New Jersey Truck Accident Lawyer

New Jersey applies its own rules: a two-year filing deadline for most injury claims; recovery only if your fault is not greater than the defendants’ combined; PIP from the policy that applies to you; and, where the lawsuit limitation applies to both the injured person and the defendant’s vehicle, pain and suffering only for listed serious injuries. Federal safety rules apply to covered carriers in both states. Which state’s law governs is checked case by case.

Generally two years after an injury claim accrues and two years from the date of death for a wrongful death claim. If a public entity may share responsibility, for example for a road or work-zone condition, a written notice of claim is generally due within 90 days of accrual. Federal record-retention periods are only minimums, and a carrier on notice of a claim may have to keep evidence longer, so a preservation demand should go out early.

It is the limitation on lawsuit option on New Jersey auto policies. Whether it applies depends on the injured person’s policy and on whether the defendant’s vehicle is one the statute protects; a commercial truck may not be. Where it applies, pain and suffering is recoverable only for death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement or scarring, a displaced fracture, loss of a fetus, or a permanent injury, with a physician certification. Economic losses beyond PIP can be claimed either way.

Depending on the facts: the driver; the motor carrier that employed or dispatched the driver, including for hiring, training, supervision or maintenance; the company that loaded the cargo; a maintenance or repair shop; the maker of a defective part; other motorists; and a public entity for a dangerous road condition, subject to the Tort Claims Act. Each defendant’s share of fault is decided by the jury.

PIP on the policy that applies to you generally pays medical bills first. From the responsible parties you can claim medical expenses and lost earnings PIP did not cover, loss of earning capacity, and pain and suffering, subject to any lawsuit limitation that applies. If someone died, the family may bring wrongful death and survival claims. Punitive damages require clear and convincing proof of actual malice or wanton and willful disregard; even gross negligence is not enough.

If you were in a car, PIP on the policy that applies to you, usually your own or a resident relative’s, pays medical expenses regardless of fault: on a standard policy, $250,000 unless a lower amount was elected, with a statutory exception for certain serious injuries. PIP does not pay pain and suffering. The trucking company’s liability insurance answers for the rest. Federal rules set minimum coverage for many interstate carriers, but a minimum is not a measure of any claim.

Major New Jersey freight corridors include the New Jersey Turnpike, whose dual-roadway sections direct trucks and buses to the outer lanes, Interstates 80, 287, 78 and 95, the roads serving the ports at Newark and Elizabeth, and state highways such as Routes 46 and 17. Crashes also happen at warehouse driveways and in work zones. The location matters most for who maintained the road and what video exists.

Truck cases usually involve a carrier with its own investigators, records whose federal retention periods are only minimums, several possible defendants and larger insurance policies. A lawyer sends preservation demands quickly, obtains the driver’s logs and the electronic data, and coordinates the claim with your PIP and any lawsuit limitation. The consultation is free and there is no fee unless there is a recovery.

Call 911 and get medical care. If you can, photograph the truck, its trailer and any USDOT number on the cab, the scene and your injuries, and get witness names. Do not discuss fault with the driver or sign anything from the carrier. Get the police report number, open your PIP claim, and call us so preservation letters reach the carrier early.

It depends on the injury and its permanence, whether your tort option allows a pain-and-suffering claim, medical costs beyond PIP, lost income, any share of fault assigned to you, and the insurance available from every responsible party. We do not quote values before the medical picture and the evidence are known, and past results do not predict another case.