Oversized and Overweight Truck Accidents in Casper
Heavy haul truck accidents in Casper lead to serious injuries. Our attorneys pursue justice and hold negligent parties accountable.
Due to the large size of the average tractor-trailer, many people assume that there is no amount of weight that they cannot handle. In reality, both the laws of physics and the laws of the governments determine exactly how much a tractor-trailer can safely weigh on public roads. These laws also have a lot to say about how truck drivers and trucking companies can be held legally liable for wrecks they cause through overloading their trucks. Our lawyers exclusively handle truck accident cases and have experience representing people injured, or the families of people killed, by overloaded and overweight trucks.
If you were injured in an overloaded/overweight truck accident in Casper, you have a right to seek comprehensive civil compensation from the people at fault for that accident, but enforcing this right can be challenging without legal assistance.
Fortunately, there is help available from the experienced truck accident attorneys at The Law Firm for Truck Safety. Many of our lawyers have commercial driver's licenses in addition to law degrees and advocate strongly and compassionately for every one of our clients.
How Heavy Can Trucks Legally Be on Public Highways?
Under current regulations set and enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)The U.S. federal agency that regulates the trucking industry., commercial trucks traveling on interstate highways and across state lines on smaller roads are subject to a gross vehicle weight limit (GVWL) of 80,000 pounds. This means that the truck’s total weight across the cab, trailer, and cargo combined cannot exceed that amount. Furthermore, the FMCSA prohibits trucks from traveling those routes with more than 20,000 pounds of weight placed on any one axle or more than 34,000 pounds placed on any one axle group, assuming that the truck’s GVWL is split evenly across all axles and axle groups.
For in-state traffic, Wyoming Statutes §31-18-802 establishes a more complex set of weight tables that set different weight limits for different types of trucks depending on the number of axles they have and how far apart those axles are spaced on the truck’s frame. In general, if a truck weighs over 80,000 pounds in total and its driver does not have a special permit to carry an oversized load over a predetermined route, that truck is likely overloaded to a degree that would make the trucking company liable for a crash in Casper involving that vehicle.
Important Evidence for Overweight Truck Wreck Claims
Proving an overweight truck caused your accident requires solid evidence that the vehicle exceeded legal weight limits. In theory, this should be as simple as checking the cargo manifest and other documents supplied by the trucking company about what it was carrying and how far it planned to carry it, but the reality is far more complex.
Trucking companies may also try to illegally hide, alter, or destroy evidence of their actions. This is a unique complication that can make overweight truck wreck claims in Casper exceptionally hard to pursue compared to many other types of truck crash cases. It is also one of the biggest reasons why having help from skilled legal counsel is so important to pursuing a lawsuit like this.
Contact a Casper Attorney for Help With an Overloaded/Overweight Truck Accident Lawsuit
An overloaded truck is one of the most deceptively dangerous vehicles you can encounter on a public highway. On top of being harder for its driver to control, a truck like this can also generate a massive amount of force on impact with another car. Our truck accident lawyers have over 200 years of combined experience fighting on behalf of people like you to get them fair financial recovery they are entitled to. Call The Law Firm for Truck Safety today to discuss your legal options following an overloaded/overweight truck accident in Casper.
