Refrigerator Truck Accidents

Refrigerator trucks are used to deliver temperature-sensitive cargo, such as food products, medications, and similar items. These vehicles are massive as well as heavy, making maneuvering more difficult for drivers. Because of the nature of their loads, drivers of these kinds of trucks are also pressured to make timely deliveries so that the perishable products are preserved. As a result, drivers may travel at high speeds or get behind the wheel while fatigued, which can lead to serious refrigerator truck accidents on the roadways. The Miami truck accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Robert Dixon assist people injured in these collisions with seeking the compensation that they need and are entitled to receive to aid in their recovery. Our firm has extensive litigation experience, offering seasoned and compassionate legal representation to victims of severe truck crashes. We advocate for people in Miami, West Palm Beach, and other cities across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties who have been harmed by a negligent truck driver.

Refrigerator trucks are large, cumbersome vehicles, which require a specific skillset and training to operate properly. Additionally, because of the nature of their refrigerated cargo-beds, these trucks may need to be inspected more often to identify maintenance issues, as opposed to trucks of other types. When a refrigerator truck is involved in a collision with another vehicle, pedestrian, or bicyclist, significant, life-altering injuries and even fatalities can occur. Common causes of refrigerator truck accidents include:

• Fatigued drivers
• Excessive speeding
• Distractions and inattentiveness
• Dangerous maneuvers, such as turning too widely or failing to yield the right of way
• Sudden stopping
• Insufficient training
• Inadequate maintenance

A refrigerator truck accident can be a result of one or many of these factors and leave victims with serious injuries, such as broken bones, back or spinal injuries, and brain trauma.

Multiple parties may be held liable for injuries sustained in a refrigerator truck collision. Most often, the negligence of a truck driver has contributed in some way to this type of accident. Showing negligence requires injured victims, known as plaintiffs, to prove that the defendant driver has breached their duty to act as a reasonable and prudent driver would act under the same or similar circumstances. The other legal elements of negligence include establishing that the defendant’s unreasonable actions caused the plaintiff’s injuries and resulted in damages. For example, a truck driver who fails to take necessary breaks and falls asleep behind the wheel, causing a crash, can be found negligent.

Additionally, the employer of a refrigerator truck driver may be held vicariously liable for the negligent actions of its employee. To hold an employer accountable, the driver must have been acting within the scope of their employment, such as engaging in a delivery, when the accident occurred. Dealing with a trucking company may be difficult, since it often has substantial resources at its disposal. Because of this, “spoliation of evidence” is more likely in the aftermath of a trucking accident, as opposed to claims arising from other motor vehicle collisions. Spoliation occurs when important evidence is intentionally lost, destroyed, or otherwise made unavailable by an interested party in an effort to avoid litigation. When spoliation is found, courts may impose strict sanctions against offending parties. Victims injured in a truck accident may recover compensation for property damage, past and future medical expenses, loss of income, diminished earning capacity, and pain and suffering.

If you have suffered a catastrophic injury or lost a loved one due to a negligent truck driver, the Miami attorneys at the Law Offices of Robert Dixon can assist you in pursuing the appropriate legal actions. Call 877.499.4878 or contact us online to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation about your case with a knowledgeable tractor-trailer crash.