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Truck Accident Lawyers Melbourne
Heavy vehicle claims involve more parties, more paperwork and more insurers than an ordinary road accident. None of that should land on you while you are recovering.
In a truck accident, responsibility can be shared between the driver, the transport operator, the employer and whoever loaded the vehicle.
Who can claim after a truck accident
You can make a TAC claim if you were injured in a collision involving a truck or heavy vehicle in Victoria, including as a:
- Driver or passenger in another vehicle
- Cyclist or pedestrian struck by a heavy vehicle
- Truck driver, employed, subcontracted or owner driver
- Family member of someone who died in a heavy vehicle crash
Truck accident compensation
- Medical treatment, hospital and surgical costs
- Rehabilitation, including long term care where injuries are severe
- Income support while you cannot work
- A lump sum for permanent impairment, from 11% whole person impairment
- Pain and suffering and loss of earnings, where another party caused a serious injury
- Dependency and funeral benefits following a fatal crash
The lump sum is set by a formula rather than negotiated. Independent doctors assess your permanent loss of function as a percentage once your injuries have stabilised, and nothing is payable below 11%. Above that the amount climbs with the percentage. Heavy vehicle injuries frequently land in the higher bands, where the differences between one percentage point and the next are substantial. Find out what each band is worth.
Who can be held responsible
In most car accidents there is one other driver. In a heavy vehicle accident, responsibility may be shared by:
- The driver, where fatigue, speed or inattention played a part
- The transport operator or employer, where scheduling or fatigue management contributed
- Whoever loaded the vehicle, where an unsecured or unbalanced load was a factor
- The maintenance contractor, where mechanical failure was involved
- The company that booked the freight, where the delivery timetable made compliant driving difficult
Your TAC entitlements do not depend on any of this. It matters for a common law claim, and it is why these claims are worth investigating properly.
Chain of Responsibility
Under the Heavy Vehicle National Law, responsibility for a heavy vehicle's safe operation does not rest with the driver alone. Everyone who influences how the vehicle is operated shares duties covering fatigue and rest breaks, speed, load restraint and maintenance.
In practice that means records exist in a heavy vehicle accident that would not exist in an ordinary car accident: driver work diaries, electronic monitoring, maintenance logs and delivery schedules.
Why the evidence needs requesting early
Those records are not kept indefinitely. Requesting them early, rather than waiting until the medical picture settles, is one of the practical differences in how a heavy vehicle claim is run.
Truck drivers injured at work
You may have two claims. A TAC claim for the road accident, and a WorkCover claim because you were injured at work if you were the driver of the truck.
The two interact, and your position differs depending on whether you are an employee, an owner driver or a subcontractor. Tell us which you are and we will explain what is open to you.
Making a claim is not a finding against you and does not affect your licence.
If a family member has died
Losing someone this way is not something a website can help with, and we will not pretend otherwise.
When you are ready, dependent partners and children may be entitled to ongoing benefits and assistance with funeral expenses, and in some circumstances a further claim. There is no time pressure from us.
What to bring to your first consultation
- Any TAC or WorkCover claim number
- Medical reports and the names of your treating doctors
- The police report number
- The name of the transport company, and the registration if you have it
- Payslips or evidence of lost income
- Any correspondence from the operator or their insurer
- Details of any witnesses
The TAC claim process is unchanged, with one addition: the operator's records need requesting before anything else happens.
Heavy vehicle crashes in Victoria
In 2024, 36 people lost their lives in crashes involving heavy vehicles in Victoria, 13 per cent of all road deaths that year and down from a ten year average of 46.
Four of those 36 were heavy vehicle occupants. A further 54 heavy vehicle occupants were seriously injured, which is why the WorkCover side of these claims matters as much as it does
.
47 per cent of the fatalities and 40 per cent of the serious injuries occurred in regional Victoria. We act for people across the state and do not need you in the office to run a claim.
Source: TAC heavy vehicle road safety data.
FAQs
The trucking company's insurer has contacted me.
They act for the operator, not for you. Early offers are usually made before anyone has assessed how serious your injuries will be.
How would fatigue or scheduling be established?
Through work diaries, electronic monitoring, rosters and delivery schedules, requested formally.
Can I claim if the truck driver was not at fault?
Yes, for treatment and income support. Whether another party in the chain was at fault is a separate question worth asking.
Will claiming affect my job?
Making a claim is a legal entitlement. If you are worried about your employment position, raise it at the first conversation.
Your lawyers
The obvious answer in a truck accident is usually the incomplete one. The driver was there and is easy to blame. The operator who built the schedule is often the one who should be.
Your claim is run by Irini Piperoglou or Antonia Gianasmidis, who will chase the records, deal with the operator's insurer and keep you informed without burying you in it.
34 Church Street, Abbotsford. We act for people across Victoria.
No Win No Fee, which includes finding out whether you have a claim at all. How our no win no fee guarantee works
“After my car accident, I was completely overwhelmed, but Irini and Antonia were there for me every step of the way. They didn’t just handle the legal stuff, they showed genuine care and empathy, making sure I never felt alone in the process. They took all the stress off my shoulders, allowing me to focus on my recovery. Thanks to their hard work, I received the compensation I needed to recover. I can’t thank them enough for their support and for always keeping me informed and at ease during such a tough time”
– Kalliope L.
Related links:
How a TAC claim runs
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If you have been injured in a truck accident in Victoria, we can tell you in one conversation whether you have a claim and what to do next.
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