New Mexico Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

New Mexico semi truck accidents can cause devastating injuries. On such semi truck accident recently occurred in New Mexico on I-40 at the line between Guadalupe County and Torrance County near Clines Corners.

The semi truck accident occurred when a tandem semi truck operated by Fed-Ex hit a family moving from California to Texas. Most devastating, the semi crash resulted in the death of two people, a woman and her eight month old grandson.

The semi truck accident brings to light a common question that people ask a New Mexico truck accident lawyer, “Is there any more that can be recovered from a semi truck driver than a driver of a passenger vehicle.” The answer, many times, is “yes”.

First, New Mexico insurance law requires that any commercial vehicle, including semi trucks, must carry a higher minimum level of insurance. While a passenger vehicle must be insured for $25,000, a commercial vehicle, such as a FedEx semitruck, must have $1 million in insurance. In addition, there are a couple questions that come to mind regarding this particular accident. Considering it occurred at 11:30 PM, it raises the question of whether driver fatigue contributed to the semi accident. New Mexico semi truck regulations place strict guidelines on how many hours a semi truck can be driven and how many hours the operator must sleep. Often times these truck regulations are ignored and drivers operate under heavy medication or narcotics to stay awake at the wheel, albeit at an altered state.

Another fact that this tragic semi truck accident brings to light is that it is neccessary for the accident victims to take immediate action to preserve the case. Crucial pieces of information such as recording devices and logs must be preserved so that the evidence can be carefully analyzed. Failure to act quickly to preserve these items may result in their destruction.

In the event that any New Mexico semi-truck regulations were ignored, or the driver caused the accident beyond mere negligence, there could be exposure to substantial punitive damages for which it is likely FedEx has viable assets. Although no amount is enough to reverse such an accident, it is nonetheless important to make sure rights are protected.

Posted by Albuquerque Injury Lawyers | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Auto Accidents , Catastrophic Injury , Truck Accidents , Wrongful Death

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Within the thousands of car accidents, many of which are New Mexico truck accidents, that occur each year, occasionally there are some that are so unusual and bizarre that it is impossible not to take notice. Granted there is never a New Mexico truck accident that is planned or predictable, but most certainly it easier to envision any accident other than what occurred recently on the outskirts of Albuquerque.

Yep okayA freight train that was near Belen was passing through the New Mexico darkness as if it was any other night. Whatever part of a freight train can be considered calm and serene, was interrupted when a truck came flying down from the sky and landed on it. It is certainly enough that New Mexico railroad operators need to be aware of street crossings in high-traffic areas. However, there likely was no training that could prepare anyone for vehicles falling from the sky.

Although New Mexico authorities are still investigating the incident, it appears that a truck traveling on I-25 lost control while on an overpass and fell on top of a freight train. Early accounts suggest that nobody on the train was injured and that the driver of the truck survived the incident without serious injury.

From a New Mexico personal injury lawyer’s perspective, this accident has so many possible causes and theories that it resembles a bar exam question more than a real-life occurrence.

Posted by Albuquerque Injury Lawyers | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Auto Accidents , Personal Injury News , Truck Accidents

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Any New Mexican who has not had their head buried in a plate of enchiladas for the past year is aware of the difficulties facing the Obama administration. At the top of everyone's list is, the economy, national security, and terrorism. Chances are that truck safety is not on anyone's top 20 list. However, based on a recent meeting of the American Trucking Association, Truckload Carriers Association, commercial vehicle safety alliance, National Private Truck Council, and the Owner-Operator Independent drivers Association, changes in a semi truck industry may be coming to Washington and therefore New Mexico.

At the meeting, and expected to be addressed in Washington, our issues relating to truck size, devices to limit the speed; are able to travel, improvements to truck driver resting areas, driver training, and truck loading and unloading procedures. Although these topics are not likely to place your family in awe at the dinner table, they do have the ability to drastically reduce New Mexico truck driving accidents Changes in Washington could have a substantial role on implementing procedures that would greatly reduce New Mexico semi truck accidents.

Even from a New Mexico semi truck lawyer's perspective, there are more pressing things facing the Obama administration however, it is certainly worth keeping an eye on how Washington addresses these issues.

