The person and/or company responsible and at fault for causing the accident can be sued. This includes the semi truck driver and trucking company, the owner of the trailer, the shipper, as well as any other driver, person or entity who in anyway contributed to the accident, such as the manufacturer of one of the vehicles involved in the accident, the manufacturer of a tire that contributed to the accident or the owner of any public or private property whose negligence contributed to the accident.

There are many regulations, both state and federal, that trucking companies are required to follow. Mainly:

• Trucking companies are required to follow the FMCSA regulations concerning equipment and hours of service.
  
• Commercial driver’s license standards are federal regulations in place to reduce or prevent truck accidents and resulting injuries and/or deaths by requiring drivers of certain vehicles to obtain a single commercial motor vehicle driver's license.
  
• The Commercial Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program requires that individual States, and other political jurisdictions unify to develop and implement programs that will ultimately improve motor carrier, CMV, and driver safety and establish a safer and more efficient transportation system.
  
• Semi drivers are required to maintain a truck driver’s log.
  
• Regulations require commercial trucks to carry certain levels of insurance coverage, depending on the nature of the materials hauled. These regulations protect victims of large truck crashes from truck owners who may not have the financial resources to pay damages out-of-pocket.
  
• Both Pennsylvania State and/or federal law, depending on whether the truck was involved in intrastate or interstate transport may govern truck accidents.
  
  

There are a number of things you can do in the first few days and weeks after an accident to protect your right to compensation, such as:

1) Write down as much as you can about the accident itself, your injuries and any other losses (such as wages) you've suffered as a result of the accident.
2) Make notes of conversations that you have with people involved in the accident or the injury claim.
3) Preserve evidence of who caused the accident and what damage was done by collecting physical evidence and taking photographs.
4) Locate people who witnessed the accident and who might be able to help you prove your case.
5) Notify anyone you think might be responsible for the accident of your intention to file a claim for your injuries, especially if a government agency or employee may be involved.
Contact Elk & Elk by phone or chat live to evaluate and pursue your claim and to do all the things stated above on your behalf.

First, you must have suffered an injury to your person or property.

Second, you should consider whether your injury was the result of someone else's fault. It is not always necessary to have a physical injury to bring a personal injury lawsuit. Personal injury claims are often based on a variety of non-physical losses and harms. In the case of an assault, for example, you do not need to show that a person's action caused you actual physical harm, but only that you expected some harm to come to you.

You also may have a case if someone has attacked your reputation, invaded your privacy, or inflicted emotional distress upon you.