Houston 18-Wheeler & Truck Accident Lawyer

Multiple parties can be held liable in an 18-wheeler accident, including the truck driver, the trucking company (under respondeat superior or for negligent hiring), the truck or parts manufacturer, the cargo loader, the maintenance company, and even brokers or shippers. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSA) violations can establish negligence per se, which is why an experienced Houston truck accident attorney is critical to investigating every possible source of recovery.

After a truck accident, call 911, seek immediate medical attention even for minor pain (catastrophic injuries often have delayed symptoms), photograph the scene and the truck’s DOT number, gather witness contacts, and request a copy of the police report. Do not give recorded statements to the trucking company’s insurer. Contact Maida Law Firm immediately so we can preserve the truck’s electronic logging device (ELD) data, hours-of-service records, and “black box” evidence before the trucking company destroys them.

In Texas, you have two years from the date of the accident to file a truck accident lawsuit under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code §16.003. However, evidence in trucking cases — ELD logs, dashcam footage, driver records — can be legally destroyed within months under federal retention rules, so contact a Houston truck accident attorney as soon as possible to preserve evidence through a litigation hold letter.

You can recover compensation for medical expenses (past and future), lost wages and lost earning capacity, pain and suffering, mental anguish, disfigurement, property damage, and in cases of gross negligence, exemplary (punitive) damages. Truck accident recoveries often exceed standard car accident settlements because commercial trucking insurance policies typically range from $750,000 to over $5 million. Maida Law Firm has handled truck cases for Houston victims since 1993.