Truck Accident Lawyer in Los Angeles: Who Is Liable?

A truck accident in California is sometimes more complicated than a regular vehicle accident. Because truck drivers are usually employees hired by transportation companies, the question that needs to be answered is who can be considered liable for the accident. A truck driver injured on the job is generally limited to workers’ compensation against his or her own employer (Labor Code §3602), but other injured persons can claim that the company that owns the truck can be held liable. Likewise, the company can also accuse the driver of negligence. A truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles can assess any case that involved truck accidents in the state of California. A lawyer can look at the evidence and help build a solid case.

Quick Facts
Common causes of truck accidents	– fatigue, – speeding, – lack of drivers’ training, – distractions, – weather conditions, – mechanical failures, etc.
Institution that regulates the trucking industry in the USA	Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
Possible liable parties	– truck company, – truck driver, – truck manufacturing companies, – other motor vehicle drivers, – government entities, etc.
Proving negligence in a truck accident claim	Through: – eyewitness testimonies, – truck company history, – medical reports, – expert testimony, – video camera footage, etc.
Economic damages	– medical expenses, – lost wages, – property damages, etc.
Non-economic damages	– emotional pain, – loss of career, – post-traumatic stress disorder, etc.
Comparative negligence rule in California	The injured party can still claim damages regardless of its degree of fault. A personal injury lawyer can explain how this rule applies in individual cases.
Common truck accident injuries	– traumatic brain injury, – neck injuries, – burn injuries, – bone fractures, etc.
Truck accidents statute of limitations	2 years from the date of the injury (CCP §335.1); 3 years for property damage (CCP §338); a written claim within 6 months if a public entity is liable (Gov. Code §911.2)
Court proceedings duration	Varies with the complexity of the case
Appeal sentence (YES/NO)	YES
Settlement possibility (YES/NO)	YES
Who files the claim	The injured person, usually through an attorney.
Wrongful death claims	Certain family members (CCP §377.60) may file a claim if a loved one has been killed in a truck accident.
Other personal injury topics on this site	– medical malpractice, – burn injuries, – slip and fall, – birth injuries, – dog bites, etc.
Types of truck accidents in Los Angeles	– rollover accidents, – rear-end collisions, – T-bone accidents, – Jackknife accidents etc.
Truck accident evidence collection	Black box data (event data recorder), accident scene photos, maintenance records, driver logs
Insurance needed in truck accidents (Yes/No)	Yes, trucking company’s liability insurance, truck driver’s insurance and third-party insurance
Truck driver qualifications	CDL (Commercial Driver’s License), medical exam certification, driving record review
Trucking company’s responsibility	Ensuring driver’s safety and taking proper care of the maintenance of trucks
Role of expert witnesses	– accident reconstruction specialists, – medical experts, – vocational experts for lost wages
State vs. federal jurisdiction	Injury claims are generally decided under state law; federal FMCSA safety rules apply to interstate carriers, and California applies similar rules to intrastate carriers.
Truck driver hours of service (Yes/No)	Yes, FMCSA sets rules limiting driving hours.
Determining fault in truck accidents in LA	After analysing: driver’s actions, truck maintenance, employer’s responsibility, road conditions
Trucking accident settlement negotiations (Yes/No)	Yes, mediation or arbitration may be used.
Truck accident compensation factors	– severity of injury, – medical costs, – long-term impact, – loss of earning potential
Importance of early legal intervention	Preventing insurance companies from offering unfair settlements
Impact of trucking accident on victims	Physical disabilities, psychological trauma, loss of income
Truck accident claim timelines	Claims must be filed promptly to ensure legal rights are protected.
Role of government entities in truck accidents	Ensuring trucking companies comply with safety regulations.

Liability for truck accidents, in Los Angeles

Truck accidents can cause serious injuries to the driver and other individuals involved in the car crash and also result in important material damages, especially if the truck was transporting certain goods that can be irreparably damaged in the truck accident.

In Los Angeles, truck drivers are required to have a special license to be able to perform transport activities on large vehicles. Despite the measures taken by the authorities to ensure that the driver is suited for operating a large vehicle and despite the best efforts of transport companies that assess and hire trained professional drivers, truck accidents can be related to the driver’s negligence or non-performance. Driving errors can occur during longer routes and fatigue is a common cause of truck accidents.

It is extremely important to establish exactly why the accident occurred and who can be held liable for the damages. If the driver’s behavior caused the accident, he can be held legally responsible for the accident. The driver’s liability also involves the insurance company, if applicable. According to law, transport companies who hire drivers cannot completely distance themselves from the driver who produced the accident, if he can be held liable. The company can also be held accountable for the accident if the truck is clearly registered in its name and displays the name or logos of the company.

