Sumter Truck Accident Lawyers

You Have One Shot at Justice. Our reputable truck accident team is here to help you fight back. Get the compassionate, honest, and genuine legal care you deserve.

If you or a loved one was involved in an accident with a truck, it’s important to hire a lawyer who is experienced with the state and federal trucking rules and regulations. Due to their large size, weight, and longer stopping times and distances, trucks are governed by a specific set of rules put forth by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Our law firm has recovered many multi-million dollar results for clients throughout South Carolina who have been impacted by truck accidents.

The truck accident attorneys at Cavanaugh & Thickens, LLC have the experience and resources needed to advocate for you. After a trucking accident, the other side will get started right away. Our team will stand beside you and protect you. Reach out to our team today at (803) 888-2200 for a free case evaluation. 

Important Takeaways:

1. Truck accident law is different from passenger motor vehicle accidents, so who you hire really matters.
2. Liability in truck accident cases can be very complicated with multiple at-fault parties, and hiring an attorney protects your rights.
3. Critical evidence in truck accident cases can disappear quickly, a lawyer helps ensure evidence is gathered and preserved properly.

On This Page:

• Compensation Available After a Truck Accident
• Who is Legally Responsible for a Truck Accident?
• Statute of Limitations in Truck Accident Cases
• How a Truck Accident Lawyer Helps Your Case
• Cavanaugh & Thickens, LLC: Our Truck Accident Results

Compensation Available After a Truck Accident

After a truck accident, you may qualify for significant compensation. Depending on the specifics and severity of the accident, you may qualify for:

Economic Damages

Economic damages account for financial losses you’ve suffered as a result of the accident. These have a direct monetary value and can add up very quickly after a truck wreck.

This includes compensation for:

• Past, Present, and Future Medical Bills: surgery costs, emergency care, prescription medication costs, doctor and specialist visits, and all other related medical expenses.
• Rehabilitation Costs: all costs related to your injury treatment such as physical therapy.
• Future Care Needs: based on long-lasting or permanent injuries.
• Lost Wages: due to time missed from work.
• Reduced Earning Capacity: if you cannot return to the same job.
• Property Damage: for vehicles and personal belongings.
• Other Out-Of-Pocket Financial Losses: travel expenses, rental car costs, and more.

If the accident resulted in loss of life, we are so sorry. In this case, the economic damages will also include any related medical care costs incurred prior to the loss, funeral costs, lost future earnings, retirement and health benefits, and other monetary value and services they would be providing.  

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages account for the losses that resulted from the accident that do not have a direct monetary value.

This includes compensation for:

• Pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Lost enjoyment of life
• Permanent disfigurement
• Loss of consortium, and more.

If the accident resulted in wrongful death, non-economic damages can include things like grief, pain, emotional distress, loss of companionship, loss of support, and more.

Punitive Damages

In some cases, you may also qualify to receive punitive damages. These are unique in that they are not meant to compensate you for your losses. Instead, they are designed to punish the defendant for any reckless or illegal behaviors that led to the accident. For example, in truck accident cases, punitive damages may be available if the accident involved:

• Driving under the influence
• Failure to follow FMCSA laws and regulations, such as Hours Of Service regulations
• Purposefully ignoring safety concerns, or other gross negligence or willful misconduct.  

To learn more about what you may be entitled to following a truck accident in Sumter, reach out to our team today. We’re here to listen to you, investigate your accident, and fight to get you the best outcome possible for your case and future.

Who is Legally Responsible for a Truck Accident?

Many times, after a thorough investigation, we find multiple parties at-fault for an accident. This can include, but is not limited to:

• The truck driver
• The trucking company
• The owner of the trailer
• Vehicle manufacturers
• The people who loaded the truck
• Maintenance companies, and more.

In South Carolina, you prove liability by proving negligence pursuant to state law. Our lawyers do this by proving that:

1. The at-fault party owed you a duty of care
2. They breached that duty
3. That breach caused your accident, injuries, and resulting damages.

Statute of Limitations in Truck Accident Cases

In Sumter and throughout South Carolina, you generally have three years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury claim. However, it’s critical to act fast following a truck accident to preserve critical evidence such as black box data, driver logs, inspection reports, and other data. Many trucking companies only hold on to important documents for a few months, so it’s critical your lawyer has time to obtain and preserve that evidence as soon as possible.

How a Truck Accident Lawyer Helps Your Case

There are many benefits to hiring an experienced truck accident attorney. Our team fights to get clients the best possible outcome for their case and future so you can focus on healing and moving forward. 

There are a few main ways a lawyer will help you and your trucking case following an unexpected accident:

Thorough Investigation

Immediately after a truck accident, the trucking company and its insurance company will start building their defense. It’s critical you have someone on your side protecting your rights and fighting for you. 

With our team on your side, you can expect us to conduct a thorough investigation into the accident. We will look into the driver involved, the state of the driver at the time of the accident, who loaded the truck, whether or not the truck was loaded properly, discover if the truck was properly maintained, analyze log books, uncover any log discrepancies or issues, interpret black box data, and much more.

Gather Evidence

Evidence in a truck accident case can quickly disappear without an experienced attorney on your side ensuring that evidence is preserved. Our team will begin work immediately identifying evidence that can be critical to your case, such as engine control module data, dash camera footage, driver logs, driver history, witness testimony, security footage, and more. 

Optimize Your Claim

Using this evidence, your story and how the accident has impacted you, and our decades of combined experience, we will fight to get you the best outcome possible for your case and future. We won’t settle for less than you deserve.

Cavanaugh & Thickens, LLC: Our Truck Accident Results

When an unexpected truck accident affects you or a loved one, you deserve a law firm on your side with vast experience handling trucking accidents to protect you, your rights, and your future. Our team has decades of combined experience handling truck accident cases. We’re here to fight for you with care, compassion, and confidence. 

Our track record of strong truck accident case results include:

• $5,000,000 – Tractor Trailer Accident
• $2,050,000 – Truck Accident
• $2,000,000 – Trucking Case 
• $1,500,000 – Truck Accident
• $1,200,000 – Truck Accident
• $1,100,000 – Trucking Case
• $1,000,000 – Tractor Trailer Accident

To learn more about how our team can help you or a loved one, call our office now at (803) 888-2200, email info@ctlawsc.com or complete our online form and a member of our team will reach out to you shortly.

**Disclaimer: Any result the endorsed lawyer or law firm may achieve on behalf of one client in one matter does not necessarily indicate similar results can be obtained for other clients.

Additional Frequently Asked Questions