Big Rig Crash Questions Texas Drivers Ask

Why Do Truck Accidents Get Treated Differently Than Car Accidents?

Commercial trucks operate under federal safety regulations that ordinary vehicles never encounter, covering driver hours, vehicle maintenance, and cargo securement. Violations of these regulations can support a claim against not just the driver but the trucking company itself, giving these cases legal angles a typical car accident case does not have.

What Are the Federal Hours of Service Rules?

Under 49 CFR Part 395, truck drivers generally cannot drive more than eleven hours after ten consecutive hours off duty, and cannot drive past the fourteenth hour after coming on duty. Weekly limits cap total driving time at sixty or seventy hours depending on the carrier’s schedule. Electronic logging devices now track this automatically in most commercial trucks.

These limits exist because a fatigued driver behind an eighty thousand pound vehicle poses risks that go well beyond an ordinary tired driver in a passenger car. Even a brief lapse in attention at highway speed can turn into a catastrophic collision, which is why federal regulators built these rules around measurable driving and rest hours rather than relying on drivers to self assess their own fatigue.

• Eleven hour driving limit after ten hours off duty
• Fourteen hour window from start of shift to end of driving
• Sixty or seventy hour weekly caps depending on schedule
• Electronic logs help verify compliance, though discrepancies still occur

Who Can Be Held Liable Beyond the Driver?

A trucking company that pressured a driver to violate hours of service limits, failed to properly maintain the vehicle, or hired a driver without adequate screening can share liability for a crash. Cargo loading companies and parts manufacturers can also bear responsibility depending on what actually caused the collision, which is why a thorough investigation looks well beyond the driver alone.

Identifying these additional parties matters financially as well as legally. A trucking company’s commercial insurance policy typically carries limits far higher than a driver’s personal auto coverage, which means establishing company level liability, not just driver negligence, often determines how much compensation is realistically available.

Does Texas’ Comparative Fault Rule Apply to Truck Crashes?

Yes. Texas follows a modified comparative negligence rule under which an injured person can recover damages as long as they are found fifty percent or less at fault for the crash. If a claimant is found more than fifty percent responsible, they cannot recover damages at all, and any recovery below that threshold gets reduced by their own percentage of fault.

What Evidence Matters Most in a Truck Accident Case?

Electronic logging device data, the truck’s onboard event data recorder, dispatch communications, and the driver’s qualification and training file all become central to building a serious truck accident claim. A Houston truck accident lawyer investigating a crash typically moves quickly to preserve this evidence, since some of it can be routinely overwritten within days if not specifically requested.

How Long Do I Have to File a Claim in Texas?

Texas generally requires a personal injury lawsuit, including most truck accident claims, to be filed within two years of the crash. Given how much of the evidence in these cases sits under the trucking company’s control, starting an investigation early gives a claim the best chance of capturing complete and unaltered records.

Why Do These Cases Often Involve Multiple Insurance Policies?

A serious truck crash can implicate the driver’s personal policy, the trucking company’s commercial policy, and sometimes a separate policy covering the cargo or trailer, depending on the specific business arrangement involved. A Houston truck accident lawyer reviewing a case works to identify every applicable policy, since commercial coverage limits are typically far higher than what a driver’s personal policy alone would provide.

Who Handles These Claims for Houston Residents?

Greenberg Streich Injury Lawyers investigates truck crashes with close attention to the federal safety regulations that govern commercial drivers, building claims around the full range of parties whose conduct may have contributed to a crash rather than stopping at the driver alone.