Truck Accident Lawyers in San Antonio, TX

Common Causes of Truck Accidents in San Antonio

The injuries arising from commercial vehicle collisions often necessitate lifelong care and therefore demand comprehensive compensation that reflects their far-reaching impact.

In 2023, Texas recorded 705 large trucks involved in fatal traffic crashes — the highest in the nation — accounting for over 11% of all fatal truck accidents in the U.S. Understanding how these crashes happen helps us establish negligence and hold the responsible parties accountable.

Driver Fatigue

Despite Federal hours-of-service regulations limiting driving time, many truck drivers exceed the legal limits due to company pressure or personal ambition. Drowsy drivers have reaction times similar to drunk drivers and can easily cause accidents with lethal consequences.

Distracted Driving

Texting, eating, using GPS apps, or messing with radios or other devices can take a trucker’s attention off the road for long enough to cause a preventable accident. Such distractions can provide the basis for a negligence claim.

Speeding and Aggressive Driving

When truck drivers exceed safe speeds for the road conditions or follow too closely, they lose the ability to react appropriately to traffic patterns. For truckers, aggressive driving is not only irresponsible but potentially life-threatening.

Impaired Driving

Alcohol, illegal drugs, and prescription medications can all hinder a trucker’s judgment and coordination. Companies that don’t have strong drug-testing programs are essentially enabling preventable crashes.

Poor Vehicle Maintenance

Brake failures, tire blowouts, steering issues, and lighting failures can result when companies cut corners. These sorts of mechanical failures can point to corporate negligence.

Improper Loading

Overweight or unsecured cargo can increase the risk of rollovers, jackknifes, and load spills. The loaders may share liability when these mishaps cause crashes.

Inadequate Training

Trucking companies that rush training or neglect ongoing safety education unleash dangerous drivers. Our lawyers will work to prove that corporate failures contributed to your collision.

Unreasonable Schedules

Tight deadlines can make drivers feel like they need to speed, forgo rest, or drive while fatigued. This sort of pressure adds up to negligence.

Truck Accident Injuries That Demand Justice

Commercial vehicle collisions can cause debilitating injuries requiring lifelong care and financial support. Here are some of the types of harm we see most often:

Traumatic Brain Injuries

Traumatic brain injuries can range from concussions to severe brain damage causing cognitive impairment, personality changes, memory loss, and permanent disability. Extensive medical treatment and ongoing rehabilitation are often necessary to treat these conditions.

Spinal Cord Injuries

Partial or complete paralysis can change every aspect of the victim’s life, creating a need for home modifications, specialized medical equipment, and lifelong care. We can pursue compensation that covers all of your future needs.

Severe Burns

When trucks catch fire or lose hazardous cargo, victims can suffer burns that require multiple surgeries, skin grafts, and pain management. Effects like permanent scarring and disfigurement warrant substantial compensation.

Amputations

Loss of limbs may necessitate prosthetics, ongoing rehabilitation, home modifications, and adaptation to permanent disability. We’ll fight for compensation that reflects the true scope of your injuries.

Multiple Fractures

The aftermath of broken bones, which may include surgery, pins, plates, and extended rehabilitation, can prevent you from working and enjoying life. We’ll document all impacts to ensure that you receive a fair recovery.

Internal Organ Damage

Blunt force trauma to the chest and abdomen can damage the heart, lungs, liver, spleen, and kidneys, potentially requiring emergency surgery and extended hospitalization.

Wrongful Death

When you lose a loved one in a truck accident, we can pursue compensation for funeral and burial expenses, lost financial support, lost companionship, and the emotional trauma felt by you and the other survivors.

Compensation We Pursue in Truck Accident Cases

Our tenacious San Antonio truck accident attorneys will calculate every loss you've suffered and will suffer in the future to see that you’re repaid in full. Here are some of the damages that may be available in your case:

Texas Truck Accident Laws You Need to Know

We’re prepared to leverage our unmatched knowledge of Texas law to protect your rights and maximize your recovery. Here are a few key points you should be aware of:

Comparative Negligence

Texas follows a modified comparative fault law. If you're less than 51% responsible for your accident, you can recover compensation, which will be reduced by your assigned percentage of fault. However, if you're 51% or more at fault, you’ll recover nothing.

Trucking companies often exploit this rule by blaming victims, making effective legal representation vital.

Statute of Limitations

With rare exceptions, Texas law gives injury victims two years from the original accident date to file a personal injury lawsuit. Missing this deadline will derail your claim regardless of its merit.

It’s also important to note that wrongful death claims follow the same two-year timeline from the date of death.

Evidence Preservation Requirements

Federal regulations require trucking companies to preserve certain records, but these requirements have time limits. Electronic logging device data, for example, must be retained for only six months. We’ll send preservation letters immediately to prevent the destruction of key evidence.

Commercial Vehicle Regulations

FMCSA regulations govern driver qualifications, hours of service, vehicle maintenance, cargo securement, and safety procedures. Violations of these regulations can strengthen your case and help establish liability.

Texas Transportation Code

State laws regarding commercial vehicles, including requirements for insurance coverage and safety equipment, provide additional grounds for liability when trucking companies violate them.