Steps to Take After a Truck Accident

At nearly 80,000 pounds, 18-wheelers and tractor-trailers are the most dangerous vehicles on the road. Due to their massive size and heavyweight, truck accidents can be catastrophic, resulting in fatalities. According to the 2016 truck accident report by the South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS), fatalities in collisions with a tractor-trailer increased by 10.1% between 2012 and 2016. And those who happen to survive are likely to be severely injured.

If you or a loved one has been severely injured in a truck accident in South or North Carolina, then here are steps you need to take after the accident to work toward getting fully compensated. Fair compensation is what you need to get medical treatment and cope with this tragic event with financial stability.

Call 911—Alert the Authorities

After being involved in a truck accident, call 911. Ask them to send an ambulance that can take you to the hospital for medical care and send a law enforcement officer to the accident site. A law enforcement officer will create a police report after assessing the damage and interviewing everyone involved.

It is imperative to have a police presence for two reasons. Firstly, it helps you document your accident for an insurance purpose and will serve as evidence in your injury claim. Therefore, if you file a lawsuit against the truck driver or the trucking company, the report generated by the law enforcement officer will back up your story.

Get Full Diagnosis and Immediate Medical Treatment

Truck accidents can lead to severe injuries like traumatic brain injury, spinal cord damage, whiplash, broken bones, and fractures. They can also cause internal injuries and bleeding. Therefore, it is advisable to get a complete diagnosis and seek immediate treatment without delay.

Remember that a proper and full check-up is essential for your health and case. Some injuries may not be felt at the time of occurrence due to an adrenaline rush which acts like pain blockers. However, if reported later, the insurance company may not accept those injuries due to the accident and thus deny your claim.

So, once you seek medical attention, a doctor can diagnose your condition and treat your injuries right away. They can create a medical report to confirm the injuries were sustained in the truck accident.

Take Photos

If you’re in a position to move, it is recommended to take photos of the accident scene. Take them from different angles. Make sure to photograph all the vehicles involved and the surroundings.

Collect Information of the Witnesses and the Truck Driver

While you’re at it, collect the information of witnesses such as their names, phone numbers, addresses, and recorded statements if possible. And get all the necessary details of the truck driver involved, including:

  • The truck driver’s contact information and name
  • Their license number
  • The United States Department of Transportation (USDoT) serial number, if available
  • Information about their trucking company that employed the driver or owns the commercial truck
  • The trucking company or driver’s insurance carrier

Avoid Commenting on Social Media or Making Statements to the Insurance Adjuster

Soon after the accident, you will be approached by the insurance adjuster. Remember that their goal is to limit their liability. They will use stealthy tactics to get statements from you, which can be manipulated to their advantage, thus lowering your compensation claim. Therefore, under no circumstance should you:

  • Provide them with a recorded statement
  • Accept any settlement.
  • Discuss your injuries
  • Give your opinion on any matter.
  • Simply, be polite to the insurance adjuster and tell them that they should talk to your attorney regarding the accident.

Also, never post pictures or tweet about your accident or injuries on social media, as whatever you say can be used against you.

Transport truck crashed with jack knifed trailer lays on side of freeway. truck accident scene

Hire a Lawyer for Case Investigation and Representation

Since multiple parties can be held liable for a truck accident, things can get tricky and complicated unless you have an experienced and skilled lawyer on your side. Hire a South Carolina lawyer to represent your case.

At the Law Office of Jason E. Taylor, we have a team of experienced South Carolina truck accident lawyers. Our lawyers can fight your case and help you get justice. We understand the truck accident rules and regulations and know how to deal with the insurance company.

Once you hire us for case representation, our dedicated legal team will meticulously investigate the circumstances surrounding your accident and collect all crucial evidence. We’ll collect the truck driver’s logbook, black box, and much-needed evidence to establish a strong liability case against the defendant. This evidence will answer essential questions like:

  • How did the accident occur?
  • Who caused it?
  • What happened?

By leveraging our negotiation skills and wealth of industry experience, our lawyers will negotiate with the insurance company aggressively for the maximum settlement. If the insurance company doesn’t offer a fair settlement, we’re ready to take the case to trial in court.

At the Law Office of Jason E. Taylor, we will zealously and passionately advocate your best interest in court and fight for the compensation that you rightfully deserve.

For more information about our legal services or case representation, contact us today. We are here to help you. All of our legal services are offered on a contingency fee basis. This means that you only have to pay us if we recover compensation for your injury claim.

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Notice of Data Security Event
Updated March 28, 2025

The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor is providing notice of an event that may affect certain individuals’ information. Although we have no indication of identity theft or fraud in relation to this event, we are providing information about the event, our response, and additional measures individuals can take to help protect their information, should they feel it appropriate to do so.

What Happened? On October 28, 2024, The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor identified suspicious activity related to our email system. We quickly took steps to investigate and determined that an unknown actor may have accessed certain emails within our email system between August 7 and November 7, 2024. We then conducted a comprehensive review of the potentially affected emails and attachments to determine what information was contained therein and to whom the information related, which was completed on February 25, 2025. Unfortunately, we were unable to verify the addresses of certain affected individuals, so we are providing this notice to ensure potentially affected individuals receive information about the event.

What Information Was Involved? The information affected may include individuals’ Social Security number, driver’s license and state ID information, financial account number, and health information.

What We Are Doing. We are notifying individuals about this matter and providing guidance about free resources that are available to assist with monitoring relevant accounts, credit reports, and how to place a fraud alert or security freeze on one’s credit file. Further, as with our typical security practices, we will continue to evaluate our policies, procedures, staff training, and technical security measures to reduce the likelihood of an event like this reoccurring.

What Individuals Can Do. We encourage you to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud by reviewing your account statements and monitoring your free credit reports for suspicious activity and to detect errors. We also recommend you review the below “Steps Individuals Can Take To Help Protect Personal Information”.

For More Information. If individuals have questions about this matter, we have a dedicated assistance line with agents ready to answer their questions. Please contact our toll-free dedicated assistance line at 1-800-939-4170, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. through 9 p.m., excluding holidays. You may also write to us at The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor, Attn: Compliance, P.O. Box 2688, Hickory, NC 28603.

Sincerely,

The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor

STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT PERSONAL INFORMATION

Monitor Your Accounts

Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. To order a free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228. Consumers may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of their credit report.

Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended “fraud alert” on a credit file at no cost. An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer’s credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer’s credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer’s identity before extending new credit. If consumers are the victim of identity theft, they are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years. Should consumers wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.

As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a “credit freeze” on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer’s express authorization. The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in a consumer’s name without consent. However, consumers should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in their credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application they make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit. Pursuant to federal law, consumers cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on their credit report. To request a credit freeze, individuals may need to provide some or all of the following information:

1. Full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);
2. Social Security number;
3. Date of birth;
4. Addresses for the prior two to five years;
5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone bill;
6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state driver’s license or ID card, etc.); and
7. A copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft if they are a victim of identity theft.

Should consumers wish to place a credit freeze or fraud alert, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:

Equifax Experian TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/ https://www.experian.com/help/

https://www.transunion.com/credit-help
1-888-298-0045 1-888-397-3742 1-800-916-8800
Equifax Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 105069 Atlanta, GA 30348-5069 Experian Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 2000, Chester, PA 19016
Equifax Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 Experian Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 160, Woodlyn, PA 19094

Additional Information

Consumers may further educate themselves regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps they can take to protect their personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or their state attorney general. The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. Consumers can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. Consumers have the right to file a police report if they ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, consumers will likely need to provide some proof that they have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and the relevant state attorney general. This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.

For District of Columbia residents, the District of Columbia Attorney General may be contacted at: 400 6th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001; 1-202-442-9828; and oag.dc.gov.

For Maryland residents, the Maryland Attorney General may be contacted at: 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; 1-410-576-6300 or 1-888-743-0023; and https://www.marylandattorneygeneral.gov/.

For New Mexico residents, consumers have rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, such as the right to be told if information in their credit file has been used against them, the right to know what is in their credit file, the right to ask for their credit score, and the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. Further, pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the consumer reporting bureaus must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information; consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information; access to consumers’ files is limited; consumers must give consent for credit reports to be provided to employers; consumers may limit “prescreened” offers of credit and insurance based on information in their credit report; and consumers may seek damages from violators. Consumers may have additional rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act not summarized here. Identity theft victims and active-duty military personnel have specific additional rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. We encourage consumers to review their rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act by visiting www.consumerfinance.gov/f/201504_cfpb_summary_your-rights-under-fcra.pdf, or by writing Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20580.

For New York residents, the New York Attorney General may be contacted at: Office of the Attorney General, The Capitol, Albany, NY 12224-0341; 1-800-771-7755; or https://ag.ny.gov.

For North Carolina residents, the North Carolina Attorney General may be contacted at: 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; 1-877-566-7226 or 1-919-716-6000; and www.ncdoj.gov.

For Rhode Island residents, the Rhode Island Attorney General may be reached at: 150 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02903; 1-401-274-4400; and www.riag.ri.gov. Under Rhode Island law, individuals have the right to obtain any police report filed in regard to this event.
STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT A MINOR DEPENDENT’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

Typically, credit reporting agencies do not have a credit report in a minor’s name. To find out if a minor has a credit report or to request a manual search for a minor’s Social Security number each credit bureau has its own process. To learn more about these processes or request these services, consumers may contact the credit bureaus by phone, writing, or online:
Equifax Experian TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/help/article-list/-/h/a/request-child-credit-report/
https://www.experian.com/help/minor-request.html
https://www.transunion.com/fraud-victim-resources/child-identity-theft

1-800-685-1111 1-888-397-3742 1-800-916-8800
P.O. Box 105788
Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013 P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016

To request information about the existence of a credit file in a minor’s name, search for a minor’s Social Security number, place a security freeze or fraud alert on a minor’s credit report (if one exists), or request a copy of a minor’s credit report consumers may be required to provide the following information:
● A copy of their driver’s license or another government issued identification card, such as a state identification card, etc.;
● Proof of address, such as a copy of a bank statement, utility bill, insurance statement, etc.;
● A copy of the minor’s birth certificate;
● A copy of the minor’s Social Security card;
● The minor’s full name, including middle initial and generation, such as JR, SR, II, III, etc.;
● The minor’s date of birth; and
● The minor’s previous addresses for the past two years.

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