A Texas truck accident lawyer builds your claim from the records the trucking company keeps about the truck and the driver.
You pay nothing unless we win. Zinda Law Group offers a free consultation about a truck accident at (800) 863-5312.
Article summary
Key things to know
- A trucking company can answer for its employee driver’s negligence and for its own safety failures.
- Texas’s collision-lawsuit definition of a commercial vehicle has no weight threshold.
- By NHTSA’s count, Texas had more large trucks in fatal crashes than any other state in 2024.
- NHTSA counted 720 people killed in Texas crashes involving large trucks in 2024.
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The job of a Texas truck accident attorney
A Texas truck accident attorney handles claims for truck accident victims against the trucker and trucking company behind a crash. The work starts at the very beginning, with evidence. The law firm asks the trucking company in writing to preserve evidence, including its driver logs, driver file and repair records. Its legal team gathers police reports and witness statements.
A personal injury lawyer answers the insurance company and checks each offer against your medical bills and lost wages. If the insurer will not make a fair settlement offer, you can file a lawsuit. Look for a law firm whose experienced truck accident attorney knows the federal rules.
On the other side are the trucking company, its insurance company and the insurance adjusters assigned to the file. A Texas truck accident attorney deals with each of them, so you are not negotiating with the insurer on your own.
Texas’s general deadline and fault rules cover many car accident claims a Texas personal injury lawyer handles, and other injury claims can follow different rules.
What to do after an 18-wheeler accident in Texas
The first step after a serious accident with an 18-wheeler or other commercial truck is medical care, even for an injury that seems minor. Accident victims who seek medical attention early let medical providers record the injuries and the treatment, and those records support the claim for medical bills.
The investigating officer’s crash report, photos of the vehicles involved and the names of other drivers and witnesses help a Texas truck accident lawyer rebuild the crash. The crash report number and any letters from the insurer belong in the file too.
Federal rules also start a clock for the carrier. After covered fatal crashes, a trucking company must test a surviving truck driver who performed safety-sensitive functions for alcohol and drugs. The rules stop the attempts after 8 hours for alcohol and 32 hours for drugs. Testing after a crash without a death depends on how soon the driver is cited and on the injury or tow-away conditions in the rule.
Texas rules that shape a truck collision claim
Most Texas truck accident cases follow the general rules below.
| Rule | What the statute says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Injury lawsuit deadline | Generally two years from the day the claim accrues | Section 16.003(a) |
| Shared fault | Barred above 50 percent, otherwise reduced by the claimant’s share | Sections 33.001, 33.012 |
| Claims against government | Notice is generally due within six months of the incident, and a city charter can set a different period | Section 101.101 |
| Medical expenses | Recovery is limited to the amount actually paid or incurred | Section 41.0105 |
Every section cited is in the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. These are general statutory rules with exceptions.
Filing deadlines
Questions about how much time you have?
Trucking rules that leave records after a crash
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) writes the safety regulations for the trucking industry. A broken regulation does not prove fault by itself.
Texas law directs the Department of Public Safety to adopt truck safety rules consistent with federal regulations and allows adoption by reference. Truck hours and insurance in Texas are set by both state and federal laws.
Which trucks the rules cover
Texas truck accident cases use three definitions of a commercial truck. Federal rules generally cover interstate freight vehicles at 10,001 pounds or more by vehicle or combination weight or rating, plus certain hazardous-material vehicles. TxDOT uses the officer’s CMV checkbox. For collision suits, Texas defines CMVs by commercial use, without a weight test.
Large trucking companies and small commercial trucking companies that run those trucks across state lines generally answer to the same federal trucking regulations.
Driving hours and electronic logs in Texas trucking
Federal rules generally limit a property-carrying truck driver to 11 driving hours within 14 consecutive hours after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off, subject to exceptions.
Texas intrastate rules generally allow 12 driving hours after 8 consecutive hours off duty and prohibit driving after 15 hours on duty, subject to exceptions. Most interstate carriers must have drivers use an electronic logging device, with exceptions, and keep the logs for at least six months. A truck accident attorney checks those logs against the hours rules.
