The damages you can receive after a truck accident in South Carolina generally include economic and non-economic damages. If your loved one passed away from their collision injuries, you have a right to pursue wrongful death damages.
The value of your truck collision case will depend on the injuries, losses, costs, and psychological harm you suffered, the strength of the claim you present, and other facts of the case. When you work with an attorney from our team, you won’t have to gather evidence or navigate the claims process on your own. We will fight for compensation to address all of your damages.
Economic Damages in a South Carolina Truck Accident Case
Economic damages are the actual expenses and financial losses you experienced because of the accident and your injuries. These include:
Medical Care and Related Expenses
All of your medical evaluation and treatment should be recoverable through a claim or lawsuit. This begins with your ambulance transportation from the scene and includes:
- Emergency department evaluation or initial doctor’s visit
- Any tests needed for diagnosis or to clear you of injuries
- Treatment, prescriptions, and other care
- Hospitalization
- Rehabilitation or therapy costs
- Ongoing care expenses
- Future medical care needs related to your injuries
- Medical equipment and mobility aids
Other Accident-Related Costs
There may be other expenses you incur because of the crash unrelated to your injuries or medical care. For example, vehicle repairs and rental car costs could be recoverable through your truck accident claim.
Financial Losses Due to Your Injuries
Many people experience losses when involved in a crash. These focus primarily on wages missed because the victim cannot work while recovering from their injuries. Other work benefits and income could also be recoverable.
If you suffered long-term or lasting injuries, you could also recover compensation for your diminished earning capacity in the future. These are wages you are likely to miss if you cannot return to your previous position and salary.
Truck Accidents Also Cause Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic, or intangible, damages are more difficult to value than economic damages. They are the psychological and emotional losses experienced due to a truck accident and the resulting injuries. They often include:
- Physical pain and suffering
- Mental anguish and emotional discomfort
- Reduced quality of life
- Loss of enjoyment in activities
There are accepted ways that insurance companies, attorneys, courts, and others involved in truck collision cases value non-economic damages. This is just one reason you could greatly benefit from having a personal injury attorney on your side.
Most of the options for calculating intangible losses depend on the value of medical expenses and other economic damages. For this reason, it is crucial for accident victims to identify and include all possible costs related to their case.
Wrongful Death Damages in South Carolina
Roughly 11 percent of all traffic fatalities in 2019 were in truck crashes, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Of those truck accidents involving two vehicles, ninety-seven percent of fatalities were occupants of passenger vehicles.
If these statistics included one of your loved ones, South Carolina law (S.C. Ann. § 15-51-10) allows your family to pursue damages under a wrongful death action. The recoverable losses in these cases could include:
- Medical expenses left to the family
- Funeral and burial costs
- Loss of financial support and related benefits, such as healthcare and retirement
- Loss of household services
- Loss of companionship
- Loss of parental guidance
- Other losses surviving family members suffered
If there is evidence to support that the truck driver or trucking company acted willfully, maliciously, or with wanton recklessness, punitive damages are sometimes available as well. This is not common, however.
How a Truck Accident Attorney Can Help You Prove Your Damages
A legal team familiar with truck crash cases can help prove your right to compensation based on your injuries and damages. Our team handles truck accident cases in South Carolina, but we also advocate for improving safety policies in the trucking industry.
Each time we take a case, our goals are to recover compensation, hold negligent trucking companies and employees accountable, and make our communities safer. We will handle proving negligence and liability, building the claim, and calculating your damages. If and when the time comes, we are not afraid to take both the trucking company and a negligent driver to court to fight for you.
While most truck collision claims settle, it is necessary to go to trial in some cases. Our team will determine the filing deadline in your case – usually three years under S.C. Ann. § 15-3-530 – and ensure you meet it. Missing the deadline could jeopardize your ability to secure fair compensation.
Hammack Law Firm Provides Truck Accident Representation in South Carolina
The truck accident lawyers from Hammack Law Firm are here for you if you or a loved one suffered injuries in a crash. We represent truck accident victims based on contingency fees and will assess your case for free.
Call (864) 766-7108 to learn more or get started with a complimentary case review.
With over 25 years of legal experience, Paul Hammack provides his clients with a level of trial expertise and strategic insight rarely found in personal injury litigation. Having spent the first eight years of his career working within major insurance defense firms across Georgia and South Carolina, Paul gained an intimate understanding of the “other side’s” playbook. This insurance industry background serves as a unique differentiator for his clients; he knows exactly how insurance carriers evaluate risk and what motivates them to pay top dollar for a claim.
In 2008, Paul founded Hammack Law Firm to move away from the “plaintiff mill” model and focus on building personal relationships with those he represents. As a seasoned litigator, he has tried dozens of first-chair cases to verdict, specializing in high-stakes litigation involving catastrophic injuries and complex truck accidents. His dual-state practice allows him to provide aggressive representation across both South Carolina and Georgia, ensuring victims of negligence receive the maximum financial compensation possible regardless of which side of the state line the accident occurred.
Paul’s commitment to excellence is reflected in his record of significant achievements, including a $10 million tractor-trailer wrongful death settlement and a $3.9 million moped-versus-truck recovery. His credentials and bar admissions in both South Carolina and Georgia underscore his deep roots in the regional legal community. Beyond the courtroom, Paul is a dedicated advocate for his local community, contributing his time and resources to organizations such as the United Way, Red Cross, and Hands On Greenville, all while working to make South Carolina a safer place for everyone.
