Alberta law gives you the right to recover for your pain, lost work, and property losses from a truck broadside collision. While one might expect insurance companies to provide fair compensation to victims, they often employ tactics to minimize payouts through various technicalities.
If you want general answers about your next steps, keep reading. If you want specific advice tailored to your unique situation, call MNH Injury Lawyers at (888) 664-5298 to speak with an experienced Calgary truck accident lawyer ready to help.
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Alberta Law: What Sets Your Case Apart
Your recovery after a truck broadside collision depends on legal and insurance rules unique to commercial vehicles. Here’s why truck crashes are in a league of their own:
Alberta Insurance Act: Bigger Stakes, Different Claims
- The Alberta Insurance Act gives you the right to sue the at-fault party, but when a commercial truck is involved, claims often go well beyond the scope of an ordinary car accident.
- Why? Because trucking companies must carry more insurance, and multiple parties are on the hook. You don’t just deal with another driver—you deal with corporate insurance teams and their investigators.
- Section B accident benefits also come into play, but truck collisions usually create losses that outstrip these no-fault benefits quickly.
Standard Automobile Policy (SPF No. 1): More Coverage, More Complexity
- SPF No. 1 sets out the minimum coverage every vehicle in Alberta needs.
- Commercial vehicles, especially heavy trucks, carry mandatory liability coverage far above the basic $200,000 minimum. Most have $2 million or more.
- This higher coverage means greater potential recovery for your claim, but it also means the insurer is more likely to push back hard on major payouts, hiring adjusters and defense lawyers to protect their interests.
Minor Injury Regulation (MR): The Cap That Rarely Fits Truck Collisions
The Minor Injury Regulation caps pain and suffering for soft tissue injuries.
But here’s the difference: truck broadsides rarely result in “minor” injuries. The sheer force involved means victims often suffer concussions, herniated discs, broken bones, or spinal cord trauma—none of which fall under the cap.
More Defendants, More Moving Parts
In a typical car crash, you deal with one at-fault driver and their insurer.
In a truck collision, you face a web of responsibility: the truck driver, their employer, sometimes a leasing company, a cargo loader, or a maintenance contractor.
Each of these parties may have their own insurance policy and legal team, making the process more complex—but also increasing the available insurance limits.
Real-World Consequences
Because of these laws and policies, truck collision cases require more rigorous investigation and more aggressive legal strategies.
The insurer’s pushback will be stronger. The records you need—like electronic logging device data or cargo manifests—are unique to trucking and are not found in regular car accident cases.
The bottom line: Alberta law treats truck accidents differently because the stakes, insurance policies, and injuries are so much bigger. This offers a broader avenue toward appropriate compensation—if you know how to navigate it thoughtfully.
Who Pays After a Truck Broadside
How Fault Works in Alberta
You don’t have to prove the truck driver is 100% at fault. Alberta uses a contributory negligence system. If both parties share some blame, your payout gets reduced by your share of fault, but you don’t lose the right to claim.
Fault Can Be Shared
Common scenarios:
- The truck runs a red light while speeding.
- You enter the intersection as the light changes, but the truck’s excessive speed or distraction causes the crash.
- A mechanical failure ties back to poor maintenance.
Vicarious and Third-Party Liability
You might have claims against:
- The trucking company (vicarious liability for the employee’s actions).
- The owner or maintenance provider (if faulty repairs played a role).
- Even the city, if a poorly designed intersection or faulty signal contributed.
Digging Up the Proof
Truck collisions leave a data trail. Valuable evidence includes:
- Intersection CCTV.
- Dashcam footage (yours or witnesses’).
- ELD records (proving driver fatigue or excessive hours).
- Truck “black box” data (engine, brakes, speed).
- Expert accident reconstruction reports.
Alberta’s Traffic Safety Act gives priority to vehicles already in the intersection. If you had the right of way, the law supports your claim.
Damages After a Truck Broadside: What Counts
Pain, Wages, and More
The law in Alberta covers what you’ve lost and what you’re going to lose. Each category matters.
- Pain and suffering: The courts award this for real, lasting symptoms—headaches, dizziness, sleep problems, anxiety, pain that messes with your day.
- Lost income: Your paycheque matters. If your injury stops you from going back to work or slows you down, you get compensated for what you would have earned. For self-employed people, business records, tax filings, and client emails help paint a clear picture.
- Future loss of earning power: If a brain injury or spinal injury limits your options long-term, your claim includes the gap between what you earned before and what you’re likely to make now.
- Medical and rehabilitation expenses: The National Health Service pays for your hospital stay, but not everything. Prescription drugs, rehab, physio, adaptive equipment, and modifications to your home all get added up.
- Damaged vehicle: The insurer pays fair market value for your car if it’s written off, plus rental car costs until the claim settles.
- Other out-of-pocket costs: Childcare during rehab, housekeeping you can’t do, and ongoing mileage for therapy appointments are all fair game.
When Gross Negligence Raises the Stakes
Most cases resolve as civil claims, but Alberta law allows aggravated or punitive damages if a trucking company’s actions were especially reckless. If a driver broke hours-of-service rules for weeks, or a company skipped safety inspections, you might qualify for extra compensation. Judges use these damages to punish behavior that endangers the public, not just to make up for your direct losses.
Section B Accident Benefits: The Short-Term Safety Net
What Section B Covers
Alberta’s Standard Automobile Policy requires every insurer to offer Section B accident benefits, no matter who’s at fault. You get:
- Income replacement: Up to $600 per week for 104 weeks.
- Medical and rehab costs: Up to $50,000 over two years.
- Death and funeral benefits: Lump sums for surviving families.
These payments kick in as soon as you submit the forms. No lawsuit needed. If you’re recovering, you should file the AB-1 Accident Benefits Application as soon as possible.
Why Section B Is Just the Beginning
Section B benefits provide interim support, but they don’t fully compensate for your losses. Most serious injuries, especially after a truck T-bone, outlast the 104-week limit. Your claim for pain, wage loss, and long-term care picks up where Section B stops. If the insurance company calls your injury “minor” and tries to cut off Section B payments early, you can appeal using independent medical reports.
Pitfalls to Watch For
- Letting the insurer’s in-house doctor decide you’re ready for work.
- Missing the 30-day notice period for your AB-1.
- Accepting the insurer’s “minor injury” diagnosis without your own evidence.
Stay organized. Keep every receipt, appointment record, and email.
Truck Broadsides: Common Injuries
Brain Injuries
A truck T-bone collision can cause serious head injuries. Concussions and traumatic brain injuries show up as headaches, memory lapses, confusion, and mood changes. These symptoms sometimes appear days or weeks after the crash.
Medical experts use MRIs, CT scans, and vestibular testing to document injuries insurance companies try to downplay. Judges accept these reports as proof your injury isn’t minor.
Spinal Cord Trauma
Trucks strike hard enough to compress, stretch, or shear the spinal cord. An incomplete spinal cord injury can leave you with numbness, tingling, or weakness. Complete injuries mean paralysis. Alberta courts look at the need for permanent care, home modifications, and long-term therapy.
Soft Tissue Injuries
Not every injury is visible on a scan. Truck collisions twist your neck and back, causing complex pain syndromes. Chronic pain disorder and myofascial pain syndrome last for years. When your pain limits work or family life, Alberta law lets you claim above the Minor Injury cap. The right medical evidence—daily pain logs, physio records, and functional capacity tests—tips the balance in your favor.
After the Crash: Your At-Home Action Plan
Step One: Notify and Document
The moment you’re back from the hospital, your focus shifts.
- Tell your insurance company you’ve been in a collision. File your Section B Accident Benefits paperwork within 30 days. Get the AB-1 form and send it in. This locks in your right to income replacement and other support.
- Keep a pain and symptom diary. Write every day—pain levels, headaches, memory lapses, sleep problems, everything. Judges value real-time notes.
- Photograph your injuries and your car. Take shots from every angle. Show bruises, seatbelt marks, the crumpled frame. Save these before the insurance company scraps your car.
- Save every record. Doctor’s notes, physio reports, hospital bills, prescription receipts, and any email from your insurer. Digital folders beat paper piles.
- Request crucial evidence from the trucking company. Send a written request (a “spoliation letter”) demanding they keep dashcam, ELD, and black box data. Don’t wait—companies sometimes erase data quickly.
Step Two: Follow Medical Advice
Your recovery depends on staying disciplined.
- Go to every medical appointment. If you skip rehab, the insurance company argues you failed to recover.
- Stick with the therapy plan. If your physiotherapist gives you exercises, log them in your diary.
- Ask for referrals to neurologists, psychiatrists, or psychologists if symptoms linger. Thorough documentation can be crucial in navigating insurance claims.
Step Three: Track Expenses
Every penny counts. Track:
- Out-of-pocket costs for meds, devices, therapy, and travel to appointments.
- Childcare or housekeeping if you’re too sore to manage.
- Lost income—ask your employer for pay records, or gather your business invoices if you’re self-employed.
Mistakes That Shrink Your Claim
Trusting Insurance Too Quickly
Insurance adjusters look for ways to close files fast. If they call your injury “minor,” don’t accept it. Push for second opinions, and get medical evidence.
Oversharing on Social Media
Insurance companies check Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. If you post photos hiking, even on a “good day,” they’ll use it to attack your claim. Don’t post about your recovery.
Admitting Fault in Writing or on the Phone
Avoid apologizing, emailing statements, or speculating about the crash. Insurers frequently twist these into “admissions.” Speak clearly and factually.
FAQ for Truck Broadside Collisions in Alberta
Icy roads, snow, and black ice don’t erase a truck driver’s duty to drive safely. Courts look at the standard of care expected in winter. Drivers must slow down and adjust. Blaming weather rarely succeeds unless the event was truly unforeseeable.
Alberta law lets you sue out-of-province trucking companies if the crash happened here. Insurance reciprocity agreements between provinces help you enforce judgments. Your lawyer coordinates with Alberta’s insurance framework.
Truck drivers almost always have coverage through their employer’s insurance policy. The lawsuit targets the insurance, not the personal assets of the driver. It’s about your recovery, not personal vendetta.
Truck collision claims with serious injuries usually resolve within 18 to 30 months. Complex cases, lots of medical records, or disputed liability slow things down. Most settle at mediation before trial. If your case needs court, your lawyer pushes to keep it moving.
Let Us Shoulder the Heavy Load
You don’t have to go about your claim alone. A Calgary personal injury lawyer at MNH Injury Lawyers will pursue every dollar you’re owed, so you can focus on recovery and living your life again.
Call (888) 664-5298 today and let us help you move forward.
