West Hartford Truck Accident Lawyer
If you have been injured in a truck accident in West Hartford, Connecticut, you deserve an experienced lawyer. The skilled legal team at Kennedy, Johnson, Schwab & Roberge, P.C., is here to help.
Table of Contents
- West Hartford Truck Accident Lawyers You Can Trust
- How Truck Accidents in West Hartford Are Different
- What To Do After a Truck Accident in West Hartford
- Who Is Liable in a Truck Accident in West Hartford, CT?
- What Compensation Can You Recover After a Truck Accident?
- How Long Do I Have To File a Truck Accident Lawsuit in West Hartford?
- How We Help West Hartford Truck Accident Victims
- Why Choose Kennedy Johnson Schwab & Roberge?
- Speak With a West Hartford Truck Accident Lawyer Today
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
West Hartford Truck Accident Lawyers You Can Trust
Truck accidents are frightening and disorienting. Given the weight and size of the vehicles involved, the injuries can be severe and life-changing, with serious impacts on your physical, emotional, and financial well-being. You are likely overwhelmed, struggling with pain, and confused about what comes next.
At Kennedy, Johnson, Schwab & Roberge, P.C., our trusted attorneys have decades of experience helping Connecticut truck accident victims seek compensation for their injuries. We have handled numerous commercial vehicle and personal injury cases across the state and are committed to fighting for your rights.
As an established West Hartford truck accident law firm, we have earned our reputation for strong client advocacy and success in the courtroom. If you have been hurt in a semi-truck crash, our Connecticut attorneys are ready to be your advocates.
How Truck Accidents in West Hartford Are Different
Catastrophic injuries are particularly likely in tractor-trailer collisions, given the size and weight of these vehicles. In addition, determining liability for truck crashes is usually more complicated than for car accidents. It’s typically not just a driver who’s responsible. Multiple parties, including the trucking company, cargo loader, and more, play a role in the truck’s operations. There may be federal and state regulations and overlapping insurance coverage involved.
Countless commercial trucks pass through West Hartford every day. Interstate 84 and state highway 44 are popular trucking routes, and the town’s many businesses depend on truck deliveries to serve their customers.
The town’s economic development coordinator reports 6,707 active registered businesses, 900 having registered in 2024 alone. Therefore, there’s a high volume of truck traffic and a significant potential for 18-wheeler crashes in this part of Connecticut, especially given the town’s history of serious crashes.
West Hartford’s town council reports that the number of crashes involving serious injuries increased by 50 percent in 2024, making it the worst year on record for fatal and severe injury crashes. Our experienced semi-truck accident lawyers are here to provide expert representation.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents in West Hartford
While road conditions and weather contribute to some accidents, human error and negligence can also increase the risk. Frequent causes of semi-truck crashes in West Hartford include the following:
- Speeding and aggressive driving: Truck drivers can be under significant pressure to reach their destinations on time or complete more deliveries. This can lead to dangerous choices behind the wheel.
- Driver fatigue: Spending too much time on the road without a break can increase the chance of an accident. It also violates federal regulations for driver service hours. Commercial vehicles have strict service hour limits, including a maximum of 11 hours of driving after 10 consecutive off-duty hours. If an accident occurs and the driver has exceeded those limits, they or the company may be liable.
- Distracted driving: According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the most common sources of truck driver distraction include outside activity, cellular phones, reaching for a device or object, and eating or drinking.
- Impaired driving: Nationwide in 2022, the Department of Transportation recorded 86 truck and bus crashes in which drivers had blood alcohol concentrations above 0.08.
- Inadequate vehicle maintenance: Failure to abide by inspection, reporting, and maintenance regulations may make a driver or trucking company liable for an accident.
- Overloaded or improperly secured cargo: Unbalanced cargo and excessive weight can make a truck unstable and harder to control, requiring longer stopping distances.
