Did You Suffer a Spinal Cord Injury from a Truck Crash?

If you have suffered a spinal cord injury from a truck crash in Colorado, you already know how fast life can change. The spinal cord is vulnerable during any type of crash, but those involving heavy commercial vehicles and extreme force have the potential to do the most harm. When a truck crash causes serious damage to your spine, the right legal team can help protect your rights and pursue the resources you will need to make the fullest recovery possible.

At Burg Simpson, our truck crash lawyers have been helping truck crash spinal cord injury victims seek justice for nearly 50 years. We understand the financial, physical, and emotional complexities that can accompany these injuries. We are here to evaluate your injuries, identify who caused them, and assist you in obtaining every penny you are due.

Spinal Cord Injury from a Truck Crash? Talk to a Lawyer for FREE

To schedule a FREE case review with one of the truck crash attorneys at Burg Simpson, call our Denver office at 303-792-5595 today. We serve victims of spinal cord and other serious injuries from communities along the Front Range, Eastern Plains, Western Slope, and throughout the state.

How Truck Crashes Cause Spinal Cord Injuries

At a biomechanical level, spinal cord injury often results from axial loading, hyperflexion or hyperextension, rotational forces, or burst fractures. In simple terms, this means the spine is pulled or compressed, over-stretched, severely twisted, or broken in multiple places.

A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds and carry a tremendous amount of force. Even at low speeds, a collision between one of these massive vehicles and a smaller object, like a passenger car, can violently jar passengers and drivers, making extreme spinal contortions more likely.

Spinal cord injury from a truck crash may occur following:

• Rear-end collisions that drive the torso forward.
• Side-impact and underride/override events that concentrate force into the neck and upper back.
• Rollover and jackknife crashes that can twist the spine.
• Cargo-shift incidents that alter stopping distance and stability, increasing the risk of high-energy impacts.

Any truck accident can result in spinal cord injury. When you or someone you love is the victim, it is important to know where to turn for help. At Burg Simpson, our experienced legal team offers cost- and obligation-free case reviews to help you understand your options and determine how to proceed without losing money or committing to a specific course of action.

Types and Levels of Truck Accident-Related Spinal Cord Injuries

There are two primary types of spinal cord injury:

• Complete, meaning there is no sensation or voluntary movement below the level of injury.
• Incomplete, meaning some function below the level of injury is preserved, though outcomes vary widely and often depend on stabilization and rehabilitation.

Both complete and incomplete injury can impact the cervical spine, resulting in breathing difficulties, a loss of hand and arm function, and impact the stability of the autonomic nervous system. They can also impact the thoracic spine, causing issues such as impaired trunk control and loss of lower-extremity function. Lumbar and sacral injuries are also common in truck accidents, potentially resulting in a loss of mobility, bowel and bladder function, and sexual health.

Secondary complications from spinal cord injury may include autonomic dysreflexia, respiratory compromise, spasticity, neuropathic pain, and pressure injuries. Difficult enough to handle on their own, complications from spinal cord injury can also be fatal. The mortality rate for individuals with SCI is three times higher than for those without the injury.

The Long-Term Impact of Spinal Cord Injury from a Truck Crash

Depending on its severity, a spinal cord injury may require immediate emergency care. This can include immobilization and stabilization, respiratory assistance, and systems stabilization. Surgery and traction may also be necessary during the acute treatment stages of spinal cord injury.

Many victims of spinal cord injury will also require inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient physical and occupational therapy, medications, spasticity management, and specialty care both in and out of the home. Home and vehicle modifications, along with equipment and supplies, such as wheelchairs, lifts, and pressure-relieving furniture, may also become necessary.

Care after a spinal cord injury is not inexpensive. Lifetime costs can extend into the millions.

Find more statistics at Statista

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These expenses can be made more burdensome when your ability to work is impacted. While some people are able to resume prior roles with or without accommodations, others may require vocational retraining or face a permanent loss of earning capacity.

A loss of independence, chronic pain, and other consequences of spinal cord injury can also have a profound impact on your emotional health and well-being. PTSD, depression, anxiety, frustration, and other difficult psychological states are much more common in people dealing with spinal cord injury than in the general population. When you are seeking damages for a spinal cord injury from a truck crash, these, along with your financial concerns, must be taken into account.

Compensation You Can Pursue After a Truck Crash Spinal Cord Injury

The best truck accident attorneys in Colorado take time to carefully evaluate how an injury has and will continue to impact your life and fight for compensation that is representative of your experiences. Depending on the circumstances of your case, damages for a spinal cord injury following a truck crash may include:

• Medical care (past and future), medications, equipment, and supplies.
• Rehabilitation and therapy, including inpatient, outpatient, and specialized programs.
• Home and vehicle modifications and accessibility technology.
• Attendant and nursing care, respite services, and caregiver expenses.
• Lost wages and diminished earning capacity.
• Physical pain and suffering, inconvenience, and new limitations.
• Emotional distress, loss of enjoyment in life, and forced changes to lifestyle.

Economic damages, those with an established or provable cost, can be sought dollar-for-dollar in Colorado. However, non-economic damages are capped at $1.5 million for claims filed after January 1st, 2025. For claims filed before this date, those damages are capped at $613,760.

At the Denver office of Burg Simpson, our attorneys draw on the national resources of our firm. We may work with life-care planners, economists, vocational experts, accessibility specialists, and others who can help ensure that all of your damages, including those without an established cost, are correctly calculated. We have secured a number of significant settlements and verdicts for victims of serious injury. We will carefully assess your damages and fight for the fair and full compensation you are due.

Why Choose Burg Simpson for Your Truck-Related Spinal Cord Injury Case?

Burg Simpson is an award-winning law firm with decades of experience helping victims of spinal cord injury from a truck crash get the compensation they deserve. Big enough to take on the largest corporations, we never lose sight of what matters: your health, happiness, and future.

When you work with us, we stay directly involved in your case, maintaining clear and consistent communication, and making sure you are never left wondering what comes next. Equal parts attentive and aggressive, our trial attorneys have the resources and drive to take these claims as far as necessary in our pursuit of justice.

Talk to a Truck Crash Attorney in Denver for FREE

If you have suffered a spinal cord injury from a truck crash, use our online contact form or call our Denver office to schedule a FREE and confidential consultation today. We proudly represent clients living in all areas of Colorado.