Were you injured in a tractor trailer accident on 1-20 in Social Circle, Georgia?
If so, make sure to get all video recordings from the truck. Most trucks come with dash cameras as well as other cameras that can capture video of the truck driver and the accident.
WHY DO YOU NEED VIDEO FROM THE TRUCK?
The dash cam video, for example, can tell you whether the truck driver was talking on his/her cell phone during the accident, or if he/she were texting and driving during the accident. Some dash cams will also have the speed listed in the bottom corner of the video, so you can also see if the driver was speeding leading up to the accident.
The dash cam can also tell you whether the driver was distracted leading up to the accident, such as looking off to the side when he/she should have been paying more attention to the road. This can be crucial evidence in a rear-end collision.
Additionally, many trucks have cameras that capture front and side angles of the truck. This can help shed light on the cause of the accident, especially in a case where a truck driver fails to maintain his/her lane and swerves into your lane.
HOW DO YOU GET THE VIDEO FROM THE TRUCK?
The first thing you need to do is send the trucking company a preservation letter to preserve and save all dash cam video and any video recordings from the truck on the day of the accident. This will put the trucking company on notice to save all video from the day of the accident. If the trucking company fails to do this, they can be hit with sanctions from the court if a lawsuit is later filed.
If the case cannot be settled, file a lawsuit, and request all dash cam video from the accident as well as all video from the truck for the day of the accident. You will then almost always have the right to see all of the requested video. If the trucking company says they do not have any video, investigate why that is. If the trucking company failed to save and preserve the requested video despite you putting them on notice to save all video, you can then file a motion for sanctions against the trucking company.
NEED HELP WITH YOUR TRUCKING CASE? CONTACT BARTLETT BENTON.
If you have been injured in a tractor trailer accident on I-20 in Social Circle, Georgia and would like a free case evaluation, please call Bartlett at 770-365-6414.