If you are involved in a truck accident in California, the first step after seeking appropriate medical care is to gather actual and accurate accident recount documentation. You should get the accident report from the police and document the medical procedures that were necessary after the accident. You should still notify your own insurer promptly and, if anyone was injured or property damage exceeds $1,000, report the accident to the DMV (SR-1) within 10 days; legal counseling can be sought before giving statements to the other side’s insurer. A truck accident attorney will be familiar with the insurance claim resolution method.

You can watch the following video for more information about personal injuries caused by truck accidents:

Truck accident causes

Truck accidents can take place for a number of reasons, not all of them having to do with driver negligence. Because drivers are regulated, as mentioned above, and they work under contract, drunk driving cases are rare in this scenario, as opposed to regular vehicle accidents. Some causes can be the following:

Impractical schedule: even though there are rules in place for the maximum drive time, some trucking companies can push their employees to a limit that can become dangerous; an improper schedule can lead to fatigued driving which can cause truck accidents;
Lack of training: drivers who have just obtained the commercial driver license may not have had time to become fully accustomed to driving this category of vehicle or they may not have received proper training from the company before starting work;
Distracted driving: this is a cause that is solely linked to the driver, unlike the previous two; a driver who eats while driving or who uses the mobile phone only needs a second of inattentiveness to possibly cause an accident;
Cargo issues: trucks carry different types of cargo and it is the loader’s duty to load it properly as well as secure it in order to prevent damages and accidents;
Others: poor road conditions can be a cause for accidents; while California is a sunny state (i.e., there are no harsh winters and impassable routes during snowstorms), poor road conditions can still cause accidents.

Legislation for truck accidents in California

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the regulating authority in the United States for the trucking industry. It has a separate administration within the U.S. Department of Transportation and sets forth the rules and regulations regarding the maximum drive time and on-duty time for truck drivers, the inspection and maintenance requirements for large vehicles, requirements for weight distribution and loading and unloading requirements.

A driver who violates any of the rules set forth by the FMCSA or any other federal law can be presumed negligent (Evidence Code §669) if the violation caused the accident.

The FMCSA is also the one to provide relevant statistical data on the annual crashes (both fatal and property-damage only accidents) in which large trucks and buses are involved. This report is prepared by the Analysis Division within the FMCSA and it includes data from important sources, such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Below are some of the numbers presented in the 2018 report:

4,862 large trucks were involved in fatal crashes in 2018; truck tractors pulling a single semi-trailer were involved in 55% of the large trucks involved in fatal crashes in 2018 and tractors pulling two trailers were involved in 3% of these fatal crashes; those pulling three trailers accounted for 0.1% of all large trucks that were involved in accidents that year;
however, in 2018 there were approximately 499,000 police-reported crashes in which large trucks were involved and only 4,415 were fatal crashes and 107,000 were crashes that resulted in injuries;
almost 57% of all the fatal crashes involving trucks occurred in rural areas and 26% on interstate highways; 13% occurred on rural interstate highways (thus falling into both categories);
36% of the fatal crashes and 23% of the injury crashes as well as 19% of the property damage only crashes with large trucks occurs at night, between 6:00 pm and 6:00 am; most of these occurred on weekdays;
there were 1.12 fatalities in fatal crashes involving large trucks in 2018; in 90% of the cases there was only one fatality and in 82% of the cases the fatality was not the occupant of the large truck;

As far as the truck drivers involved in fatal accidents in 2018, the data shows that 7% were 25 years or younger and 6% were 66 years old or older. Ten percent of the drivers in large trucks involved in fatal crashes in 2018 were not wearing a safety belt at the time of the accident. There were 885 large truck occupant fatalities in 2018, out of which 84% were the drivers and 16% the passengers.

Negligence in truck accidents

Negligence is a key factor when proving a truck accident claim in Los Angeles. In most cases, it is easy to show that the driver was not paying attention although he had a clear duty of care towards the other traffic participants and their safety. This fist element of duty is easy to show but plaintiffs will also need to prove that the truck driver breached that duty.

The following type of evidence are useful when proving a truck accident injury:

eyewitness testimonies: other driver’s testimonies can be used and you will also be asked to give your own testimony or deposition;
other charges on the other party: does the truck belong to a company that was involved in multiple vehicle accident lawsuits? Maybe you and your Los Angeles personal injury attorney can use this fact to show that the driver was reckless;
expert testimony: this depends on the factors that lead to the crash; however, an expert can prove certain facts or debunk the defense’s claims;
medical reports: these are important as they will show the extent of the injuries and their impact on the plaintiff’s life;
other evidence: drivers can present the detailed logs kept in accordance with the FMCSA provisions; the inspection records can also be presented as evidence (drivers are required to perform these inspections accordingly);
others: in some cases, images or video from in-cab cameras are important; an attorney can advise on using the GPS insight.

If the negligence or omissions of a physician who was treating you for your truck injury cause you more suffering or other symptoms, you can discuss your case with a medical malpractice attorney in Los Angeles. Medical malpractice injuries can result in additional pain and suffering or can prolong the loss of income. Seeking specialized legal assistance is advisable.

The settlement for truck accident injuries

Victims of truck accidents can use the medical reports and bills to show that the accident was a direct cause for their losses and injuries. It is important to prove that a certain injury was caused precisely by the truck accident.

When calculating the final settlement, victims can also include lost wages, apart from the medical expenses. Below, we present a list of the main types of damages that you can include when calculating the amount:

Immediate medical expenses: the direct and immediate costs for the medical treatment after the accident; these are usually easily determined once the patient is discharged;
Future medical costs: for severe injuries, the treatment will be prolonged and in this case the treating physician can help you estimate the costs for the future care;
Lost wages: truck drivers who are unable to resume work can be reimbursed for the wages they lost as a result of the immediate hospitalization;
Future lost wages: severe injuries can mean that a truck driver who was injured in an accident may not be able to work the same hours as before the crash or not at all; reimbursements are possible for future lost income and a truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles can help;
Damages: costs associated with asset or property damages as a direct result of the truck crash.

In some cases, plaintiffs in truck accident cases can claim non-economic damages. These are those for intangible losses and they are best applied for with the help of a truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles particularly because their nature makes it harder to quantify them. These can be awarded for emotional pain, loss of a career as well as post-traumatic stress disorder, to name few of the psychological effects that can be reported after such an accident.

Please keep in mind that this is a general list that can apply in many personal injury cases. You can use an online personal injury calculator to determine the initial amount of the settlement. However, this number should be carefully considered and a truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles can help with a more realistic estimation, once they were able to analyze your case and determine what other factors should be taken into consideration. For example, California is a state where the pure comparative negligence rule applies in personal injury cases. This means that the injured party can still claim damages even if they are at fault for the accident to a high degree (for example, there is no cap on the percentage of fault at 50%, for example). This is an important rule to understand and a lawyer can help determine if and how it applies in your case.

Special assistance from a truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles

Working with a lawyer specialized in truck accidents can help you pursue the compensation you deserve and respond if you are blamed for another party’s negligence. A lawyer can do much more than simply represent you in court or during the negotiations with the defendant. This can include the following:

the lawyer who takes on the case may schedule a visit as soon as you are able to after the first contact; this can be either at the hospital (if you are admitted for a longer period) or at home;
gathering evidence to identify the party at fault and to support your claim;
calculating the compensation that can be claimed;
preparing the documentation and contacting the other party for the purpose of starting the settlement negotiations;
if need be, filing the case in court and, once this takes place, building the case to seek a fair outcome.

More than one party can be involved in the actions that have lead to the unfortunate event. For example, the driver may have shared part of the fault, however, if the cargo dislodged and caused damage, then part of the fault belongs to the loaders. Likewise, if the truck had a malfunction and the driver was unaware of it, the mechanics (which may be represented by a company that provides these particular services to the trucking company that hired the driver involved in the accident) will also share part of the negligence.

As previously mentioned, determining all of the parties involved is an important step. Because more than one legal entity can be involved as a party in the legal proceedings that will follow, it is highly recommended to reach out to a truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles.

A truck accident lawyer can represent the driver who was involved in the accident or, as needed, third parties who need legal assistance with truck accidents. Third parties were those not directly involved in the accident, rather those that had contributed in a way to the accident or the driver’s/other people’s injuries. They can be manufacturing companies or mechanics. You can contact us through the form if you are involved in a truck accident lawsuit not as the driver of the truck but as the third party accused of negligence.

Special assistance is also granted to those who have lost a loved one in a truck accident. As the surviving spouse, domestic partner, child or other heir or dependent listed in CCP §377.60 you may have the right to file a wrongful death claim and recover compensation for the loss of love, companionship and loss of support.

A truck accident lawyer in Los Angeles can help with issues regarding any truck related accident and can also help you if this unfortunate event resulted in wrongful death. You can send an online inquiry through the form if you have any questions.

Legal help is also available for mothers who have suffered birth injuries or whose new-born babies were injured during delivery. Cerebral palsy is one of the most feared conditions that can occur after damage to the brain during birth and a Los Angeles birth injury lawyer can answer questions if you believe that your child was injured.

Other personal injury topics covered on this site:

– brain injury attorneys in Los Angeles,

– slip and fall lawyers in Los Angeles,

– wrongful death attorneys in Los Angeles.

Responsible attorney: Marc Y. Lazo, Esq., State Bar of California No. 215998 · Last updated 29 October 2026