Question: My husband was stopped in a construction zone when he was hit from behind by a big truck. The truck driver admitted that he was eating fries. Because the truck driver did not stop for lunch, my husband is dead. Was this a wrongful death? What happens now? My husband was only 45 years old, a father of three boys and the vice president of a construction company.
Answer by Attorney Eric Hageman: I would have to gather and review the evidence to determine if you have a wrongful death claim against the semi driver and the trucking company. It is very important that we take action as soon as possible to prevent any evidence from being destroyed or modified. With trucking accidents, this requires a specific legal document called a spoliation letter. The spoliation letter puts the trucking company on notice that an accident victim has a claim against the company and that the company is responsible for preserving evidence that may be used to prove that claim. You can contact me about this. Once I have the accident report, it will not take long to get a spoliation letter sent to the trucking company.
Distracted driving is the cause of many, many accidents. Drivers think they can safely eat and drive, but even looking down at your food for a few seconds is dangerous. And if a driver’s mind is on eating, there is a tendency to speed or miss important road signs, like construction zone signs. To get more information about what the driver was doing at the time of the accident, I can “depose” the driver. This means I serve him with papers requiring him to appear at a “deposition”, where I can question him with a court reporter present. Everything said is written down by the court reporter and can be used as evidence.
The amount of money sought in a wrongful death lawsuit should compensate the family for lost income. For example, if the person who died had 20 more years to work and made $100,000.00 per year, a rough estimate of the lost income would be about $2,000,000.00 plus amounts for expected increased yearly income and loss of benefits.
You can talk with me for free by submitting our free consultation form or by calling 1-888-377-8900 (toll free). Ask for Eric. If you want to contact me after business hours or during the weekend, you should submit the free consultation form, and I will respond as quickly as possible. In many cases, it is within the hour.
