Amazon ships hundreds of thousands of packages every day. That means any time you drive, there’s a good chance you’re going to see an Amazon delivery truck.
What you might not know is that many of the drivers operating these vehicles are inexperienced. This is largely because there is a high turnover among Amazon delivery truck drivers. If you combine that with the fact they each deliver about 250-300 packages per day, it significantly increases the risk of being involved in a crash.
If you get injured in a collision with an Amazon delivery truck, there are certain steps you should take to protect your health, safety, and the potential for a claim compensation.
Here’s what a step-by-step look at what you should do if a driver for Amazon hits your car:
Call TSR Injury Law today to discuss your claim: (612) TSR-TIME.
1. Call the Police to Report the Crash With the Amazon Truck
If an Amazon driver has hit your car with their delivery truck, the first thing you should do after the accident is call the police. Minnesota requires you to call the police after any crashes that cause:
- Injuries or fatalities OR
- $1,000 or more in property damage
When the responding officer arrives, he or she will assess the scene, evaluating the damage to both vehicles and making note of any injuries. The officer’s observations will be noted in an accident report, which will help you when pursuing insurance compensation. In essence, the report helps connect your injuries and property damage to the collision.
Responding officers will also take whatever steps are necessary to help secure the scene and keep passing drivers away from the scene. This is important for keeping you and the truck driver safe while the officer assesses the scene and completes a report.
When you call the police, be sure to tell the dispatcher if they should send an ambulance to provide treatment and/or transportation to the hospital.
You may think your injuries are not that serious, but this is not something you should determine on your own. Instead, err on the side of caution and allow a licensed medical professional to evaluate your injuries.
Amazon trucks are often much larger than the vehicles they hit, which could result in severe injuries, such as:
- Broken bones
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Internal injuries
- Back injuries
- Soft-tissue injuries like whiplash
- Spinal cord injuries
2. Exchange Information With the Amazon Driver
While you wait for law enforcement to arrive, you should exchange information with the Amazon truck driver, including:
- The driver’s name
- The driver’s insurance information – Does he or she have coverage from Amazon? Does he or she have commercial insurance?
- Whether the driver is on duty – if the driver is on duty, Amazon and its insurance carrier may be liable for your damages
- Contact information
- The license plate number of the truck – take a picture of the plate or write down the number
3. Get Medical Care for Your Injuries
You may be able to seek compensation for the crash, but your health is the priority. The first place you should go after leaving the scene is the emergency room. There you can be seen by qualified medical professionals to identify your injuries and begin to take steps to stabilize them.
Seeking immediate treatment is not only important for your health, but also your claim. Immediate treatment leaves little doubt about the cause of your injuries. If you wait to go to the hospital, insurance companies are likely going to claim your injuries were caused by something else.
4. Document the Crash
It is certainly helpful when our clients gather information about their crash while they are at the scene. However, this should only be done if you will not be putting yourself in danger or aggravating your injuries. If you are unable to move your car out of the flow of traffic and away from danger, it may be best to stay in your vehicle until the police arrive.
Some of the ways you can document the scene of your Amazon delivery truck crash include:
- Photographing both vehicles
- Photographing debris created by the collision
- Taking pictures of visible injuries
- Asking witnesses for their contact information
- Writing down or recording a video on your smartphone in which you describe what you remember about the crash (what you were doing, what it looked like the other driver was doing, what you believe to be the cause of the crash)
5. Call an Experienced Attorney
You may think about calling the liable insurance company to file a claim and begin the process of pursuing compensation. However, if you have a significant injury, insurance companies are going to look for some reason to deny your claim. They may also offer a tiny sum of money to settle your claim. Even if the offer sounds like a lot, there’s a good chance it’ll be nowhere close to the actual value of your damages.
In addition, you may have a long-term injury, which means you may need significant compensation for months or even years down the road. In these situations, you need an experienced attorney to help you seek full compensation. Without full compensation, you might not be able to get all the treatments your doctor recommends. Financial struggles may also arise if you are unable to work due to your injuries. This is even more reason to reach out to an experienced attorney for options and advice.
Talking to the insurance company can be a bad idea because you might say something that hurts your claim:
- “I will be OK.”
- “I should have been more careful.”
- “I aggravated my back injury.”
