Imagine a scary drive on snowy roads, trying to stay in control of your car, only to have a careless snowplow driver barreling towards you. It can happen in Spokane, and you can be struck by a massive truck.
If you get hit by a snowplow, you can often hold the driver and the driver’s employer responsible.
CCD Law represents people injured in accidents involving snow and ice, and fights to earn them all of the recovery money they need. We offer a free case consultation to all injured victims and their families. Contact us as soon as possible.
It’s a chance to determine who is responsible for your medical bills and how much your injury should be worth.
Who Is Responsible If I’m Struck by a Spokane Snowplow?
In Spokane, a snowplow may be operated by one of several different entities. One thing is certain. The drivers will need to be covered by accident insurance, and that means if you are struck by a plow, you can seek help with your medical bills and car repair bills.
These are a few of the parties that may be liable if you are hit:
- The City of Spokane: The city runs a fleet of plows to clear city streets and arteries. You can file a claim with the city, but just remember, government departments enjoy special protections against litigation. You’ll face a complex claims process with some additional steps.
- Spokane County Public Works: The plows that roll out on county roads. If a snowplow driver is responsible for your accident, you’ll have to endure a complicated process to get compensation.
- WSDOT: The Washington State Department of Transportation also operates snowplows on state roads, including I-90.
- Snowplow Owners: A private business operating snowplows may send out plows to their customers when a snowstorm hits. A business may own several trucks and employ several drivers. These businesses will need commercial truck insurance. An owner/operator may just be a one-person operation. They’d still need to insure themselves and the plow.
Safety When Driving Around a Spokane Snowplow
Snowplow drivers do important work and do their best to keep everyone safe. It’s always best to keep your distance and allow them to clear the streets for travelers and especially for emergency vehicles.
Here are a few tips for when you come upon a snowplow:
- Slow down.
- Never use cruise control while traveling on icy or snowy roads.
- Stay back. The WSDOT recommends staying around 200 ft behind a plow. This keeps you from getting hit by the blade or by ice, snow, and rocks.
- The WSDOT asks that drivers not pass snowplows. If you have to pass, do so slowly and use the furthest lane away from the plow.
- Leave yourself extra distance to brake.
Snowplow drivers can make mistakes and put those in much smaller vehicles in danger. Victims injured by collisions can absolutely ask the drivers and their bosses for help in recovery.
See: How to handle an ice- or snow-involved accident of any kind on Washington Roads.
The Extra Difficulty of Suing The City of Spokane
After an impact caused by a snowplow driver, victims in smaller cars and SUVs, on motorcycles, and even pedestrians might be left with serious injuries. They may have doctors’ bills stacking up.
They may miss weeks of work, along with the paychecks needed to meet monthly expenses. They may have a car that’s smashed and undrivable.
These damages should be the responsibility of the city, county, or state entity, but securing support can prove challenging.
Victims still have up to three years to file a lawsuit against the government agency responsible (as in normal car accident claims), but there are some added steps involved.
- Victims must notify the government of the accident and give them a chance to accept responsibility.
- Before suing, victims would file a “Tort Claim” (like this form for accidents involving state employees) to alert the department about their demands. The filing would also include your evidence from the accident and documentation on the victim’s damages and injury prognosis.
- 60 Days. The City of Spokane or Spokane County would have 60 days to respond to the claim. They might accept liability and send a check. They may reject your claim. This 60 days pauses the 3-year statute of limitations for accident victims. It wouldn’t count toward the victim’s time limit to file a lawsuit.
- If the claim is rejected, after the 60 days are up, the victim could move forward with a lawsuit.
An experienced Spokane Truck Accident Lawyer can help you fill out the complex paperwork. Your lawyer fully investigates your accident in order to have the strong evidence necessary to force the government to accept blame for an employee.
Your lawyer protects you from false claims when government lawyers try to blame you for the crash or want to cast doubt on your injuries.
A CCD lawyer will also be an experienced negotiator and can often win you much more than you could by taking on the city yourself.
Contact an Attorney If You Are Struck by a Snowplow
If you’ve been injured in an accident, we invite you to contact the CCD Law today to schedule a free and confidential consultation. There’s never an obligation for this meeting. Find out what your case is worth and how to hold the city liable for its employees’ mistakes.
If you need our help to take on the government, you don’t need any upfront money to retain CCD Law. We serve victims across the Spokane County area and only seek payment if we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the settlement check an insurer must write for you.