Common Injuries Truck Accident Victims in West Hartford Face
While any motor vehicle accident can cause severe damage, truck crashes have a higher potential for catastrophic harm. Hospitals in and around West Hartford see many serious truck accident injuries, including the following:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Broken bones
- Burns and lacerations
- Organ damage
- Limb loss
- Spinal cord damage and potential paralysis
These injuries frequently require long-term treatment and may leave patients with significant disabilities. Some individuals lose their ability to live independently or hold a job and may require daily support and care.
Psychological damage is also a risk, particularly for patients involved in more serious accidents. Some individuals develop debilitating anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder.
What To Do After a Truck Accident in West Hartford
What you do shortly after a truck accident matters. Follow these steps to protect your rights:
- Call 911: Report the accident and request an ambulance for any serious injuries or potential fatalities.
- Seek immediate medical attention, even if injuries seem minor: Medical records are essential evidence in a claim.
- Get photos: Take pictures of the scene, including vehicles, injuries, and any relevant road conditions.
- Gather personal information: Exchange contact and insurance details with the truck driver and get witness statements.
- Avoid giving recorded statements to insurers: Insurance companies can twist your words to shift blame for the accident to you and minimize your injuries and losses.
- Contact a lawyer as soon as possible: An experienced West Hartford truck accident attorney can explain your rights and help you seek compensation.
As time passes, essential evidence can become tougher to obtain, and witnesses’ memories fade. The earlier you get an attorney, the more easily they can help you make a claim and build a strong case.
Who Is Liable in a Truck Accident in West Hartford, CT?
Determining fault in a truck accident can be complicated. The parties at fault may include drivers, trucking companies, maintenance providers, manufacturers, cargo loaders, and government entities responsible for road conditions.
Determining Accident Liability
The truck driver may be at fault if their behavior compromised your safety. Intoxicated, distracted, or aggressive driving is often the driver’s fault.Fatigued driving is more complex. For example, the trucking company may be partially responsible if it passively or actively encouraged the driver to ignore service hour rules.
Trucking companies may also be responsible for other safety violations, such as failure to schedule maintenance, poor hiring practices, or policies that violate safety regulations.
Maintenance companies may be responsible for inadequate repair protocols, such as using faulty parts or failing to inspect work. Manufacturers may be similarly liable if their negligence contributed to mechanical failure. The loading team or their employers may be responsible if the truck carried an excessive or poorly secured load that contributed to the accident.
In addition, poor road conditions might result from a government entity’s failure to maintain the road properly.
Shared Truck Accident Liability in Connecticut
Other drivers may also be responsible for a truck accident. Connecticut law allows you to recover compensation if your share of the fault does not exceed the other party’s. However, your compensation will be reduced in proportion to your share of the blame. For example, if you are 25 percent at fault, you would receive 75 percent of your compensation.
What Compensation Can You Recover After a Truck Accident?
Potential clients often ask us, “How much is my truck accident case worth?”
The answer is different for every plaintiff. Truck accident compensation in West Hartford depends on various factors, including the nature and severity of your injury, treatment costs, long-term financial impacts, the impacts on your quality of life, the strength of your case, and your share of the blame.
Health care costs may be a significant portion of your claim, particularly if your injuries are severe. You can claim compensation for emergency care, initial treatment, and ongoing medical costs, including rehabilitation and long-term support. If you lost work hours or have a reduced earning capacity due to your injuries, it may be possible to claim that lost income as well.
Non-economic impacts like pain and suffering, emotional trauma, and loss of enjoyment of life activities also affect the compensation you’ll receive. You’ll be entitled to greater compensation if your injuries severely impact your daily life.
If you lost a loved one in a truck accident, you may file a wrongful death claim. These can include the victim’s medical costs, end-of-life expenses, funeral costs, and loss of companionship. Talk to a West Hartford commercial vehicle accident attorney to learn more.
How Long Do I Have To File a Truck Accident Lawsuit in West Hartford?
Under Connecticut’s statute of limitations, you have two years to file most West Hartford truck accident claims. The clock usually starts running on the accident date, unless you discovered the injury after that date and did not have reasonable cause to notice it earlier.
