How Truck Accident Cases Differ From Car Accidents

If you have been injured in a collision involving a commercial truck, you may already sense that your situation is more complicated than a typical car accident. That instinct is correct. Truck accident cases differ from car accident cases in almost every meaningful way, from the severity of injuries to the number of parties involved to the federal regulations that govern the trucking industry. Understanding these differences is the first step toward protecting your rights.

At Anderson Blanda & Saltzman, our truck accident attorneys in Lafayette have spent decades handling commercial vehicle cases across Louisiana. We have a proven record of securing maximum compensation for our clients. If you have been injured in a truck accident, we want to help you. Call us today at (337) 233-3366 or visit our contact page and schedule a free consultation.

The Scale of Injuries Is Different

The most immediate difference between a car accident and a truck accident is the potential for catastrophic injury. A fully loaded commercial truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds under federal law. The average passenger vehicle weighs roughly 4,000 pounds. When those two vehicles collide, the results are devastating for the occupants of the smaller vehicle.

Truck accident victims frequently suffer injuries that go far beyond what is typical in a car accident, including traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, multiple fractures, internal organ damage, severe burns, and wrongful death.

These injuries often require lengthy hospitalization, multiple surgeries, long-term rehabilitation, and in many cases result in permanent disability. The financial stakes of a truck accident claim are typically much higher, which is one reason insurance companies and trucking companies fight these claims so aggressively.

Federal Regulations Apply

Car accidents are governed almost entirely by state law. Truck accidents are governed by both state law and a separate layer of federal regulations issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

These regulations cover every aspect of commercial trucking, from how many hours a driver may operate without rest, to how trucks must be inspected and maintained, to what qualifications a driver must hold before getting behind the wheel.

When a truck driver or trucking company violates these federal rules, that violation can serve as powerful evidence of negligence in a Louisiana personal injury claim.

Multiple Parties May Be Liable

In most car accidents, the question of liability is relatively straightforward. One driver or the other caused the crash, and their insurance responds. Truck accident cases routinely involve multiple parties who may each bear some responsibility:

The truck driver, whose negligence, fatigue, or impairment may have caused the crash
The trucking company, which may be liable for negligent hiring, inadequate training, unrealistic scheduling, or failure to maintain its fleet
A cargo loading company, if improperly secured or overloaded freight contributed to the accident
A truck manufacturer or parts supplier, if a mechanical defect played a role
A maintenance contractor, if negligent repairs contributed to a mechanical failure

Identifying every liable party is one of the most important tasks in a truck accident case, because missing even one can leave significant compensation on the table. At Anderson Blanda & Saltzman, our Lafayette truck accident lawyers carefully investigate your crash to help identify all possible causes and potentially liable parties to help you secure maximum compensation.

Insurance Coverage Is Typically Much Higher

Louisiana requires passenger vehicle drivers to carry at least $15,000 in bodily injury liability per person and $30,000 per accident. Most commercial trucks are required to carry far more. Under federal regulations, most interstate carriers must maintain a minimum of $750,000 in liability coverage, and carriers hauling certain hazardous materials must carry between $1 million and $5 million.

Higher coverage limits mean larger potential recoveries, but they also mean that insurance companies have much more at stake and will defend these claims with significantly more resources.

Trucking insurers frequently deploy specialized adjusters and defense attorneys to investigate crashes immediately after they happen, often before the injured victim has even left the hospital.

Evidence Must Be Preserved Quickly

Car accident evidence, such as the police report, photos, and witness statements, is important in any claim. But truck accident cases involve a much broader category of evidence that can disappear quickly if not preserved promptly.

Commercial trucks are equipped with electronic logging devices (ELDs) that record driving time and hours-of-service data. Many trucks also carry event data recorders, dash cameras, and GPS tracking systems. The trucking company maintains driver qualification files, drug and alcohol testing records, maintenance logs, and inspection reports for each vehicle in its fleet.

Federal regulations require carriers to retain certain records for specific periods. Still, data can be overwritten or lost, and trucking companies have no incentive to preserve evidence that may be used against them. An experienced car accident attorney in Lafayette should send a formal spoliation letter, legally requiring the company to preserve all relevant records, as soon as possible after a crash.

Our truck accident lawyers take swift action to help preserve vital evidence before it is lost or destroyed.

The Investigation Is More Complex

A car accident investigation typically focuses on the crash itself, the vehicles involved, and the drivers. A truck accident investigation goes much further. In addition to reconstructing the crash, an attorney investigating a truck accident will review the driver’s logbooks and ELD data for hours-of-service compliance, examine the driver’s qualification file for licensing and training records, and analyze the truck’s maintenance and inspection history.

They may also need to obtain the company’s safety rating and FMCSA compliance history and, in some cases, work with accident reconstruction experts and trucking industry specialists to build a complete picture of what went wrong.

This level of investigation takes time and resources. It also requires familiarity with the FMCSA regulatory framework governing the industry, which is why experience with commercial vehicle cases is especially important when choosing an attorney.

Talk to a Lafayette Truck Accident Attorney

Truck accident cases require a level of investigation, legal knowledge, and resources that go well beyond what most car accident claims demand. At Anderson Blanda & Saltzman, our team of attorneys bring more than 100 years of combined experience, a 99% success rate, and over $300 million recovered for our clients to every commercial vehicle case we handle.