Maison Law represents families who lose loved ones in heartbreaking Fresno truck accidents.
When a reckless truck driver causes a fatal collision, the victim’s family can seek full financial support to deal with immediate difficulties and hardships in the future.
Our wrongful death lawyers offer all family members a free, confidential case consultation.
Schedule a case review to determine how much support an insurance company should provide to your family after a tragedy.
Do I Need a Lawyer After Losing Someone in a Fatal Truck Accident?
If a loved one is killed in a tragic accident caused by a truck driver’s mistake, families have the legal right to seek financial restitution. Families can seek support through a wrongful death claim filed with the truck driver’s insurance and the trucking company’s insurer. However, company lawyers and insurance adjusters will try to blame the victim for an accident and minimize the support they have to provide.
A Fresno Wrongful Death Attorney safeguards the family’s rights and fights back against these unfair tactics. A skilled lawyer makes sure families are awarded all benefits available. A personal injury lawyer can help file a wrongful death claim and protect the family from the tactics insurance companies use. A lawyer also handles the frustrating negotiations with insurance companies while allowing as little disruption to a grieving family as possible.
Who Is to Blame After a Fatal Fresno Truck Accident?
Your Maison Law attorney fully investigates the accident and determines every party that may have to contribute to the support of the family left behind. It may be a reckless truck driver to blame. The negligent company that didn’t hire safe drivers and provide proper training could be held accountable.
These are just a few of the potential defendants who would be forced to support your family:
- Independent Driver – Drivers may work for themselves. They’ll have commercial insurance your family can hopefully draw from.
- Local Trucking Company or Farm– Drivers may be working for a local delivery or shipping company that provides some insurance. A local farm may have its own drivers. These companies may also face liability if poor maintenance and upkeep of their trucks and tires contribute to an accident.
- Large Corporations – These national businesses, like Walmart, and giant agricultural corporations, may have their own network of trucks and drivers. Delivery companies like Amazon or FedEx usually carry large insurance policies for their drivers. Unfortunately, these businesses also have corporate lawyers who fight to free their employers from blame after an accident.
- Truck Manufacturer – A problem with the way a truck or a farm vehicle is assembled could be the cause of a major accident. A parts defect or a design flaw could have led to an impact. The maker of the vehicle may even have to recall a truck over safety issues. The manufacturer could also have to support your family financially.
Deadly Truck Accident Dangers in Fresno County
Fresno roads receive heavy use from local farms, orchards, and manufacturers. Giant Semi-Trucks and farm equipment from these businesses use local routes, like Highway 99 and Highway 180. That’s on top of the hundreds of delivery companies like Amazon and FedEx that also send their loaded-down vans into our neighborhoods each day.
These big rigs, vans, and tankers take up a lot of space. Trucks can drift in and out of their lanes and slam into cars and SUVs in other lanes. Truck drivers can build speed to the point of losing control. Truck drivers can become distracted and fail to stop for a red light, perhaps ramming several cars unfortunate enough to be in front of them. These hazards and others can cause life-threatening harm to those in smaller vehicles.
California’s Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) data shows a noticeable leap in the number of dangerous truck accidents in Fresno in 2024. There were 73 truck collisions involving injury for the year, along with two tragic fatalities.
The number of truck accidents was well above the figures from the previous two years.
- Hwy 99 through Fresno County was the scene of 50 serious truck accidents in 2024, resulting in at least one fatality
- Hwy 180 through Fresno County was the scene of 7 serious truck accidents in 2024, resulting in at least one fatality
Any major collision involving a massive, heavy truck can cause a tragic fatality. Families may have to rely on powerful legal assistance to force a large trucking company or business to accept responsibility for a truck driver’s mistake.
A Fresno truck accident lawyer can demand the maximum in support for those left behind, so they don’t have to deal with a devastating loss and at the same time, a financial disaster for the family.
What Kind of Documents Will I Need for My Wrongful Death Insurance Claim?
Families should never feel powerless after a terrible accident. They can seek justice for a loved one taken in a truck collision. Families can even gather powerful evidence to help build a strong wrongful death claim. A lawyer working on behalf of the family would also investigate the accident and gather all evidence.
Families may need to send out requests for vital information. This evidence can help back up a claim. It can also help those left behind prove that someone has passed on, allowing for the settling of affairs for the deceased.
These are some of the pieces of evidence families can search for after a fatal accident:
- Accident Reports. After a truck accident, families may need to request an copy of an accident report from the Fresno Police or the CHP.
- Coroner’s Report and Death Certificate. A Death Certificate will be important to help with the settling of affairs for a loved one that’s passed on. A coroner’s report may be necessary to prove how the victim died. You can find information on obtaining these documents here.
- Receipts. When relatives meet with an attorney for a free consultation, it’s helpful to bring any receipts from medical treatment and ambulance fees. Bills for emergency response fees should also be included. Close relatives should keep invoices for anything pertaining to the accident and death. That can include funeral and burial costs.
- Paystubs. You’ll need to prove how much income and support have been lost since the death of a beloved family member. Bring the victim’s old pay stubs and W-2s to prove what they have provided to a spouse and children in the past.
- Photos and Surveillance Video. If you have any photos from the scene of the accident or from the hospital (if the victim didn’t die immediately), include them in your claim. Request any surveillance video that may have captured the truck accident. If you hire a Maison Law attorney for the wrongful death case, you can rest assured that video will be requested and collected.
- Witness Statements. Turn over any contact information for witnesses to your attorney. Keep any written statements you receive from witnesses.
Bereavement Support for Family Members After a Fatal Truck Accident
Any truck accident settlement check should include enough in support so that family members can afford professional mental health care. It’s often a necessary step to help in the grieving process.
There are many free and low-cost wellness resources available in Fresno for grieving families. They allow individuals to speak with others who have experienced loss.
These are just a few of the options available for those in mourning:
- Saint Agnes Medical Center: Local hospitals have formed several groups to help those who have recently lost someone. Saint Agnes Medical Center holds a meeting on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of every month. It’s held at the Saint Agnes Administrative Center. Visit their site here for more information.
- Hinds Hospice LifeCare in Fresno offers 12-week classes for individuals and couples working through the stages of grief.
- GriefShare groups meet at several local churches each month, including Northwest Church, The Bridge, and Campus Bible Church near Fresno State.
Frequently Asked Questions
A spouse or children of the victim would usually have the first right to file a wrongful death claim on behalf of the family. In some cases, the parents or siblings of the victim could file. A wrongful death attorney can also file this claim on behalf of the family and make sure those at fault can’t escape responsibility.
Families should earn support for the funeral costs they’ve paid and the leftover medical bills they’ve had to cover. The income the victim may have supported the family with must be reimbursed for the economic losses now and in the years ahead. Close relatives should also receive support for the lost emotional support they’ll have to cope with over their lives. This should include the loss of special moments in the future, such as having a loved one at a graduation, a wedding, or being there for the birth of a child.
Your family can still afford the protection of a Maison Law attorney. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then, our fee comes out of the insurance settlement check a trucking company must pay your family.
Contact a Fresno Fatal Truck Accident Attorney
Contact Maison Law to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with an actual Fresno fatal truck accident lawyer.
We’re going to answer your family’s questions and make sure you are fully aware of every party that should be providing support at such a difficult time.
A truck driver and the company the driver works for could be fully responsible for supporting loved ones now and in the years ahead.
