Failure-to-yield accidents frequently have devastating consequences, especially when the crash involves a commercial truck.
Accident victims often face life-altering injuries, daily pain, lower earning capacity, piling medical bills, and significant emotional trauma. When someone else’s negligence causes the accident, the law holds them accountable.
The Portland failure-to-yield truck accident lawyers at Rizk Law help injured people hold negligent truck drivers and trucking companies liable and demand full compensation under Oregon law.
Contact us today to learn more.
Understanding Failure-to-Yield Truck Accidents in Portland
Failure-to-yield truck accidents occur when a truck driver fails to give the right of way to another person as the law requires. Collisions resulting from a truck driver’s failure to yield in Oregon often involve:
- Left turns across incoming traffic
- Merging or lane changes on highways
- Failure to yield to pedestrians or cyclists
- Rolling through stop signs or red lights
Even a brief lapse in judgment can trigger a serious collision when commercial trucks are involved. Our right-of-way truck collision lawyers can investigate the accident to determine how it occurred and who might bear responsibility.
Why Failure-to-Yield Accidents Are Especially Dangerous with Trucks
Any semi-truck accident attorney in Oregon will tell you that large commercial vehicles magnify every driving mistake. Several factors increase the danger of these collisions, including:
- Mass and force – A fully loaded semi-truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. The immense size and weight of these vehicles generate tremendous force in a collision.
- Limited maneuverability – Drivers can potentially maneuver smaller vehicles to reduce the severity of an impact or avoid one entirely. Trucks require far more space and time to maneuver, making impacts more direct and more powerful.
- Restricted visibility – Blind spots make it harder for truck drivers to spot cars or pedestrians. This can result in collisions that occur without the truck driver braking or maneuvering at all.
- Delayed braking – Trucks require significantly more distance to slow or stop safely compared to the average passenger vehicle. That means that severe collisions can occur even if the driver tries to stop in time.
Common Injuries in Failure-to-Yield Truck Collisions
Failure-to-yield truck crashes often cause severe and even permanent injuries. Some of the most common injuries our Portland failure-to-yield truck accident lawyers see include:
- Fractures and broken bones
- Internal organ damage
- Back and neck injuries
- Severe burns and lacerations
- Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Psychological trauma
Truck accident injuries can disrupt careers, damage personal relationships, strain finances, and harm mental health.
Your commercial truck crash lawyer in Portland can work alongside medical professionals and financial experts to assess the full impact of your injuries on your life and daily finances – and then fight for every last dollar.
Failure-to-Yield Laws in Oregon
Oregon law clearly defines when drivers must yield the right of way. The rules apply to all drivers, including commercial truck operators.
These statutes frequently apply in failure-to-yield truck accident claims:
- ORS 811.260: Appropriate driver responses to traffic control devices – Drivers must obey all traffic signals and signs, including yielding when required.
- ORS 811.275 and 811.277: Failure to yield the right of way at uncontrolled intersections – Drivers approaching an intersection without traffic signs or lights must check for oncoming traffic and yield to vehicles on their right or on the through road of a “T” intersection.
- ORS 811.280: Failure of driver entering roadway to yield right of way – Drivers who enter or cross a road from places like private roads, driveways, or alleys must yield to any oncoming traffic that poses an immediate hazard.
- ORS 811.285: Failure of merging driver to yield right of way – Drivers who are merging onto the highway must give the right of way to vehicles already on the road.
A truck driver who enters an intersection or road without yielding violates these traffic laws and is responsible for any damage they cause.
Proving Negligence in Failure-to-Yield Truck Accidents
A successful injury claim will likely require you to prove that the truck driver acted negligently, causing the accident and measurable harm. To obtain that proof, your truck collision injury lawyer in Portland may seek:
- Police reports citing Oregon law violations
- Traffic camera, surveillance, or dashcam footage
- Black box data
- Witness statements
- Medical and financial records
- Accident reconstruction analysis
Failure-to-yield truck accident claims require fast action. Evidence disappears quickly, witness memories fade, and insurance companies have significant resources for protecting their profits.
Contact an Oregon truck accident lawyer as soon as possible to preserve your claim.
Liability and Insurance Considerations
Responsibility in truck accident cases often falls on multiple parties at once. Those parties can include:
- The truck driver
- The trucking company
- Vehicle owners
- Maintenance contractors
- Cargo loaders
- Vehicle or parts manufacturers
Commercial insurance policies often carry higher limits, but insurers aggressively defend these claims.
They challenge fault, downplay injuries, push for lowball settlements, and seek recorded statements to use against you. Strong legal representation levels the playing field and protects your rights.
How Portland Truck Accident Lawyers Can Help
Pursuing compensation in a truck accident case can prove challenging to do independently. A skilled attorney can provide a distinct strategic advantage and help you avoid critical errors. Your attorney can also help by:
- Investigating immediately – Your lawyer can launch an immediate, independent investigation to identify all liable parties.
- Preserving key evidence – Trucking companies own much of the evidence in these claims. Your attorney can take fast legal action to preserve and obtain that evidence.
- Calculating compensation – Your attorney will work with medical and financial experts to assess the full value of your claim and calculate maximum compensation.
- Dealing with insurers – You can avoid insurance company tactics designed to harm your claim and minimize your payout by letting a skilled lawyer handle all communications with them.
- Negotiating and litigating – When it comes time to negotiate for a fair settlement, your lawyer will advocate aggressively for your best interests. If insurers won’t play fair, they can file a lawsuit and take your claim to court.
Contact Our Portland Truck Accident Attorneys Today
If you’ve suffered injuries in a failure-to-yield truck accident, the team at Rizk Law can help.
We have served injured Oregonians for over 20 years. In that time, we’ve recovered millions in verdicts and settlements on their behalf, including $900,000 for a T-bone accident with a commercial truck. Many of them have shared kind words about the quality of services we provide:
“Thank you so much Rizk Law team amazing people. Treat me with respect, dignity, kindness, understanding and patience.”
– Ana Liza Navarro
We will fight to hold the at-fault party accountable and seek your rightful compensation while you focus on your physical and emotional recovery. Contact our Portland law firm today for your free consultation.