Truck accidents cause some of the most devastating injuries on the road. A fully loaded commercial truck can weigh 80,000 pounds, making collisions with passenger vehicles catastrophic. These cases are more complex than typical car accident claims because they involve federal regulations, multiple liable parties, and aggressive corporate defense teams.
Truck accident cases involve layers of complexity that standard car accident cases do not. Trucking companies are governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and must follow strict regulations regarding hours of service, vehicle maintenance, driver qualifications, and cargo loading. Violations of these regulations can establish negligence. Multiple parties may be liable, including the truck driver, the trucking company, the cargo loading company, the truck manufacturer, and maintenance providers.
Truck accidents frequently result from driver fatigue and hours-of-service violations, distracted driving, improper cargo loading or overloading, inadequate vehicle maintenance and brake failures, speeding and aggressive driving, impaired driving, and failure to account for weather or road conditions. Electronic logging devices (ELDs) and black box data from the truck can provide critical evidence in these cases.
Due to the massive size disparity between commercial trucks and passenger vehicles, truck accident injuries tend to be severe. They commonly include traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and paralysis, multiple bone fractures, crush injuries, severe burns, amputation, and wrongful death. The medical costs associated with these injuries can be enormous, making it essential to pursue full and fair compensation.
We move quickly to preserve critical evidence in truck accident cases. This includes sending spoliation letters to prevent the trucking company from destroying evidence, obtaining the truck's black box data and electronic logs, reviewing the driver's qualification file and training records, analyzing maintenance records and inspection reports, and retaining accident reconstruction and trucking industry experts.
Attorney Mike Zara handles truck accident cases in all six states where he is licensed: