Dallas Truck Wreck Lawyer

Dallas has gained notoriety in recent years because of its high incidence of truck wrecks, resulting in catastrophic injuries and fatalities for the victims. Since 2018, commercial vehicle accidents in Dallas have consistently increased year-on-year with more than 4,000 truck wrecks reported in the city in 2021.

While the law mandates large amounts of liability insurance coverage to protect the rights of truck accident victims in Dallas, the at-fault truckers, trucking companies and insurance companies often fight aggressively to deny that right to the victims.

If you have suffered injuries or someone you love was killed in a truck accident, the Dallas truck wreck lawyers at Miller Weisbrod Olesky can help you obtain your rightful financial compensation. Our award-winning and accomplished legal truck wreck team has a track record of large settlements and verdicts in Dallas truck injury cases. We are prepared to do what it takes to get you the maximum compensation from all the liable parties and help you and your family move forward in life.

Clay Miller knows how to try cases to a jury. With a history of million dollar plus verdicts and punitive damage verdicts not just in Dallas, but across the country when you hire Clay Miller and Miller Weisbrod Olesky, you know you have a firm with an actual track record. These verdicts help drive settlements for our Dallas Truck Wreck clients.

Examples of our Truck Wreck and Commercial Vehicle accident settlements include:

$8,750,000.00 - We represented the families of two individuals who were killed by a truck driver who fell asleep at the wheel of his semi truck following his Christmas holidays.

$7,000,000.00 - Our client was hit head on by a company truck. Her vascular system was badly damaged and over the course of a month her lower leg’s blood flow was so compromised that serious gangrene set in leading to an amputation.

$6,000,000.00 - $6 million for the family of a female driver killed by a distracted truck driver.

$5,800,000.00 - A truck driver for the largest milk hauler in the United States fell asleep at the wheel, causing a wreck that killed our client.

$5,450,000.00 - Oilfield Services truck changed lanes forcing another vehicle to take evasive action. The vehicle lost control and crashed head-on into another vehicle traveling in the opposite direction. A person in each car is killed and passenger seriously injured.

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Based on our established track record and long list of satisfied clients, the excellent Dallas truck wreck lawyers at Miller Weisbrod Olesky will leave no stone unturned to prove the liability of all the parties responsible for your accident and injuries. That’s the only way to maximize your compensation when all liable parties are made defendants and held accountable before the law.

Potential liable parties in a truck wreck include:

• Truck driver
• Trucking company (that employed the negligent driver)
• Truck’s owner
• Truck manufacturer
• Truck brokers
• Third party contractors for cargo loading
• Truck repair and maintenance company
• Road construction company
• Local or state government agencies

According to the FMCSA, speeding, drunk driving, and driver fatigue are three of the most common causes of truck crashes. In the experience of our Dallas truck wreck lawyers, some of the major causes of injuries and wrongful death in truck accidents in Dallas include:

• Distracted Driving: Using in-vehicle computer and communication systems, texting, talking, eating, or engaging in other activities while driving.
• Drowsy or Fatigued Driving: Lack of sleep, high stress levels, physical exhaustion due to excessive driving, leading to drowsy, fatigued, or inattentive driving.
• Aggressive Driving: Speeding, tailgating, road rage, weaving in and out of traffic, attempts at sideswiping, and other aggressive driving behaviors.
• Driving while Intoxicated: Use of alcohol, certain prescription drugs, banned substances, or recreation drugs while operating the truck.
• Incorrect Cargo Loading: Improper loading, overloading, loose, or unsecured cargo, and/or unauthorized hazardous cargo in the truck.
• Poor Truck Maintenance: Failure to rotate or replace tires, faulty brakes, steering problems, or defective components in the truck.
• Driving in Violation of Rules: Driving under pressure from the trucking company in violation of HOS rules or other FMCSA or state regulations.
• Poor Hiring Practices: Trucking company hiring incompetent drivers, failure to provide proper training, or not conducting background checks.

10 Facts About Truck Wrecks in Dallas, Texas

• A recent study by Outdoorsy named Dallas as the most dangerous city for driving in the United States, ranking it at #1 among top 10 dangerous cities.
• Commercial truck activity is booming in Dallas, with Dallas-Fort Worth area reporting an accelerating local economy and huge additions to the job numbers because of the incoming stream of Americans arriving from high tax states.
• There is a record shortage of qualified commercial truck drivers in Dallas, with the trucking companies struggling to keep up with the demand.
• Trucking companies in Dallas often hire young or inexperienced drivers, who are either more reckless or lack the skills and temperament for safe driving.
• Trucking companies in Dallas put direct or indirect pressure on truck drivers to meet unrealistic deadlines, leading to Hours of Service violations.
• Driver fatigue is a leading factor in commercial truck wrecks in Dallas. Studies show that 13% of all serious truck wrecks involve driver fatigue.
• Commercial truck drivers in Dallas often drive too fast for the road conditions. This factor contributes to 23% of all commercial truck wrecks.
• Dallas is a major center for oil and gas companies, so the commercial truck travel with oil or other hazardous cargo is more common in the area.
• Interstate 20, which passes through Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) metroplex area is the 2nd deadliest highway in the country.
• Drowsy driving, distracted driving, improper cargo loading, and excessive speed are the top four causes of commercial truck wrecks in Dallas.

Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) can range from mild to fatal. Concussions, comas, and permanent cognitive disability are some of the consequences of TBI, depending on the extent of damage. Dallas truck wreck lawyers at Miller Weisbrod Olesky have represented hundreds of truck wreck victims that have suffered varying levels of brain injury. Our truck wreck attorneys arrange expert medical evaluation that our clients need for an accurate brain injury diagnosis. In truck wrecks, traumatic brain injuries are the frequently the most under-diagnosed injuries, leading to delay in treatment and worsening of the patient’s condition.

At Miller Weisbrod Olesky, our Dallas truck wreck accident attorneys work with brain injury medical specialists including neurologists and neuropsychologists that have an expertise in properly diagnosing traumatic brain injuries. Our attorneys will assist you or a family member in obtaining these expert medical evaluations and testing including:

• Magnetic Resonance imaging (MRI)
• Electro-Encephalogram (EEG)
• Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) and/or neuro-psychological testing

Brain injuries often require physical, occupational and cognitive therapy or rehabilitation in order to return our clients to as close to their lives pre-truck wreck as possible. Miller Weisbrod Olesky arranges therapy and rehabilitation for our truck accident victim clients. After representing hundreds of victims of TBI due to large truck wrecks over the course of 30 years, we know that such rehabilitation is critical in the recovery process.

Spinal Cord Injuries

When a truck wreck causes injury to the spine, the victim can experience varying issues depending on what part of the spine was injured. For example, if injured in the middle or lower part of the back, the injury could lead to immobility in the legs (paraplegia); if the spinal injury occurs in the neck, the injury could lead to the loss of use of all limbs (quadriplegia).

Injured victims rear-ended by an 18-wheeler may suffer from vertebrae fractures in the neck and spine, resulting in paralysis from the shoulders or neck down. In a collision with a truck, the occupants of a car may also get thrown or pushed in such a way that the lower or mid vertebrate in the spinal cord breaks. These injuries can lead to quadriplegia or paraplegia.

Other truck wreck victims suffer disc injuries like herniations and protrusions that often lead to the need for serious medical treatment like epidural spinal injections, rhizotomy or even back surgeries such as discectomy or spinal fusion.

It’s fundamental that truck wreck clients receive guidance regarding the proper medical care for injuries to the spine and surrounding structures. At Miller Weisbrod Olesky, we help you receive proper medical advice on the full course of treatment to help you make the best recovery from your truck accident injuries.

Amputations

In a collision between a commercial truck and a car, the car occupants may suffer loss of limb, if the smaller vehicle gets crushed in the truck wreck. Losing a leg or arm (called amputation), or even the loss of a foot, hand, or finger can permanently alter the personal and professional life of the injured victim. Victims with amputation injury may also require occupational therapy and vocational rehabilitation. They may have to depend on prosthetic devices, which need replacement over time.

Amputation injuries also have serious psychological and emotional effects, requiring mental health treatment in the long run. These injuries can leave families with lifelong medical expenses and the realities of living with permanent disability or caring for a person with disabilities. The dedicated Dallas truck wreck lawyers at Miller Weisbrod Olesky will utilize the expert opinion of medical professionals and life care planners to estimate your long-term pain and suffering, damages, and losses to pursue a claim for maximum compensation.

In a recent case, our client was hit head on by a company truck. Her vascular system was badly damaged and over the course of a month her lower leg’s blood flow was so compromised that serious gangrene set in leading to an amputation. After quickly working the case up in litigation, our truck wreck lawyers settled the case for $7,000,000

One of the first things our Dallas truck wreck lawyers will do when we represent you in a truck injury case is to secure and preserve the black box data from the truck for analysis, accident reconstruction, and evidence building. The Event Data Recorder (EDR) in commercial trucks in Dallas will typically provide us the following information:

• Pre-crash data: truck speed, brake use, throttle use
• Driver input: manual or cruise control, steering wheel motion, gear shifting
• System breakdowns: diagnostic codes, component or engine malfunction, or system failure

The EDR data by itself does not prove anything, but it must be interpreted by our specialists to establish negligence of the defendants. Our accident reconstruction team will analyze the data and match it with other available evidence from the crash site, eyewitness accounts, police reports, driver logs, trucking company records, and forensic evidence to recreate the truck crash and how it led to your injuries. Our Dallas truck wreck attorneys, who have been through the legal battlefields before and know where the legal tripwires are, will move fast to obtain EDR data in order to build a persuasive case for maximum damages.

