Truck Accident Lawyers in Los Angeles

In Los Angeles, it’s hard to drive a day without seeing a truck on the road. The Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles serve as the gateways for international trade, making semi trucks frequent visitors of the 710, the 405, the 10, and the 110.

Like with all vehicles on the road, accidents can happen when you least expect them. A truck accident can often be much more dire and complicated than the average car accident. This is where our Los Angeles truck accident lawyers at Vaziri Law LLP, can help you manage the intricacies of liability.

With over $1 billion recovered for our clients and our combined legal experience of over 200 years, our truck accident lawyers in Los Angeles can help you and your family get the support you need after an accident.

Key Takeaways

1. Truck accidents are much more complicated than the average car accident due to the involvement of companies, manufacturers, and commercial drivers.
2. Trucks often have additional equipment on board that allows companies to create driver profiles, but this information must be quickly secured and preserved to make a stronger case.
3. Insurance negotiation can be much more difficult in an accident involving a company versus a single negligent driver
4. Determining compensation depends on the strength of evidence provided by all parties.

How Truck Accidents are Different from Car Accidents

Truck accidents can often differ from car accidents due to the technology inside the vehicle. Many truck drivers are considered third-party operators and have various pieces of equipment aboard that monitor driving patterns and driver behavior.

Some of these include electronic data, driver logs, maintenance records, and compliance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) safety rules.

Electronic Data (ECM, EDR, GPS)

Modern trucks come with various electronic data collection items to monitor a driver’s behaviors such as speeding, braking improperly, or violating hours-of service limits. The following are the three main components truck companies use to monitor their drivers:

• Electronic control module. An electronic control module (ECM) is the vehicle’s brain that manages various aspects of a car’s operation. It collects data from sensors installed throughout the vehicle.
• Event Data Recorder. An event data recorder (EDR) is also known as a black box. These capture speed, braking patterns, throttle position, and other data in the seconds before a crash.
• GPS. A GPS system tracks location and drive time, which can reveal hours-of-service violations.

Hours-of-Service

The FMCSA creates the rules that trucks must follow to stay safe on the road. This includes putting restrictions on driving time.

Property-carrying truck drivers may only drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers may also not drive past the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty, after 10 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers are also not allowed to drive more than 60-70 hours a week. To start driving within a week, drivers must take 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.

Passenger-carrying drivers may drive a maximum of 10 hours after 8 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers may also not drive more than 15 hours after 8 consecutive hours off duty. They also cannot drive after 60-70 hours on duty for 7 consecutive days.

Cargo

Commercial trucks don’t just transport food, furniture, and electronics. Commercial trucks are also used to transport all sorts of everyday items, people, and toxic chemicals. Truck drivers need the appropriate license to transport each type of cargo.

The following are some common items trucks transport:

• Hazardous materials
• Refrigerated items
• Furniture
• Construction material
• Animals
• Heavy machinery

What License Do Truck Drivers Have?

Before getting on the road, truck drivers must have a spotless driving record before entering a specialized school. Here, they learn about the rules of the road and how to safely operate a truck before getting a commercial driver’s license (CDL).

This process takes about 6 months to a year, depending on the applicant. This allows people to drive delivery trucks and big rigs. If a truck driver wants to drive a specific truck, like a garbage truck or tractor-trailer, they must get the license for that specific vehicle as well.

Common Truck Accidents

Truck accidents can happen for a variety of reasons such as negligent driving, poor vehicle maintenance, or even the weather. When driving near a truck, it’s recommended to drive as cautiously as possible. The most common truck accidents are the following:

• Jackknife. This is when the truck folds into itself, creating a 90-degree angle between the cab and the trailer. This usually happens due to sudden braking which leads the trailer to swing out and potentially hit various cars and people nearby.
• Wide-turn collisions. Most trucks come with the wide turn warning sticker. Sometimes, drivers misjudge the size of their vehicle and trap other drivers and/or pedestrians while turning.
• Rollovers. If a driver is driving at high speeds, on steep inclines or slippery surfaces, they can easily roll over.
• T-Bone. Sometimes cars try speeding past a turning truck to avoid getting stuck at an intersection. This poorly timed maneuver can lead to a car ramming into the truck’s side. Sometimes, a truck can misjudge a turn and ram into a car’s side as well.
• Tire blowouts. If a tire suddenly bursts on the road, this can lead the driver to lose control of the car and hit others.

How To Collect Evidence After a Truck Accident

The first 24 to 48 hours after a delivery or semi truck accident are critical. Evidence can disappear; witnesses can become hard to reach, and insurance adjusters may contact you before you’ve even left the hospital. Collect the following evidence to protect your chances of filing a claim.

1. Call Emergency Services. In a truck accident, it’s recommended to call 911 and ask for emergency services. This will get emergency responders and the police to the scene.
2. File a Police Report/ Collect Critical Information. Having the police at the scene also lets you file a police report that documents time, location, people involved, and other information that you will need to show your insurance and attorney. This includes the truck driver’s license, contact details, trucking company information, and insurance details.
3. Take Photos and Collect Video Footage. If you’re able, take photos of the scene. This includes vehicle positions, skid marks, truck company markings, license plates, visible injuries, and road conditions.
4. Collect Witness Information. Get contact information from witnesses. Their statements can be crucial if fault is disputed.
5. Contact a Truck Accident Lawyer Before Speaking to Insurers. Trucking company insurers often reach out within hours, hoping to get a recorded statement or offer a quick settlement before you understand the full extent of your injuries.

Why is This Important?

Starting the documentation process as soon as possible can help strengthen your case. Some injuries—like internal bleeding, concussions, or soft tissue damage—don’t show symptoms right away. Having a medical record created at the scene starts a documentation process that links injuries to the accident in question. Seeing a doctor for a follow-up appointment helps solidify your injuries, which makes it easier for your attorney to make a link between the accident and your injuries.

What Can Los Angeles Truck Accident Lawyers Do for Me?

Truck accidents are much more complex than the average car accident. Why? Well, truck accidents have multiple parties responsible for the trucks on the road. This comes as a surprise to people when they file a claim.

Find Who is Liable

Truck accidents often result in traumatic injuries and significant financial impact. However, finding fault can be a difficult process. Depending on the circumstances of the accident, one or more parties can be held liable for the accident. The following listed parties are the parties that can potentially be held liable in a truck accident case.

Truck Drivers

If a truck driver is found to have been negligent through drowsy driving, traffic violations, distractions, and/or DUIs, they can be held liable for the accident.

Trucking Companies

Trucking companies can be held liable for hiring unqualified drivers, providing inadequate training, and/or pressuring drivers to violate safety rules.

Freight Brokers

Freight brokers coordinate shipments by connecting companies who need freight moved with trucking companies looking for a shipment. While no one directly interacts with them, freight brokers can be held liable if they hire trucking companies with poor reputations.

Distribution Centers

When a truck comes into a distribution center, they can be loaded or unloaded with cargo. When loading cargo, distribution centers must properly load and avoid overloading trailers to prevent cargo from spilling out onto the road.

Maintenance Companies

Trucks require consistent inspections and maintenance to ensure that the trucks on the road are as safe as possible. If these companies fail to properly repair or identify a safety hazard, they can also be held liable for an accident.

Manufacturers

In some cases, manufacturers can be held liable for accidents. If an investigation shows that a manufacturer provided defective parts that led to an accident, they can be held liable for the accident as well. Cases like this can become doubly complicated with the addition of product liability laws

Prove Liability

Liability refers to the party responsible for the accident or injury. Proving liability in a case requires thorough investigation using the evidence clients and the other parties provide.

Attorneys must prove that the defendant had the responsibility to act in a certain manner to avoid injuring other people. They must also prove that their clients suffered as a direct result of the defendant’s negligence.

What Evidence is Needed?

First, attorneys need to establish who is responsible for the accident. The duty of care differs based on who is responsible. In a truck accident, this can be determined using the following pieces of evidence:

• Photos
• Videos
• Police report
• Driver logs
• Inspection reports
• Hours-of Service violations
• Driver behavior
• Trucking company safety standards
• Black box information

File a Spoilation Letter

In many cases, companies don’t keep their records of each individual ride for very long.

The information most truck accident attorneys look for in a case is stored inside the black box, also known as the EDR. Some companies keep their black box data stored for 30 days, and others keep them up to 90. This uncertainty between company to company makes visiting a truck accident attorney within the first 30 days after an accident to prevent the loss of this information.

Compensation Clients Can Receive

Truck accident victims in Los Angeles may recover compensation for economic and non-economic damages. In some extreme cases, victims may also gain additional money from punitive damages.

Economic Damages

Economic damages refer to items with fixed prices. This includes:

• Medical costs. These expenses include emergency treatment, surgery, hospitalization, medications, therapy, assistive devices, home modifications, and long-term care for permanent disabilities
• Lost income. If injuries sustained in a truck accident prevent you from working, you can claim lost wages and, in serious cases, diminished future earning capacity.

Maximum Medical Improvement

Maximum medical improvement (MMI) is a medical and legal term that indicates an injury will not get better with further treatment. Once this point is reached, this usually marks the end of temporary disability benefits and begins calculating permanent disability benefits.

At the end of treatment, patients receive an impairment rating. This is a percentage that a doctor assigns to the loss. This number reflects how much someone’s body has deteriorated due to the accident and is added to medical costs.

However, this number is not finite. Patients can challenge this rating and get a second opinion from an independent medical examiner.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages refer to psychological damages. This includes:

• Pain and suffering. This refers to all physical pain and the duration the pain will last.
• Emotional distress. This refers to the development of ailments such as PTSD, anxiety, and other conditions that could manifest after a traumatic event
• Disability. If someone was made disabled due to the accident, they can also be compensated for the effect this will have on the rest of their lives.
• Loss of quality of life. If the stress of a truck accident and injury impact caused a dip in the victim’s quality of life, those losses can also be compensated for.

