California Truck Accident Lawyer

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Short answer: a crash with a commercial truck is not a big car accident. The truck is governed by federal and California safety rules, several companies besides the driver may be legally responsible, the insurance policies are far larger than a private auto policy, and the most important evidence is held by the trucking company and can lawfully be destroyed within months. Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals injured in commercial truck accidents anywhere in California understand what they are entitled to and get the right steps taken quickly. Free consultation, 24/7, English and Spanish: (888) 772-2529. No fee unless you recover.

Why a California truck accident case is different from a car accident case

The physics. A loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, twenty times a passenger car. Injuries in truck collisions are more often catastrophic or fatal, and underride, jackknife, and rollover crashes have no real equivalent in car cases.
The rules. Interstate carriers must follow the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs, 49 C.F.R. Parts 350–399). California-only carriers follow largely parallel state rules in the Vehicle Code and Title 13 of the California Code of Regulations, enforced by the California Highway Patrol. Violating a safety regulation that was designed to prevent the kind of harm you suffered can establish negligence itself (Evid. Code § 669).
The defendants. The driver is often the least important defendant. The motor carrier, the truck’s owner, the freight broker that hired the carrier, the shipper that loaded the cargo, and a maintenance contractor can each carry separate liability and separate insurance.
The evidence. Electronic logging device data, engine control module downloads, dispatch records, and inspection reports are in the carrier’s hands, and federal rules require some of them to be kept for only months.
The defense. Carriers and their insurers often have investigators at the scene within hours. A rapid-response team for the defense is normal in serious truck crashes; the injured person usually has no one.

Who can be held liable for a truck accident in California

The truck driver, for negligent driving, fatigue, distraction, impairment, or violation of the hours-of-service and other safety rules.
The motor carrier (the trucking company). It is liable for its employee driver’s negligence on the job (respondeat superior), and it can be directly liable for its own conduct: negligent hiring, training, and supervision, unrealistic delivery schedules that pressure drivers to violate hours-of-service limits, and failing to maintain the vehicle. Under the federal leasing rules, a carrier that operates a leased truck with an owner-operator must assume “exclusive possession, control, and use” of the equipment and “complete responsibility for the operation” for the duration of the lease (49 C.F.R. § 376.12(c)(1)), which prevents carriers from disclaiming responsibility for “independent contractor” drivers pulling their loads.
The freight broker that selected the carrier. Brokers arrange most truckload freight, and a broker that hires a carrier with a poor safety record, no operating authority, or inadequate insurance can be liable for negligent selection. In Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC (decided May 14, 2026), the United States Supreme Court unanimously held that federal law does not preempt these state-law negligent-hiring claims against brokers, resolving a split among the federal courts that brokers had used to escape liability.
The shipper or loader. Cargo must be secured under 49 C.F.R. §§ 393.100–393.136. When a shipper loads and seals a trailer, or overloads it, and the load shifts, falls, or causes a rollover, the shipper can share fault.
Maintenance contractors that inspected or repaired brakes, tires, steering, or coupling devices.
The manufacturer of a defective truck, trailer, tire, or component, under product liability.
A public entity responsible for a dangerous roadway condition (Gov. Code § 835), such as an unsafe merge, missing runaway-truck ramp signage, or defective signal timing. Claims against Caltrans, a county, or a city must be presented within six months (Gov. Code § 911.2).

The trucking rules that decide these cases

Hours of service and fatigue

For interstate property carriers, a driver may drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, may not drive beyond the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty, must take a 30-minute break after 8 hours of driving, and may not drive after 60 hours on duty in 7 days or 70 hours in 8 days (49 C.F.R. § 395.3). California intrastate drivers follow a different set of limits: no more than 12 hours of driving after 10 consecutive hours off, no driving after the 16th hour on duty, and no driving after 80 hours on duty in 8 consecutive days (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 13, § 1212.5). Most commercial drivers must record their hours on an electronic logging device (ELD) rather than paper logs (49 C.F.R. § 395.8(a)).

Driver qualification and testing

Drivers must hold a commercial driver’s license (49 C.F.R. Part 383), meet medical and qualification standards, and have a driver qualification file that includes their driving record, prior employment checks, and medical certificate (49 C.F.R. Part 391). Carriers must run a drug and alcohol testing program, including post-accident testing after crashes involving a fatality or, in some cases, injuries or disabling damage with a citation (49 C.F.R. § 382.303).

Inspection, maintenance, and repair

Carriers must systematically inspect, repair, and maintain their vehicles and keep maintenance records (49 C.F.R. § 396.3), have drivers complete daily vehicle inspection reports when defects are found (§ 396.11), and pass a periodic inspection every 12 months (§ 396.17). California adds its own requirement that carriers inspect brakes, steering, suspension, tires, wheels, and connecting devices at least every 90 days and keep those records for two years (Veh. Code § 34505.5), and CHP audits carriers’ terminals under the Basic Inspection of Terminals (BIT) program (Veh. Code § 34501.12).

