UPS Truck Accident Attorneys in New York City
If you have suffered injuries in a UPS truck accident in New York City, The Perecman Firm, P.L.L.C., is committed to assisting you in seeking justice and securing the highest possible compensation for your injury-related losses. With over four decades of experience handling truck accident claims, we’ve successfully recovered more than half a billion dollars for injured individuals. You can trust us to advocate for the money you need.
As per data from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), UPS manages a fleet of more than 130,000 vehicles, which were implicated in nearly 2,900 accidents across the country in a recent year. While truck drivers are expected to adhere to federal and state regulations to safeguard the well-being of others, negligence can result in accidents, particularly on the bustling streets of New York City.
Ready to demand compensation for the harm you suffered in a UPS truck crash? Then contact The Perecman Firm, P.L.L.C., today for a free consultation with a UPS truck accident lawyer in NYC.
What Causes Accidents with UPS Trucks in NYC?
With the constant pressure of completing pickups and deliveries on time, UPS drivers often rush to finish the job or allow distractions to pull their focus from the task of driving safely. Inattention and errors can lead to devastating accidents.
Some of the most common causes of UPS truck accidents in NYC include:
- Backing out of a parking spot without checking for other vehicles
- Tailgating
- Making unlawful stops in front of other drivers
- Fatigued driving
- Distracted driving
- Taking a turn too fast
- Looking for addresses and drop-off locations without paying attention to the road ahead
- Speeding or driving too fast for the dangerous conditions
Calculating the Value of Damages in a UPS Truck Accident Case
Placing the value of an injury claim can be complicated. While hospital bills and lost wages are relatively straightforward to calculate, putting a price tag on things like pain and suffering is challenging. That is why hiring The Perecman Firm, P.L.L.C., is crucial to pursuing the total compensation you deserve.
We can determine the full value of your case, file your claim on your behalf, and negotiate aggressively with UPS’s insurers for a settlement. If they will not make a fair offer, we can take them to court in pursuit of justice.
In New York, your first source of compensation is through personal injury protection (PIP) insurance. That could come through either your own PIP policy if the UPS driver hit your vehicle or through that carried by UPS if you were on foot during the crash. This coverage is mandatory for all New York drivers and provides:
- Necessary and reasonable medical and rehabilitation expenses related to the injury
- 80 percent of lost wages up to $2,000 monthly for no more than three years after the accident
- Up to $25 a day to reimburse necessary and reasonable expenses, such as transportation to appointments for no more than one year after the crash
You can file a personal injury lawsuit against the liable party if you exhaust PIP coverage and suffered a serious injury under state law. That means your injury involves at least one of the following:
- Permanent consequential limitation of use of a body member or organ
- A fracture
- Permanent loss of use of a body member, function, organ, or system
- Dismemberment
- A medically determined non-permanent injury or impairment preventing the performance of substantially all material acts constituting usual and customary daily activities for at least ninety days during the 180 days after sustaining the injury or impairment
- Significant disfigurement
- Loss of a fetus
The money you receive might compensate you for losses such as:
- Lost income
- Lost earning capacity
- Emotional distress
- Hospital stays, prescriptions, rehab, and other medical expenses
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Scarring or permanent loss of limb
- Pain and suffering
- Property damage
Establishing Negligence and Liability for a UPS Crash
You must prove someone else caused the accident to recover compensation from them. In most cases, that will entail establishing negligence – that is, they did not behave with the care required by the law under the circumstances. Examples include speeding, merging illegally, and backing up without looking.
A negligent truck driver is the obvious person to blame, as they are most directly in control of their vehicle. However, because they are employees operating their vehicles on behalf of UPS, their employer will likely be financially responsible for the driver’s negligence.
Common examples of negligence on the part of a driver or their employer include the following:
- Violating laws– Truck drivers might violate traffic laws to stay on schedule. Some exceed the speed limit to reach their destinations faster or take illicit drugs to stay awake at the wheel.
- Improper truck maintenance– To operate safely, every truck must undergo thorough maintenance and repairs. Skipping a scheduled maintenance appointment or failing to replace a worn-out part can cause the vehicle to malfunction and lead to a crash.
- Distracted driving– Since delivery drivers can spend hours on the road during a single shift, they are susceptible to distractions that pull their attention from the traffic around them. They might text, eat, drink, or talk on the phone. All those tasks prevent them from driving safely.
Proving negligence requires sufficient evidence, which may include the following:
- Information from the police report if an officer investigated the accident
- Security camera, dashcam, and traffic camera videos
- Statements from eyewitnesses
- The UPS driver’s employment history
- Evidence from the accident scene, including photos and debris from the wreckage
- The driver’s cell phone records
- Expert witness testimony
- Copies of your medical records and bills
- The truck’s event data recorder (EDR)
- Truck maintenance and repair records
UPS’s Independent Contractors vs. Full-Time Employees
Unlike its competitor FedEx Ground, all of UPS’s parcel car drivers are full- or part-time employees, which means UPS is likely directly responsible for their negligence under the legal concept of respondent superior. The only exception is drivers who use their personal vehicles to make deliveries, who are independent contractors and responsible for maintaining their own auto insurance.
In other words, if you are hit by a UPS driver, you can likely seek compensation from the company or its sizable commercial vehicle liability policies.
How Our NYC UPS Truck Crash Lawyers Can Help
You should not face UPS without a UPS truck accident attorney from The Perecman Firm, P.L.L.C. Big companies often take advantage of unrepresented accident victims, and they have high-powered defense teams to help them do so. Trying to seek compensation without legal assistance will likely lead to a poor outcome.
Level the playing field by putting The Perecman Firm, P.L.L.C., on your side. Contact us today for a free consultation with our NYC UPS truck crash lawyers.