Average Truck Accident Settlement in North Carolina (2024)

Truck accidents are often devastating and fatal incidents, causing long-term disfigurement, pain, and disability for those who survived the collision. When injured individuals are not at fault, they can file for compensation in an insurance or civil settlement. The amount from this settlement relies on the damages that the injured person suffered. The average truck accident settlement in North Carolina may range anywhere from several hundred thousand dollars up to millions of dollars.

Each truck accident settlement is unique, so knowing the exact average is often unhelpful for determining the value of your own settlement. It’s important to understand what damages may be available in a truck accident claim and the factors that make truck accidents more complicated than other motor vehicle collisions.

What Damages Are Available in a Truck Accident in North Carolina?

One of the biggest factors in determining the value of your truck accident settlement is the damages you suffered.

If you and your attorney are able to prove the trucking company, truck driver, or other driver liable for an accident, you are legally able to recover the entirety of your compensatory damages. Under state law, compensatory damages are not capped for this type of personal injury case, and this is true for both economic and noneconomic damages. Economic damages are tangible losses in the accident and result from your injuries, including:

• Current medical bills, including emergency treatment, hospital transport, surgeries, hospital stays, doctor’s visits, medication, medical devices, mobility aids, and other costs
• Future medical bills that can be reasonably anticipated, such as physical therapy, in-home care, at-home services, and other long-term care needs
• Lost income during the time you can’t work as you recover
• Lost earning capacity if you are permanently disabled and unable to return to work
• Property damages to your vehicle and other items in the vehicle

Noneconomic damages are those that do not have a specific financial value. Instead, they are calculated based on your intangible losses, which are still considered compensable by the court. These include:

• Physical pain
• Loss of quality of life
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Emotional trauma and anguish
• Loss of consortium
• Disfigurement
• Scarring
• Disability

In addition to compensatory damages, a truck accident claim could result in punitive damages. This is when the actions of the at-fault party are considered grossly negligent, so the court assigns these damages to punish that party and limit the likelihood of repeat behavior. Punitive damages, if they are awarded, can significantly increase a total settlement. However, punitive damages are capped in North Carolina. They cannot be higher than:

1. Three times the total of compensatory damages awarded
2. $250,000, whichever amount is higher.

After a truck accident, an attorney who is experienced with these cases is essential to determining the likely value of your claim.

What Makes Truck Accident Settlements More Complicated?

The damages in a truck accident are more severe, as injuries are often catastrophic or fatal. Commercial vehicles are heavier and larger than other vehicles, and they take longer to slow down and stop. Because the cost of these accidents is so much higher, it can often take more time to get a fair settlement. Insurance providers do not want to pay out the full worth of these significant accidents.

These settlements are also more complicated because it’s more common that multiple parties are at fault. Potentially liable parties may include:

• The truck driver
• The truck driver’s employer
• The shipping or trucking company
• A company responsible for loading or maintaining the truck
• The owner of the trailer or cab
• The manufacturer of the truck or its components
• Other drivers on the road

Because there are so many potentially at-fault parties, it can make it harder to determine liability and hold the right party responsible for the injuries in a truck accident. Additionally, commercial companies have significant resources to provide to their insurance providers and legal counsel, making settlements harder to navigate. You need a qualified truck accident attorney in Burke, Catawba, and Caldwell Counties to equal these resources and get the settlement you deserve.

FAQs

Q: How Much Are Most Truck Accident Settlements?

A: Truck accident settlements may range from $50,000 to several million dollars.

These accidents typically result in much higher settlements on average due to the severity of the damages and injuries that they cause. Tractor trailers, 18-wheel trucks, and other commercial vehicles are heavier and larger than other vehicles, so accidents are often worse and even fatal for those in passenger cars and motorcycles.

The amount of a settlement will depend on the cost of injuries, property damage, lost income, and other factors.

Q: How Much Can Someone Sue for a Truck Accident in North Carolina?

A: If another party is proven to be at fault for a truck accident in North Carolina, you can hold them liable for the entirety of your economic and noneconomic damages. This includes economic damages, like:

• All standing medical bills
• All reasonably anticipated medical costs
• Long-term rehabilitation
• At-home care
• Lost income
• Lost future earning potential
• Property damage

It also includes noneconomic damages, such as:

• Mental anguish
• Physical pain
• Scarring
• Disfigurement
• Disability
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Loss of quality of life

Q: How Much Is Pain and Suffering Worth in a Truck Accident in North Carolina?

A: Pain and suffering damages in a truck accident are likely to be higher than in most car accidents, as injured parties are more likely to suffer long-term disability, disfigurement, and pain. This means that pain and suffering damages are higher to reflect the long-term emotional and psychological damages of these injuries.

In North Carolina, there is no cap on pain and suffering damages in car accident personal injury cases. The compensation can be as high as it needs to be to fairly reflect the non-financial damages that you suffered in a truck accident.

Q: What Is the Average Payout for a Rear-End Collision in North Carolina?

A: The payout for a rear-end collision in North Carolina will rely on the severity of the property damage and how bad your injuries are. Minor neck and back injuries and minor property damage may result in several thousand dollars, while significant spinal cord or disabling injuries may result in several hundred thousand dollars.

The payout will depend on your direct medical bills, future medical costs, anticipated complications, lost income during recovery, and property damage. It will also rely on pain and suffering and other noneconomic damages.

Protecting Your Interests at the Law Office of Lyndon R. Helton, PLLC

When you need an experienced attorney to investigate the cause and damages in your truck accident, contact the Law Office of Lyndon R. Helton, PLLC.