- “I could not see the truck.”
These are just a few examples of innocent statements victims often make. However, things you say can be used against you and could hurt your claim for compensation from Amazon regarding your auto accident.
You should not try to take on powerful insurance companies, especially those associated with a huge company like Amazon, on your own. At TSR Injury Law, our experienced attorneys can manage the entire legal process on your behalf. This means we can:
- Determine the liable insurance companies
- File your claim
- Determine the full value of your damages
- Negotiate for compensation
- Gather evidence to build a strong case
- Bring in experts when necessary (medical experts, accident reconstruction experts, etc.)
- And more
We have the resources and experience to manage your case from start to finish, and there are no upfront costs.
Can Amazon Be Held Liable for Your Crash?
This is just one of many examples of a question that an experienced attorney from our firm can answer. Often the answer to this question is no. Amazon is not going to be held liable for damages from a crash caused by an Amazon delivery driver.
Amazon delivery truck drivers are independent contractors. They are not employees of Amazon, even though:
- Drivers wear uniforms with the Amazon logo.
- Drivers operate Amazon trucks.
- Amazon determines drivers’ routes and supplies – they control drivers’ schedules.
It is cheaper to employ independent contractors because they do not have the same rights as employees. Part of the reason it is cheaper is that Amazon is unlikely to be held liable for damages caused by the actions of independent contractors.
All of this means Amazon is probably not directly liable for your damages. Your attorney will likely need to file a claim with the private insurance policy held by the independent contractor. Amazon may have hired the driver through another company. If so, they may have insurance coverage for the driver who caused your crash.
Minnesota is a no-fault state, so you can also seek first-party compensation from your own car insurance coverage. This could include compensation for medical expenses and other damages.
Amazon Employees vs. DSP Contractors: Who Is Liable?
Most drivers delivering Amazon packages are not Amazon employees. Instead, Amazon contracts with small local companies called Delivery Service Partners (DSPs), which hire their own drivers.
From the outside, it can be hard to tell. DSP drivers wear Amazon uniforms, drive Amazon-branded vans, and follow Amazon’s delivery metrics. But because Amazon classifies these drivers as DSP employees rather than Amazon employees, Amazon will typically argue it has no direct liability for a crash.
Whether Amazon itself can be held liable is a more complex legal question that depends on the degree of control Amazon exercised over the driver’s work.
What if the Amazon Truck Driver Hits My Car and Runs?
Despite being an unfortunate situation no matter what, when the vehicle that hit you and ran is a marked Amazon delivery truck, that detail can help investigators. Amazon trucks are identifiable, and the company’s delivery records and GPS tracking may help law enforcement locate the driver.
That said, you should still take the same steps you would after any hit and run when the perpetrator is an Amazon truck:
- Try to note the license plate number
- Mark down the direction the truck went and any identifying details you can
- Call the police immediately and report the crash
- Do not chase after the driver
Because Minnesota is a no-fault state, you can turn to your own personal injury protection (PIP) coverage for medical expenses regardless of whether the driver is found. If the driver cannot be identified, your uninsured motorist coverage may also apply.
What if the Driver Was Using His or Her Own Vehicle?
The Amazon Flex program allows people to deliver packages using their own vehicles. If the at-fault driver for Amazon was using a personal vehicle, you may have a compensation claim from that driver’s personal auto insurance policy.
Amazon also provides a commercial auto insurance policy for these drivers. Compensation from this insurance may be available if you exhaust the driver’s personal insurance policy.
Compensation for an Amazon Delivery Truck Crash
Victims of Amazon delivery truck crashes may be able to seek compensation for economic and non-economic damages, such as:
- Past and future medical costs
- Lost wages
- Lost earning capacity
- Damage to your vehicle
- Pain and suffering
- Cost of replacement services
- And more
Call TSR Injury Law to Discuss Your Car Crash Claim
When an Amazon driver has hit your car and after you call the police, the next people you should call are us.
TSR Injury Law has been helping victims of motor vehicle crashes for decades, securing millions on behalf of our clients. Overall, our firm has obtained more than $1 billion for our clients.
An initial consultation is free, and there are no upfront fees for our services. We are not paid for representing you unless we secure compensation.
Contact us right away. Phone: (612) TSR-TIME.
