An accident can leave you with serious injuries, large medical bills, and a car that can take several days to repair. If you have suffered an accident with a commercial vehicle, who do you sue for damages? What happens in the event that the company itself cannot be sued?
Who is the owner of the truck?
While your first inclination may be to sue the company that has your name and logo plastered on the truck, that company may not actually own the truck. In many cases, a fleet of trucks may be owned or operated by an independent company, which may be the distributor of goods on behalf of a separate entity with which it is contracted to do business. In other cases, a driver may be a self-employed trucker who owns and operates his own truck. Before he can sue, he must find out which entity is ultimately responsible for the accident.
What insurance company?
Another level of the equation has to do with what type of insurance policy was in effect at the time of the accident. Businesses can choose to cover their vehicles under a single commercial auto insurance policy. However, some companies will not provide that type of coverage for their drivers. Therefore, you may need to go after the individual driver’s insurance company.
Who has the deep pockets?
In any type of lawsuit, you may be able to sue one of the parties if they are deemed to be the deep pockets of the case. For example, if a truck driver was delivering goods to a major grocery store, a judge may allow them to go after that grocery store if they have more money than the truck driver.
Your ability to pursue other parties depends on the exact facts of your case and whether a court believes the deep pocket should have been careful. For example, if the grocer hired a driver who had a poor driving record, it could be argued that the company should have known that an accident was possible.
Contact an attorney immediately
Your best bet is to hire an attorney who understands the law and your rights during an accident case. In some states, you have five years to bring a case to court. In addition to the statute of limitations, there may be corporate laws you need to worry about. If your car is hit by a self-employed commercial driver, you may be limited to going after corporate assets if that driver uses a corporate business structure. However, he would be entitled to pursue all of his business and personal assets if the driver were a sole proprietor.
Any time you are hit by a commercial vehicle, you need to determine who owns the vehicle in question and which insurance company is obligated to pay any claims that are filed. Your attorney will be able to help you sort out the facts in your case to ensure that he or she receives adequate compensation.
