain the 24-hour logbook, showing all the driver’s work and rest times. Federal law requires drivers to keep the logs, which can be subpoenaed or obtained by a document request in legal discovery.
Fortunately, regulations also require operators of large trucks to carry ample insurance, never less than $1,000,000, and often far more. Thus, recovery is rarely limited by inadequate insurance, as it can be in injury accidents involving cars.
What’s the Statute of Limitations in California for Truck Accidents?
In general, the statute of limitations in California for filing a case for injuries caused by an truck accident is two years from the date of the injury. In cases where the truck was owned or operated by a public entity, such as a the state, a city or county, a formal written claim must be filed with the appropriate public entity within six months of the date of the incident.
Contact one of our Truck Accident Lawyers
If you or someone you know has been hurt in a semi-truck accident you should contact an experienced attorney at Callaway & Wolf, so an investigation can be conducted immediately, evidence can be secured and documented, and witnesses can be located.
Our San Francisco big rig accident attorneys have experience handling truck injury cases and are here to answer any questions you may have. Contact us for a free consultation about your case online, or call 415-541-0300.