Driver qualification files
A motor carrier must keep a driver qualification file for each truck driver it employs. The file holds the employment application and a note on the annual review of the driver’s driving record. The carrier keeps it while the driver works there and for three years after.
For interstate driving, federal rules bar a carrier from letting anyone drive a commercial truck unless the driver is qualified. Interstate drivers generally must be at least 21 and properly licensed, among other qualifications. A driver file can also expose Texas truck licensing fraud, such as falsified driver documents.
Maintenance records and inspection reports
For trucks a carrier controls for 30 consecutive days, inspection and maintenance records stay one year, and six months after control ends. Those records show the date and nature of each inspection and repair. Drivers generally must report safety defects they find in vehicle inspections, and carriers keep those reports for three months.
Insurance on commercial trucks
Federal financial-responsibility minimums depend on vehicle weight, cargo and operations, with higher requirements for specified hazardous loads, and a truck accident lawyer checks that coverage early. A motor carrier that must register in Texas has to maintain liability insurance in an amount the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles sets.
Weight limits
A general 80,000-pound ceiling in Texas law on a group of axles has exceptions, and lower axle limits also apply.
Texas truck crash statistics
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) counted 38,533 crashes involving a commercial motor vehicle in Texas in 2025. Of those, 469 were fatal crashes in which 528 people died. A crash counts in TxDOT’s data when the investigating officer checked the CMV box on the crash report. That is not a count of 18-wheelers, and it says nothing about fault.
TxDOT counted 39,393 CMV crashes in 2024. Of those, 546 were fatal crashes in which 608 people died, and 1,601 people had a suspected serious injury.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) counted 699 large trucks in fatal crashes in Texas in 2024, more than in any other state. It also counted 720 people killed in those Texas crashes, the highest total.
In the United States, NHTSA counted 5,340 people killed in traffic crashes involving large trucks in 2024. It estimated that 161,201 people were injured. Those trucks were 9 percent of the vehicles involved in fatal crashes, 5 percent of registered vehicles and 10 percent of vehicle miles traveled. Counts of accidents involving trucks do not show who caused any one crash.
Types of truck collisions in Texas
A truck crash is not a car accident between two passenger vehicles.
Tractor trailers, 18-wheelers and big trucks
Tractor trailers are often called semi trucks, big rigs or 18-wheelers. Federal rules require cargo on tractor trailers and other big trucks to be secured so it does not leak, spill, blow or fall off. Unsecured cargo can turn a lane change into an 18-wheeler accident.
In semi truck accidents, the load is part of the evidence. The cargo securement rules apply to trucks, truck tractors, semitrailers and full trailers. Cargo must not shift enough to affect the vehicle’s stability or maneuverability.
Blind spots, stopping distance and wide turns
FMCSA says large trucks have large blind spots, long stopping distances and wide turns, and can need the length of up to two football fields to stop safely. A truck accident lawyer compares those limits with the crash report.
Commercial vehicles, delivery trucks and tow trucks
Texas law has its own definition of a commercial motor vehicle for a bodily injury or death lawsuit over a commercial vehicle collision. It covers a vehicle used for commercial purposes to transport property or passengers, deliver or transport goods, or provide services. It has no weight threshold and leaves out a vehicle used for personal, family or household purposes at the time. A commercial vehicle accident can involve a tow truck or a delivery van.
Commercial vehicle accidents include commercial truck crashes with large commercial vehicles run by a business. An Amazon delivery accident can involve a delivery van that fits this Texas definition.
18-wheeler and semi truck accident claims in Texas
An 18-wheeler accident claim follows the same Texas rules as any truck accident case. What changes is the evidence. In semi truck accidents, the trailer, the cargo and the company that loaded it matter alongside the driver. Liability for shifted cargo depends on who loaded and inspected it.
