Delivery Vehicle Accidents

Accidents involving delivery vehicles can cause serious injuries and substantial property damage. These crashes often involve multiple parties, complicated evidence, and a host of other factors to be considered. At the Law Offices of Robert Dixon, our truck accidents can guide victims in the Miami area and beyond through the process of seeking the compensation that they need. We offer dedicated legal advocacy from the investigation stages of an accident through negotiations and any necessary litigation.

Delivery vehicle drivers are often working on a deadline, trying to ensure their packages arrive to their destinations on time. This pressure may lead to aggressive driving, excessive speeding, or other reckless behavior that raises the risk of an accident. Sometimes, moreover, drivers are undertrained, hired without proper care, or otherwise left unsupervised by their employers, and thus they may be poorly equipped to handle such massive vehicles.

The major delivery service companies, such as UPS and Fed-Ex, are subject to federal regulations governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. To protect the safety of all motorists, these regulations set minimum requirements in areas like driver training, drug and alcohol testing, and maintenance and inspection procedures. Violating these regulations can expose a driver or trucking company (and possibly both) to liability.

If a delivery truck driver acted negligently, he or she can potentially be held accountable for those careless actions in a personal injury lawsuit. Showing negligence requires establishing that the driver breached his or her duty to act as a reasonable and prudent person would have acted in handling a delivery vehicle under similar circumstances. Also, the defendant’s breach must have directly caused the victim’s injuries and the resulting costs and losses, or damages.

In many situations, a negligent delivery vehicle driver’s employer may be held vicariously liable. This legal theory applies if the driver was acting within the scope of employment at the time of the accident. For instance, a driver who runs a red light and strikes another car on the way to make a delivery on behalf of a company is acting within the scope of the job. A delivery company may also be held directly liable for an accident if it negligently entrusted its vehicles to an improperly trained or unsupervised driver, or if it hired a driver who was unqualified for the job. Once negligence is shown, a victim can potentially recover a wide range of damages. These may include past and future medical expenses, loss of income and earning capacity, property damage, and pain and suffering.

The ease of online shopping leads to a growing number of packages being delivered each day, and thus the pressure increases on delivery companies and their drivers to meet demands. However, satisfying these demands should not come at the expense of safety on our roads. If you have been hurt in a motor vehicle collision caused by a trucker’s negligence, the Miami attorneys at the Law Offices of Robert Dixon can help you assert your right to the compensation you deserve from those responsible. We also represent accident victims in Miami and other cities throughout Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. Call 877.499.4878 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.