What to Do If You Suffer a Brain Injury in a Trucking Crash
Truck accidents often result in some of the most catastrophic injuries. When a large commercial truck collides with a smaller vehicle, the force can cause life-altering trauma, including severe head and brain injuries.
Since March is Brain Injury Awareness Month, it’s important to shed light on the dangers posed by truck accidents. Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are life-threatening and can lead to permanent disabilities that victims may have to cope with for the rest of their lives.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, motor vehicle accidents are responsible for a large portion of all TBIs. A severe brain injury from a truck accident can truly change a person’s life forever.
Why are brain injuries from truck accidents so severe?
A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, which is roughly 20 to 30 times heavier than a typical passenger car. This massive size and weight difference means that in a collision, the smaller vehicle (and the people inside it) will absorb most of the impact. The sheer force of a truck crash can crush a car and inflict violent trauma on occupants.
The human brain is sensitive to sudden forces. In a high-speed truck accident, the impact can make the brain slam against the inside of the skull, causing bruising and bleeding (contusions) or tearing of brain tissue.
What brain injuries can happen in a truck crash?
In a truck accident, victims might sustain anything from a mild concussion to a catastrophic head injury. Some common traumatic brain injuries that occur in serious crashes include:
- Concussions: A mild form of TBI that can cause headaches, confusion, dizziness, and other symptoms.
- Contusions: A contusion is a bruising of the brain tissue, which can cause bleeding and swelling in the brain. Severe contusions may require surgery to relieve pressure.
- Diffuse axonal injury (DAI): One of the most severe TBIs, DAI involves widespread damage to nerve fibers in the brain due to violent shaking or rotation. It often results in loss of consciousness or coma.
- Penetrating or skull fracture injuries: These occur when an object (such as metal debris or broken truck parts) breaks or penetrates the skull, causing direct injury to brain tissue. These injuries often require emergency surgery and can cause life-threatening bleeding (hematomas).
How can a truck accident brain injury change your life?
Unlike a broken bone that heals over time, a severe brain injury from a truck accident can produce lasting or even permanent changes. Survivors of serious TBIs often face significant cognitive challenges. For example, they may have memory loss, difficulty concentrating, or impaired judgment and problem-solving skills.
Physically, a TBI can affect coordination, balance, and strength. Some victims suffer partial paralysis, chronic headaches, or seizures. Emotionally and behaviorally, brain injuries can lead to personality changes, mood swings, depression, or anxiety. A once outgoing and independent individual might struggle with basic daily activities and require assistance for routine tasks.
These life-altering effects of a TBI can make it impossible to return to the life you’ve led before the crash. Many brain injury victims need months or years of rehabilitation therapy, and some never fully recover. In many cases, relationships with family and friends are strained as everyone adjusts to the “new normal” after the injury.
Are brain injuries common in truck accidents?
Major truck crashes are, unfortunately, not rare events. When they happen, serious injuries are very common. Each one of these crashes has the potential to cause a traumatic brain injury to drivers or passengers.
Whenever an 18-wheeler or tractor-trailer collides with a smaller vehicle, the odds of someone suffering a severe brain injury are high. The combination of heavy trucks, high speeds, and highway conditions is a recipe for trauma.
Let us fight for the justice and compensation you deserve
After a serious truck accident resulting in a brain injury, you or your family may be overwhelmed by the challenges ahead. Extensive medical treatments can be costly, and you may be unable to work during your recovery. This means less income coming in just as medical bills are piling up. Meanwhile, trucking companies and their insurance providers go to great lengths to cover up wrongdoing and keep their costs down, even at your expense.
That’s why the Georgia truck accident lawyers at Gary Martin Hays & Associates in Atlanta are committed to helping crash victims level the playing field. Our experienced truck accident attorneys fight relentlessly to obtain justice and maximum compensation for injury victims, so you have the resources to focus on healing. We offer free consultations to explain your legal rights, determine the full value of your claim, and chart the best path forward.
If a negligent truck driver or trucking company caused the accident that left you or a loved one with a brain injury, don’t face the aftermath alone. Our legal team knows how to stand up to these insurance companies and hold them accountable. We can launch a thorough investigation into the crash, gather evidence, and build a strong case that proves who was at fault.
Plus, we work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we win your case. To learn more, contact us today for a free consultation.
“They helped me the whole way through. If I had any questions or concerns they were answered in a way that I could understand. I would recommend this law firm to family and friends.”
– A.L.
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