A semi truck that carries freight across state lines falls under the federal safety rules, so a truck accident lawyer asks for the logs, the driver file and the inspection reports early. Other drivers and witnesses who saw the semi truck before the crash are part of that evidence. In large truck accidents involving an 18-wheeler, the evidence decides which companies the claim names, from the carrier to the loader.
Truck accident injuries in Texas
A truck wreck can leave truck accident victims with serious injuries. FMCSA says trucks are often 20 to 30 times heavier than a passenger vehicle and a tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds fully loaded.
That weight raises the risk of severe injuries, and truck accident injuries fall hardest on the people in the smaller vehicle. The worst cases involve catastrophic injuries or fatal truck accidents. How painful injuries affect your work and daily life shapes what you ask for.
By NHTSA’s count, 70 percent of the people killed in large truck accidents in the United States in 2024 were in other vehicles. Another 17 percent were in the large trucks, and 12 percent were pedestrians, cyclists or others outside a vehicle.
Insurance companies and truck accident victims
After a truck crash, the trucking company’s insurance company works for the carrier. Its insurance adjusters do not work for truck accident victims. An adjuster may ask for a recorded statement or offer a quick payment before the medical treatment is finished.
A truck accident lawyer can take those requests and compare any offer with the medical bills, the lost wages and the care still ahead. Accident victims with catastrophic injuries can need care long after the crash, so a truck accident attorney looks at the full medical picture before valuing the personal injury case.
Which companies can be held liable in Texas
The truck driver and the trucking company are the first two potentially liable parties. A truck driver’s logs and the crash report can show speeding, distracted driving or reckless driving. Under Texas law an employer is vicariously liable for its employee’s negligent acts within the course and scope of employment.
In a commercial truck accident, that rule needs proof that the driver was an employee acting in the course and scope of employment. Whether a driver is an independent contractor is a separate question.
A trucking company also has duties of its own under federal rules. It may not let an unqualified person drive, or require or permit a driver to drive while driver fatigue or illness makes driving unsafe. A claim can name the company for breaking one of those duties and causing the crash.
A truck accident lawyer checks who loaded the cargo, who repaired the truck and who made its parts. Multiple liable parties can share one claim, and you can pursue compensation from each of the responsible parties.
Governmental units in Texas may be liable for injuries proximately caused by employees’ negligent vehicle operation within employment, subject to employee liability and immunity exceptions. Texas limits the damages in those claims, and the limits differ for the state, local government units and cities.
How shared fault works in Texas
Texas calls its fault rule proportionate responsibility. With sufficient evidence, the judge or jury assigns fault among claimants, defendants, settling persons and properly designated responsible third parties.
Each percentage is a whole number. If your percentage is more than 50 percent, you may not recover damages. At 50 percent fault or less, damages are reduced proportionally. Twenty percent fault means a 20 percent reduction before other adjustments.
Trucking companies and their insurance companies may try to shift blame to the injured person. A truck accident attorney answers that with the police report and the carrier’s records.
Damages in a Texas truck accident claim
In truck accident cases, a personal injury claim asks the liable parties to pay for what the crash cost. The proof decides whether you recover compensation for each loss. Texas separates economic damages, such as medical bills and lost income, from non-economic damages such as physical pain and suffering. The statute lists other non-economic damages as well.
- Mental anguish and emotional pain
- Loss of consortium, and loss of companionship and society
- Disfigurement and physical impairment
- Inconvenience and loss of enjoyment of life
Exemplary damages require clear and convincing proof of fraud, malice or gross negligence. For truck accident cases covered by Texas’s commercial-vehicle collision law, a timely defendant motion requires a two-phase trial. The first phase decides liability and compensatory damages, and the second decides exemplary damages. Texas caps exemplary damages, with exceptions for conduct described as certain felonies in the Penal Code.
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How a Texas truck accident case moves forward
Investigation of a Texas truck accident
After an 18-wheeler accident or other truck wreck, early investigation can include preservation requests to the carrier. A truck accident attorney’s legal team asks for its logs, driver file and maintenance records, along with the crash report and your medical records. Those records may help establish what happened and the losses the crash caused in the personal injury case.
