Suing a Trucking Company: Legal Guide After Car Accidents

Cut through all the legal mumbo-jumbo and get real is Suing a Trucking Company

After a truck accident, most folks think it’s all on the driver—like, “Hey, you crashed into me, so you’re paying for it!” But hang on, it isn’t always that simple. Trucking companies can 100% get pulled into a lawsuit, and honestly? Sometimes they’re way more responsible than the poor sap behind the wheel.

WHEN CAN YOU BLAME THE TRUCKING COMPANY?

These companies don’t just sit around cashing checks. They’re supposed to actually, you know, keep things safe and follow the rules. If they screw up, they’re on the hook. There’s this thing called vicarious liability—basically employer gotta answer for the employee. Welcome to grown-up consequences, corporate edition.

• Hiring drivers who clearly shouldn’t be anywhere near a semi (think: sketchy driving record, zero training, maybe a DUI or five).
• Pushing drivers to work marathon shifts when they should be sleeping.
• Skipping oil changes, letting brakes wear out, ignoring that weird noise coming from the engine.
• Cramming way too much stuff in the trailer or just chucking cargo in like they’re playing Tetris on hard mode.
• Cooking the books—faking logbooks, pretending the truck is up to code, classic sketchball moves.

This is where an actual truck accident lawyer comes in—digging through the paperwork, looking for all these screw-ups to build a case.

HOW DO THEY PROVE IT’S THE COMPANY’S FAULT?

Here’s the thing: If the driver is officially an employee and just doing their job when the crash went down, you can drag the whole company into court. If the driver’s a freelancer? Ehh, dicey—but not impossible.

• What’s the driver’s contract say? Who signs their paychecks?
• How much does the company boss people around? Are they telling drivers exactly where, when, and how?
• Was the company micromanaging the schedule or just letting the driver freelance it?

Figuring all this out is key. Sometimes the company tries to play dumb, but that doesn’t always fly.

COMPANIES CUTTING CORNERS: BIG NO-NO

If the company hires a driver with a rap sheet longer than your arm? Or skips basic training? Yeah, that’s a lawsuit waiting to happen. Examples that’ll bite them:

• Bringing on drivers with nasty DUIs or a history of wrecks.
• Not showing drivers how to handle a massive rig (seriously, it’s not a Honda Civic).
• Skipping drug screening (because, you know, “What could go wrong?”).
• Letting commercial licenses expire and just not caring.

Lawyers know how to find receipts on this stuff—sometimes literally.

MISSING OIL CHANGES & DODGY REPAIRS

Listen, semis are like ticking time bombs if you ignore maintenance. Bald tires, rotted brakes, lights that don’t work? That’s an accident just waiting to happen.

• Ignoring regular maintenance or not keeping records (surprise, surprise).
• Skipping out on needed repairs to save a few bucks.
• Letting some sketchy backyard mechanic work on the trucks.

Maintenance logs and service records turn into gold when you’re in a legal fight.

WHEN THEY BREAK THE FEDERAL RULES

The FMCSA (yeah, it’s a mouthful: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) has a ton of rules. If the company is pushing drivers to break them, boom: instant ammo for your case.

• Telling drivers to run illegal hours, skip breaks, or fudge the logs.
• Awful results on safety audits.
• Not keeping an eye on GPS and electronic records.
• Just flat-out ignoring required checkups.

A good lawyer will pull all this stuff—and use it to paint the company as a danger on the roads.

WHAT KIND OF MONEY CAN YOU GET?

Suing a company instead of a single driver? Way bigger payout (usually). Companies have those high-limit commercial policies. You could get cash for:

• Doc bills—both past AND whatever you’re stuck with long-term.
• Stress/pain/mental whiplash.
• Time off work or losing your job.
• Car wrecked? They pay.
• Sometimes even extra (punitive damages) if the company’s behavior was super shady.

EXCEPTIONS: WHEN YOU MIGHT BE STUCK

Alright, not every case is a slam dunk. Stuff that could block you from suing:

• The driver’s a true independent contractor, and the company didn’t really control anything—that’s a tricky one.
• The company’s gone bankrupt or closed up shop.
• You already signed a “we’re done here” agreement—read the fine print next time!

EVIDENCE: WHAT YOUR LAWYER NEEDS

Winning the case? It all comes down to receipts, baby:

• ELD data (that’s the digital log of a truck’s every move).
• Truck maintenance and repair logs.
• Training records.
• FMCSA reports—they love paperwork.
• Dashcam or security footage (the good stuff).

Any lawyer worth their salt collects this whole stack and throws it at the company like Judge Judy with a bad attitude.

SHORT VERSION

To put it bluntly: yes, you can sue the trucking company in a lot of cases. Not just the driver, but the big fish, too. It’s about holding them accountable, getting more money for your trouble, and maybe—just maybe—making the roads a little safer for the rest of us. Get a lawyer who knows the game. They’ll dig up what really happened and make sure you get what you deserve.