A missed appointment after a truck crash may result from hospitalization, transportation, work, caregiving, referral delay, cost, insurance authorization, scheduling, or improvement. The reason should be documented at the time rather than reconstructed later from memory. A missed-treatment entry should identify the appointment, recommended purpose, actual reason, notice given, rescheduling effort, condition during the interval, […]
A side-impact truck collision can occur at a signal, stop sign, driveway, loading entrance, merge, lane change, or turning path. A tractor and trailer also follow different paths through a turn, so the initial contact and vehicle positions require careful mapping.
Side impact describes contact orientation, not which movement began first, which signal applied, who had the right of way, or whether either driver had time to avoid the collision.
Document intersection and approach geometry
- Lanes, widths, turn pockets, medians, stop lines, crosswalks, shoulders, grade, curve, and sight obstructions
- Signals, signs, pavement markings, posted rules, detector locations, and permitted movements
- Tractor and trailer dimensions, wheelbase, articulation, off-tracking, load, mirrors, and cameras
- Each vehicle’s approach, lane, speed, turn, stop, acceleration, braking, steering, and final position
Preserve signal and video evidence
- Traffic-controller timing, phase plan, event or detector logs, maintenance, malfunction, and work records
- Traffic, business, residential, transit, responder, dash-camera, and vehicle video
- Original files, frame rates, time zones, clock offsets, metadata, exports, and retention schedules
- Witness locations and whether each person could see the signal face or vehicle approach described
Apply turning rules to the mapped movement
G.S. 20-153 addresses right- and left-turn approaches and paths at intersections, along with locally indicated courses. Identify the actual lane and movement before applying the provision.
Evaluate right of way without stopping there
G.S. 20-155 addresses specified right-of-way situations, including vehicles approaching at approximately the same time and a left turn across an immediate hazard. Right of way does not eliminate the need to examine perception, speed, due care, and avoidance opportunity.
Read the full signal rule
G.S. 20-158 addresses vehicle-control signs and signals, stopping locations, signal indications, and other circumstances. Subsection (d) states that a failure to stop under the section is not negligence or contributory negligence per se in an injury or property action, though the facts may be considered with other evidence.
The related truck fault-evidence guide explains how rules, physical evidence, electronic data, and qualified analysis fit together.
Reconstruct trailer movement
Map the tractor steering path, trailer articulation, off-tracking, swing, encroachment, and contact sequence. Determine whether the truck was turning, changing lanes, stopped, or being passed, and whether the other vehicle entered a blind area or had a safe path available.
Test competing sequences
- One vehicle entered on a different signal phase than a witness recalls
- A late turn, lane change, acceleration, or braking movement altered the conflict point
- A sight obstruction, lighting, glare, weather, or vehicle structure affected detection
- Trailer movement rather than tractor contact produced the first impact
- A secondary collision changed final positions and visible damage
Evaluate occupant-specific injury mechanics
Side loading can differ by occupant position, door or interior contact, intrusion, restraint, airbag deployment, vehicle rotation, and secondary impact. Compare the reconstruction with medical findings, symptom timing, prior conditions, treatment, function, and alternative causes.
Rosensteel Fleishman Car Accident & Injury Lawyers provides information about side-impact truck collision claims in Charlotte.
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