The rise of Amazon has changed shopping, and shipping, as we know it. Americans increasingly have their retail purchases delivered to their homes and businesses instead of picking them up from brick-and-mortar stores. Amazon currently controls nearly half of all of these online sales.
In its effort to gain and maintain this staggering share of U.S commerce, Amazon has promised consumers ever-faster shipping and redesigned its shipping network to fulfill these promises. Unfortunately, faster shipping means more pressure on delivery drivers to maintain schedules, resulting in more dangerous driving and more accidents. If you or someone you love has been injured in an Amazon truck accident, the personal injury lawyers at The Stoddard Firm may be able to help you get financial compensation.
Every company that puts vehicles on the road has a duty to prioritize road safety, and many don’t fulfill this duty. For those that primarily use semi-trailers to transport large quantities of goods, the problems tend to look much the same from one company to another. Amazon doesn’t operate like other companies, however, so the threats it poses to public safety are consequently unique.
Amazon’s delivery system is made up in significant part by small, local subcontractors. Contracting with local small businesses sounds like a positive thing, but in Amazon’s case, it gives this massive corporation an artificial layer of insulation against vital accountability and regulation. According to investigative reports by Pro Publica and others, Amazon contractors have been involved in dozens of accidents causing injuries and deaths over the past several years. There have likely been more accidents that were never identified as Amazon-related.
Under many circumstances, it’s reasonable to argue that one company isn’t responsible for what another company does, even if they’ve had regular business transactions with each other.
Amazon uses this logic to avoid responsibility for the injuries and deaths its contracted drivers cause, but the validity of the argument depends on how much power a company has over the acts of negligence in question.
For these small shipping contractors, Amazon is often the sole or main client, meaning Amazon has total control over whether the contractor thrives or fails. In media interviews, former contractor employees have described how Amazon directly controlled the minutiae of their daily operations as well, tracking them through their package scanners and reporting delays to their supervisors. Court testimony from past disputes even suggests that Amazon has used its power to dictate hiring and firing decisions for its contractors.
This is exactly the kind of power an employer wields over employees, and it’s that power that makes an employer responsible for the results of those employees’ actions. Yet Amazon staunchly refuses to recognize this duty. At The Stoddard Firm, our skilled Atlanta truck accident lawyers don’t let them get away with it.
Our firm is unique in that our founder, Matt Stoddard, has worked on both sides of personal injury law. Prior to opening his own law firm that exclusively represents injured parties, he defended the large and powerful corporations he now sues. This insight into how these companies operate and the lengths they will go to in avoiding accountability allows him to predict their possible defense strategies and counter them for the benefit of clients.
All our attorneys handling Amazon truck accident cases are focused on providing:
We provide free consultations so that you can learn whether you have a strong case and how we can help you.
Trying to hold Amazon accountable for your injuries or your family member’s death can be a very stressful and frustrating experience. It may also well be fruitless without the help of a knowledgeable law firm that exists to fight for the rights of people injured due to negligence.
When we help you with your case we will:
We will be with you through every step of the legal process, addressing your concerns and standing up for your interests.
Can I get payment if my family member was killed in an Amazon truck accident?
If your loved one died in an Amazon truck accident and you are an eligible survivor, you may be able to get compensation through a wrongful death lawsuit. Compensation could include payment for funeral and burial costs, medical expenses incurred due to the injury, pain and suffering, lost companionship and support, and lost income of the deceased. Our law firm can review the circumstances and advise you about your rights in filing a claim.
How much money will I get for my injuries?
There is no one answer to this question. How much money you could potentially get will depend on all the factors of your case. The extent of your injuries and damages, the strength of the evidence against Amazon and/or its subcontractor, and the skill of your attorney will all be major contributors.
How long do I have to file a lawsuit against Amazon?
Generally, the statute of limitations, or deadline, for filing a personal injury lawsuit in Georgia is two years from the date of the accident. For wrongful death, the deadline is two years from the date of death. There are some exceptions to these deadlines. If you are considering filing a lawsuit against Amazon, speak with one of our attorneys to get specific filing dates for your case.
We will answer questions specific to your case when we speak with you.
Substandard working conditions for commercial drivers are always a public health hazard, because exhaustion, stress, and pressure to hurry will make drivers less attentive and more likely to make tragic mistakes that cause serious injuries. This issue can be observed in the operations of most companies that rely on drivers, but the conditions reported by Amazon contracted drivers go far beyond long workdays and other common complaints.
In just one example, an Amazon contracted driver pulled out in front of a motorcycle, knocking the driver to the ground and leaving him unconscious. A bystander had to perform CPR until the victim could be airlifted to a hospital. The subsequent lawsuit against Amazon alleged that the accident was the direct result of Amazon’s placing unreasonable pressure on its contractors, in some cases demanding that drivers meet quotas of more than one delivery every two minutes for the entirety of each workday.
In addition to the workload, drivers across multiple Amazon contractors have spoken of stolen overtime pay, broken promises of benefits, and a workplace culture of intimidation and retaliation, in which they were threatened or punished with withheld paychecks, harder routes, no routes at all, or being assigned to vehicles with faulty brakes. When drivers are treated this way, it is not surprising that devastating accidents can result.
While Amazon’s direct influence on its drivers’ safety standards should not be ignored, it’s also true that some of its subcontractors go above and beyond when it comes to worker abuses and irresponsible business practices. In spite of Amazon’s claims that it regularly audits its contractors’ operations, these kinds of problems don’t seem to concern the ecommerce behemoth.
In an investigation of Amazon contractor operations by BuzzFeed News, the criminal and civil accusations against contractor executives ranged from fraud to cocaine addiction to gambling binges with embezzled money. One manager allegedly left over a hundred drivers without pay and then told a dispatcher to “find a better lie to tell them” when they stormed the office demanding answers. Another allegedly ordered a driver to flee the scene of an accident where the driver had killed a dog. None of this apparently prompted Amazon to intervene or take their business elsewhere.
Nor has Amazon set forth any helpful standards for the recruitment or training of the drivers themselves, in spite of its willingness to use unemployment as a perpetual threat. Unlike other large delivery services, which conduct extensive safety training and background checks, some Amazon contractors only require a standard, non-commercial driver’s license and insurance — even though personal insurance often won’t be honored if the policyholder was driving professionally at the time of an accident. In such cases, consulting an Amazon truck accident lawyer in Atlanta can be crucial for understanding legal rights and navigating insurance complexities
Amazon has gone to great lengths to avoid accountability for its dangerous policies. Some survivors of Amazon-related accidents have not known whose products the at-fault driver was carrying, and others have been shocked and disappointed to see Amazon avoid liability for their injuries in court.
The Stoddard Firm’s passion and focus is holding wealthy and powerful corporations responsible for the harm they cause, and securing compensation for their victims. If you’ve been injured or lost a family member to an Amazon delivery driver, whether or not the vehicle was labeled or officially owned by Amazon, we’re here to help you fight back. We have the experience necessary to show the court what the accident has cost you, what should have been done to prevent it, and who sacrificed your safety for their bottom line.
Matt Stoddard is a professional, hardworking, ethical advocate. He routinely faces some of the nation’s largest companies and some of the world’s largest insurers – opponents who have virtually unlimited resources. In these circumstances, Mr. Stoddard is comfortable. Mr. Stoddard provides his strongest efforts to his clients, and he devotes the firm’s significant financial resources to presenting the strongest case possible on their behalf. Matt understands that his clients must put their trust in him. That trust creates an obligation for Matt to work tirelessly on their behalf, and Matt Stoddard does not take that obligation lightly. [ Attorney Bio ]
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