Punitive Damages

In cases where defendants are found to have acted in an extremely reckless manner such as DUI, knowingly operating unsafe trucks, or falsified safety records, California allows punitive damages to punish defendants and deter misconduct. This is not a part of the initial compensation and added as a bonus for the victim.

How a Settlement is Determined

When determining a settlement, attorneys first need to calculate the total of the damages and consider comparative fault.

Damage Total

Compensation is often the combined total of economic and non-economic damages. However, non-economic damages do not have a set monetary value, which makes it difficult to determine an appropriate compensation package. To overcome this, adjusters will add up the total amount of economic damages and then do one of two things to calculate non-economic damages: use the per-diem method or the multiplier method.

• Per-diem method. The per-diem method pays the victim a daily wage, usually reflected by their average wage, and pays that for the amount of days the victim is expected to suffer.
• Multiplier. The multiplier method takes the total of the economic damages and multiplies it by a number between 1.5 and 5. The number depends on the severity of the damages inflicted on the victim. The higher the number, the more severe the damages are.

Comparative Negligence

The final piece of the puzzle is comparative negligence. California abides by comparative negligence laws which states that everyone involved in an accident may hold some percentage of responsibility. This percentage is calculated based on the evidence provided in an investigation. For example, if someone is 10% at fault for $500,000 in damages, they’d recover $450,000.

This is why Vaziri’s truck accident attorneys strongly advise against taking any fault for an accident; an investigation may show that their client was less responsible than they believed.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Long Do I Have to File a Truck Accident Lawsuit in California?

In most cases, clients have two years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. If a government entity is involved (such as a city-owned truck), you may need to file a claim within six months. Missing this deadline can make your claim null and void. Avoid this by consulting with an attorney as soon as possible.

Can Undocumented Victims Still Sue for Damages?

Yes. California Civil Code § 3339 states immigration status does not affect your right to file a personal injury claim in California. You can pursue compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering just like any other victim. Your immigration status will not be reported or used against you as evidence in the legal process.

How Much Does a Truck Accident Lawyer Cost?

Most truck accident lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. That means you pay no upfront costs. At Vaziri, we only collect a fee when your case is resolved. Our fee is a percentage (usually between 30 and 40%) of your settlement or verdict, so there’s no out-of-pocket financial risk to hiring experienced legal representation.

Will Posting on Social Media Hurt My Case?

Yes, it can. Insurance companies and defense attorneys routinely monitor social media for posts that contradict your injury claims. A photo of a hike or other physical activity can be taken out of context and used to imply that you’re faking or overblowing your injuries. To protect yourself, avoid posting on social media and change the permissions on your profile so no one can tag you in posts until the case is resolved.

Do I Have to Appear at Court?

Truck accident cases, like the average personal injury case, often do not require victims to go to court. Most cases are resolved before they ever reach trial. However, in the rare chance that you must present yourself at court, your truck accident attorney will let you know well in advance to prepare you for the case.

How Soon Will the Trucking Company’s Insurer Call Me?

Often within hours or days. Adjusters move quickly to get recorded statements or offer low settlements before you understand the full extent of your injuries. Politely decline to give a statement and refer them to your attorney. Anything you say can be used to reduce or deny your claim.

What if the Black-Box Data Is Missing?

If critical electronic data has been destroyed or overwritten, we can file a spoliation motion arguing that the trucking company or driver destroyed evidence. Courts may impose sanctions, allow a jury to infer the missing data was unfavorable to the defendant, or even dismiss the defendant’s defenses in extreme cases.

What if Somone Died in a Truck Accident?

If someone immediately passed away due to a truck accident, the surviving family can file a wrongful death suit on behalf of that person. If the person remained alive for a certain amount of time after the accident before succumbing to their injuries, their estate can file for a survival action.

What is Survival Action?

Survival action is essentially a personal injury case, but it is filed by a personal representative of the estate. The only difference is that the person who would be claiming compensation for their injuries is deceased. The compensation does not go to the surviving family, but it goes into the decedent’s personal estate.

Can Both Be Filed at the Same Time?

Wrongful death and survival actions can be filed together or separately as the estate/family wishes.

Contact Vaziri Law LLP for a Free Consultation Today!

Truck accidents are complex, and insurance companies know it. They hope victims are overwhelmed, uninformed, and willing to settle quickly. Review our truck accident case results to see how we can help you like we have our past clients.

Our team of dedicated attorneys investigate every angle, preserve critical evidence before it disappears, and deal directly with insurers and their attorneys so you can focus on healing.

If you’ve been injured in a truck crash in Los Angeles, we’re here to help you pursue the compensation you deserve. Contact us today for a free consultation; there’s no fee unless we win your case.