The insurance claim
A truck accident lawyer sends the claim to the trucking company’s insurer with the medical bills, lost wages and the other losses. The insurer can accept it, offer less or deny it, and a truck accident settlement ends the claim against the parties it releases.
A lawsuit
A claim that does not settle needs a lawsuit filed before the Texas deadline runs. At trial, trial lawyers present the evidence to the jury in the phases the court orders. Before trial, discovery allows each side’s trial lawyers to request relevant records. An unresolved case may proceed to trial before a judge or jury.
Common causes of Texas truck accidents and the records behind them
A truck accident lawyer investigates possible causes and requests relevant records, which may be incomplete or unavailable.
- Electronic logs may reveal hours violations or suggest fatigue
- Shipping papers and loading records may identify cargo issues
- Maintenance and inspection records may reveal missed repairs
- A driver file may reveal missing qualifications
- Speeding and distracted driving can show in the crash report and phone records
How long a trucking company keeps its records
Federal rules set how long a carrier keeps the records a Texas truck accident attorney asks for, so the request goes out early.
| Carrier record | Retention period | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Hours of service logs and supporting documents | Six months or more | 49 CFR 395.8(k) |
| Driver inspection reports | Three months | 49 CFR 396.11 |
| Inspection, repair and maintenance records, for trucks controlled 30 consecutive days | One year, and six months after the truck leaves the carrier’s control | 49 CFR 396.3(c) |
| Driver qualification file | While the driver is employed and three years after | 49 CFR 391.51(c) |
When a truck crash in Texas is fatal
Fatal injuries after a truck crash can give the family a claim of its own. In fatal truck accidents, a Texas wrongful death action is for the exclusive benefit of the surviving spouse, children and parents. Its deadline runs from the death and not from the crash. The injured person’s own personal injury claim survives to the heirs, legal representatives and estate.
A wrongful death lawsuit needs liability. The death must come from a wrongful act, neglect, carelessness or default of the defendant or the defendant’s agent or servant. A death caused by the defendant’s willful act or omission or gross negligence allows exemplary as well as actual damages.
Texas wrongful death attorneys confirm which family members hold the claim, and a truck wrongful death case adds the carrier’s records to that proof.
Choosing a Texas truck accident lawyer
These questions help you compare Texas truck accident attorneys before you sign anything.
- Who will handle my truck accident case day to day?
- Which carrier records will you request first, and when?
- Have you handled an 18-wheeler accident claim in Texas?
- Which Texas deadline applies to my claim?
- How are fees and case costs handled if the case does not win?
- How will you keep me updated?
Truck accident lawyers across Texas
Our law firm handles claims in cities across the state.
- North Texas. Dallas truck accidents, Fort Worth truck accidents, Arlington truck accidents, Carrollton truck accidents, Denton truck accidents, Frisco truck accidents, Garland truck accidents, Grand Prairie truck accidents, Irving truck accidents, McKinney truck accidents, Mesquite truck accidents, Plano truck accidents, Richardson truck accidents
- Central Texas. Austin truck accidents, Round Rock trucking accidents, San Marcos truck accidents, Temple truck accidents, Waco truck accidents, Killeen truck accidents, College Station truck accidents
- Houston, San Antonio and the Gulf Coast. Houston truck accidents, San Antonio truck accidents, Corpus Christi truck accidents, Baytown truck accidents, Beaumont truck accidents
- West Texas. El Paso truck accidents, Lubbock truck accidents, Midland truck accidents
Talk to a Texas truck accident law firm
Use the case evaluation page to ask our Texas truck accident attorneys for a consultation about the crash, relevant records and possible deadlines. If you hire our law firm, our legal team works to recover compensation while you focus on treatment.
Zinda Law Group is a personal injury law firm that represents injured people across Texas. Our firm works on a contingency fee basis, so there is no out-of-pocket cost to secure the legal representation you need. A written fee agreement sets out how fees and case costs are handled.