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Posted In: Truck Accidents

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A recent study found that roughly 13% of semi truck accidents occur during bad weather. Fortunately, bad weather in New Mexico does not occur very often, but when it does many drivers are not prepared. The same holds true for semi truck drivers who do not always exercise the caution necessary to avoid endangering the New Mexico public.

I experienced this first hand last winter when I was traveling to Gallup for a hearing and was on I-40 during a blizzard. Many cars pulled to the shoulder and simply stopped driving. However, numerous semi trucks were passing vehicles on all sides traveling at high speeds. Not only were the drivers not exercising proper caution, but they seem to have a complete disregard for the smaller vehicles scattered throughout the road.

New Mexico semi truck accidents are some of the most serious given the sheer weight and size of the vehicle involved. The injuries can be serious and sometimes fatal. The New Mexico semi truck accident lawyers at the Fine Law Firm believe it is important to review the federal semi truck regulations in every semi truck accident case to determine if any rules were broken that contributed to the accident.

It is important to know that semi trucks traveling through New Mexico's highways are obligated to abide by a strict set of regulations regarding the operation of their trucks. One such regulations specifically addresses driving in hazardous conditions and requires "extreme caution."

When evaluating New Mexico semi truck accidents it is important to keep in mind these regulations to evaluate if the violation of any such rules contributed to the accident. Many times even the violation of a seemingly obscure regulation can result in substantial recovery for New Mexico semi truck accident victims

Posted by Albuquerque Injury Lawyers | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Auto Accidents , Truck Accidents

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A local Albuquerque television station recently did a report on the requirements necessary to obtain a New Mexico driver's license. Specifically, the report focused on the 25 question driving test in which it is necessary to correctly answer 18 questions to pass. From an Albuquerque personal injury lawyer's perspective, I watched the report wondering if more stringent testing requirements would decrease the number of accidents on Albuquerque streets. Honestly, I don't think it would make much of a difference.

In my experience meeting with victims of Albuquerque car accidents, very rarely can I say that an accident occurred because somebody did not properly tap their breaks or pull over for an approaching emergency vehicle. Instead, accidents occur most often from a lapse in attention, or a conscious decision to drive dangerously and erratically.

Currently, at least according to the news report, drivers must answer 18 of 25 questions correctly. This is essentially asking for a 72%, or C-, grade to pass a driver's test. Even if the necessary score were increased, I do not believe that it is going to prevent some people from speeding, running red lights, or not properly yielding to oncoming vehicles. Simply put, I believe that many Albuquerque car accidents occur because people choose to be risky and dangerous drivers, not that they simply do not understand driving rules.

Nonetheless, it is an interesting report by Shelton Dodson. If you want test yourself, you can try a sample New Mexico drivers license test.

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Motorcycle Accidents , Personal Injury News , Truck Accidents

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Semi Truck Accident Injuries
While it only takes a single impact with a semi truck to cause a serious injury, many semi truck accidents involve multiple impacts. Cars are often dragged by the semi truck or pushed into other vehicles or roadside barriers. As a result victims of semi truck accident may be tossed around from impact to impact.
Semi truck accident injuries are some of the most serious. Often resulting in death, paralysis, or other serious injury, these cases must be handled with a delicate balance of care and aggressiveness. Often times semi truck accident injury cases require exploring additional aspects of injury damages. This include pain and suffering, lost wages, lost earning capacity, loss of consortium, permanent disability, impairment, disfigurement, property damage, emotional distress, and future medical expenses.

Continue reading "New Mexico Semi Truck Accident Lawyers" »

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Posted In: Truck Accidents

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Semi truck accidents in often result in wrongful death cases. Wrongful death and truck accident lawyers will tell you that these cases often require immediate action to preserve important pieces of evidence. These cases typically involve commercial carrier insurance policies and have limits far in excess of many basic insurance policies. It is important to select an attorney familiar with Federal Trucking Laws, and State Trucking Laws.

Failure for trucking companies to comply with multiple laws and regulations may open the possibility of punitive damages that extent beyond the available insurance limits. Wrongful death cases the result from semi truck accidents require both immediate action and thorough exploration to maximize recovery.

Posted by Albuquerque Injury Lawyers | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Catastrophic Injury , Truck Accidents , Wrongful Death

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