Truck drivers that drive across state lines have limits they can drive under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Under the FMCSA Hours of Service (HOS) regulations, a truck driver in Dallas can only operate for up to 11 hours within a workday of 14 hours. Secondly, they must stay off work for at least 10 hours consecutively before starting the work shift. Finally, the truck drivers in Dallas are not permitted to operate in excess of 60 hours during a 7-day workweek or 70 hours during an 8-day work week.

The dedicated Dallas truck wreck lawyers at Miller Weisbrod Olesky will get to work immediately to obtain EDR data, truck driver’s logbooks, GPS data, cellular and email communication records, shipping records, and gas and food receipts, among other evidence. This will help us establish if there was an HOS violation on part of the trucker and the trucking company, which contributed to your accident and injuries.

In a trucking death case, Clay Miller of Miller Weisbrod Olesky gathered driving logs, GPS data and cellular records. These records showed it was impossible for the truck driver to have made the trips leading up to the wreck in the time recorded. The GPS data proved that the truck driver was not wearing he claimed when he logged certain events. During the trial, the company safety director admitted that the company was grossly negligent, leading to a $5,800,000 settlement shortly before closing arguments.

The FMCSA mandates minimum liability insurance requirements, which are applicable to all commercial truckers and trucking companies operating in Dallas. The minimum coverage limits are determined according to the truck weight and the type of cargo.

• Commercial Trucks weighing at least 10,001 pounds and carrying non-hazardous cargo: minimum liability coverage is $750,000
• Commercial Trucks carrying oil as cargo: minimum policy limit is $1 million
• Commercial Trucks carrying other types of hazardous cargo, such as gases, chemicals, explosives, or radioactive materials: minimum liability coverage is $5 million

The Texas statute of limitations for truck wreck injury and wrongful death cases is two years (Section 16.003 of the Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code) from the day after the accident and injury occurred. Considering the critical importance of truck black box evidence, physical evidence from the scene of accident, fresh memory of eyewitnesses, our Dallas truck wreck lawyers urge you to act as soon as possible after the accident. These items can disappear within days of the wreck.

When time is on our side, our attorneys will enter into negotiations with the trucking company and insurance companies with an advantage of meticulous preparation. When the defendants know we are fully prepared to take the case to trial, it usually softens their stand and they are more willing to settle your claim for maximum damages.

Your health and safety are the first priorities immediately following the accident. Always make sure to call 911.

• Get Medical Help: If medical personnel (First Responders) are on the scene, and suggest you be taken to the hospital, go immediately. Injuries may take several days to surface, it would be best to get a head start on diagnosing any possible injuries.
• State Facts to the Police: When you’ve been in a truck wreck in Dallas, it’s crucial to obtain any possible police reports. When the police arrive on scene, make sure you provide the most accurate version of the accident that you can recall. Do not make any comments or express opinions that may lead to a misunderstanding of fault.
• Exchange Information: Obtain the contact details of the truck driver and trucking company as well as insurance information. If any eyewitnesses or bystanders are present, request for their name, address, and phone number as well.
• Take Photographs: If you, or someone you are with, is able to take pictures or videos of the truck wreck using a smartphone, make sure you include the following helpful images:
  
  
  • Your injuries as well as injuries of any other victims
  • Position of the vehicles involved
  • Damage to all the vehicles involved
  • Tire marks
  • Road condition
  • Street names / highway mile markers
  • License plates of the truck

Once you are cleared to leave the accident scene and medical professionals have addressed your injuries, contact our experienced truck accident team at Miller Weisbrod Olesky. Call our offices in Dallas at (214) 987-0005 or Toll Free at (888) 987-0005. You may also reach out by completing the contact form on this page.

• Interstate 35E
• Interstate 45
• Interstate 20
• Central Expressway
• Loop 12
• LBJ Freeway
• North Hampton Road
• Woodall Rogers Freeway
• Marvin D Love Freeway
• US 75

Clay is regularly invited to speak to Trial Lawyer Groups around Houston and across the state of Texas on the topics of trucking laws, trial tactics and techniques, and how to prepare evidence and a winning legal strategy in Truck Accident Cases throughout Texas. Clay was the featured speaker for the Texas Trial Lawyers Association on the new changes to trucking laws passed by the state of Texas.

Our truck accident legal team includes Josh Birmingham, who is currently on the Dallas Trial Lawyers Board of Directors and served as the president of the Mesquite Bar Association for four years. Josh was named Thomson Reuters | Texas Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2016 and 2017.

We also have on our team Michael Orth, a board certified personal injury trial lawyer who has spent the last decade representing injured Texans and their families. Michael’s success in scores of personal injury cases across federal and state courtrooms has earned him the coveted Board Certification in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Led by a formidable legal team with an extraordinary record of court verdicts and settlements in truck accident cases, Miller Weisbrod Olesky is regularly recognized by the US News and World Report as one of the top injury law firms in the United States.