The statute of limitations begins on the date of discovery in those situations. However, you must still file within three years of the accident.
The legal deadline for filing a truck accident claim in Connecticut may be shorter if your case involves a government entity, such as the department that owns a municipal vehicle or maintains the roads. In these situations, you must file a notice to sue within one year. If the state grants permission, you have one year to sue.
Missing the filing deadline results in losing your right to recover damages. It’s important to contact an attorney as soon as possible so you have plenty of time to gather evidence and build a strong case.
How We Help West Hartford Truck Accident Victims
Our attorneys and legal team combine compassionate service with an unwavering commitment to justice. We take a hands-on, client-first approach to the practice of law, providing personalized representation to every client who works with us.
You don’t have to settle for less compensation than you are owed. Let Kennedy, Johnson, Schwab & Roberge fight to get you a just payout that will help address your losses.
Our West Hartford semi-truck accident lawyers aggressively pursue full compensation for injured victims, helping them to seek the damages they need to heal and move forward. Compensation for each case is different, but one thing remains the same.
In addition, you don’t have to worry about affording our high-quality representation because we work on a contingency fee basis. We do not charge any upfront fees, and you don’t pay us anything unless we win.
Why Choose Kennedy Johnson Schwab & Roberge?
Clients choose Kennedy Johnson Schwab & Roberge, P.C., for our effective and vigorous representation and personalized client service. We prepare each case with meticulous attention and have earned a reputation for securing significant settlements and verdicts for our clients. Our significant financial recoveries extend into the seven-figure range, including $17 million for a family suing a Greenwich hospital.
Our firm has been part of the Connecticut communities we serve since 1988. We have received numerous honors and recognitions, including multiple listings in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.
Our award-winning attorneys include John J. Kennedy Jr., who Best Lawyers recently honored as the 2024 Lawyer of the Year for medical malpractice and product liability plaintiff litigation. Firm partners Stephanie Z. Roberge and Patrick Kennedy have also received multiple honors, including recognition by Best Lawyers in America as two of the nation’s top personal injury attorneys. Partner Patrick Kennedy was named one of the Best Lawyers in America for personal injury cases. Additionally, Robert Schwab, Louis Annecchino, Brendan K. Nelligan, Michael Kennedy, and Isabelle L. Koch were all included in the 2025 Best Lawyers in America list for their outstanding work in personal injury litigation.
We are proud to have earned numerous five-star awards and are grateful for the client testimonials we have received touting the professional and responsive representation they received. Our clients keep coming back. Many satisfied clients have turned to us again and again when matters require legal action.
Speak With a West Hartford Truck Accident Lawyer Today
If you have been injured in a truck accident, let the team at KJSR fight hard for you. Contact us today or call 203-865-8430 to schedule your free consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What Types of Trucks Are Commonly Involved in Accidents in West Hartford?
Truck accident crashes in West Hartford often involve commercial semi-trucks, box trucks, dump trucks, and delivery vehicles. Delivery vehicle crashes include vans and trucks driving for Amazon, FedEx, and UPS.
Should I Speak to the Insurance Company After a Truck Accident?
It’s best to avoid giving statements to an insurer without first speaking with a West Hartford big rig accident attorney. Trucking companies have savvy lawyers and insurance representatives who may try to blame you for the accident, convince you to waive your rights, or undervalue your settlement.
Do Truck Accident Cases Go to Trial?
Most cases in West Hartford settle, but our tractor-trailer accident lawyers always fully prepare cases for trial. This allows us to pursue the maximum value for your settlement.
What if I Was Partially at Fault for the Accident?
Connecticut allows you to recover even if you are partially at fault, provided you share no more than 50 percent of the blame.
How Long Does a Truck Accident Case Usually Take To Resolve?
Timelines vary based on the severity of your injuries and the complexity of your case. Many cases resolve in a few months, but serious cases can take over a year due to prolonged negotiations or trials. Consult with an 18-wheeler accident lawyer in West Hartford to learn more.
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15 N. Main Street #100 Suite 217
West Hartford, CT 06107
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