Insurance

Interstate for-hire carriers of general freight must carry at least $750,000 in liability coverage; carriers of oil and many hazardous materials must carry $1,000,000; and carriers of the most dangerous hazardous materials must carry $5,000,000 (49 C.F.R. § 387.9). Many carriers carry more, and the MCS-90 endorsement required on these policies guarantees payment to injured members of the public up to the federal minimum even where the policy would otherwise exclude the loss (49 C.F.R. § 387.15). These limits are why identifying every responsible company, not just the driver, matters so much in a serious injury case.

The evidence that disappears first, and the retention rules that let it

Federal regulations tell carriers how long they must keep records. After those periods, destruction is lawful unless the carrier has been put on notice to preserve. This is the single most time-sensitive fact in a truck case.

Records of duty status (driver logs) and supporting documents: 6 months. A carrier must retain each driver’s records of duty status and supporting documents “for a period of not less than 6 months from the date of receipt” (49 C.F.R. § 395.8(k)(1)). Carriers using ELDs must likewise keep a back-up copy of ELD records for 6 months on a separate device (49 C.F.R. § 395.22(i)). Supporting documents include bills of lading, dispatch and trip records, fuel and expense receipts, fleet communication records, and payroll and settlement sheets, up to eight per driver per 24-hour period (49 C.F.R. § 395.11).
Driver vehicle inspection reports: 3 months (49 C.F.R. § 396.11(a)(4)).
Maintenance records: 1 year where the vehicle is housed, and 6 months after the vehicle leaves the carrier’s control (49 C.F.R. § 396.3(c)).
Periodic inspection reports: 14 months (49 C.F.R. § 396.21(b)).
Accident register: 3 years (49 C.F.R. § 390.15).
Engine control module (ECM) and event data recorder data. Modern tractors record speed, throttle, braking, cruise control, and hard-brake events. The data can be overwritten in normal operation or lost when the truck is repaired, sold, or returned to service, so a download should be demanded immediately.
Dashcam and telematics video, GPS breadcrumbs, and dispatch messaging, which many fleets retain for only days or weeks by default.
Driver’s cell phone records, which can prove distraction and are obtained by subpoena.

The first step in a well-handled case is a written preservation (spoliation) letter to the carrier, the broker, the shipper, and their insurers, identifying each category of evidence, followed where necessary by a court order allowing inspection of the truck before repair. If a party destroys evidence after notice, the jury may be instructed that it can infer the evidence was unfavorable to that party (Evid. Code § 413; CACI No. 204). Public records help too: the CHP collision report, any Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) report in serious crashes, and the carrier’s public safety data on the FMCSA’s SAFER and Safety Measurement System sites, which show inspection results, out-of-service rates, and prior crashes.

Where California truck crashes concentrate

California is one of the largest freight markets in the country, and much of its truck traffic runs on a handful of corridors: Interstate 5 through the Central Valley; State Route 99 between Bakersfield and Sacramento; Interstate 710 and the port-adjacent streets serving the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach; Interstate 15 through the Cajon Pass toward Las Vegas; Interstate 10 across the Inland Empire; State Route 58 and Interstate 40 through the high desert; Interstate 80 over Donner Pass; and U.S. 101 along the coast. Crashes cluster where heavy truck volumes meet grades, fog, construction zones, and merging commuter traffic. Abdi & Associates helps people injured on any of these routes and on local streets anywhere in the state; the applicable law is the same statewide.

Common causes of commercial truck accidents

Driver fatigue and hours-of-service violations, including falsified or manipulated logs
Distraction, including phone and in-cab device use
Speeding for conditions, especially on grades and in fog and rain
Impairment by alcohol, drugs, or fatigue-masking stimulants
Brake failure and other maintenance defects; tire blowouts
Improperly secured, shifted, or overloaded cargo
Unsafe lane changes and wide right turns; failure to check blind spots (“no-zones”)
Following too closely and inability to stop; rear-end crashes into slowed traffic
Jackknife and rollover events; underride crashes
Inadequate driver training or hiring drivers with disqualifying records

Comparative fault and the insurer’s playbook

California applies pure comparative negligence (Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804): your recovery is reduced by your share of fault but not eliminated. Trucking insurers routinely argue that the car cut off the truck, lingered in a blind spot, or stopped short. The answers are in the truck’s own data, the driver’s logs, and independent evidence such as traffic cameras and witnesses, which is why preservation comes first. One California rule to know: if you were driving your own uninsured vehicle, Civil Code section 3333.4 (Proposition 213) generally bars recovery of non-economic damages such as pain and suffering, though economic damages remain recoverable. Passengers and pedestrians are not affected by that rule.

Damages in a California truck accident case

Economic damages: past and future medical care, lost earnings and lost earning capacity, household services, and property damage
Non-economic damages: physical pain, mental suffering, emotional distress, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium for a spouse or registered domestic partner
Wrongful death damages for a spouse, domestic partner, children, and other qualifying heirs when a crash is fatal (Code Civ. Proc. § 377.60)
Punitive damages against a private defendant whose conduct showed malice, oppression, or fraud, for example a carrier that knowingly kept an unqualified driver or falsified logs (Civ. Code § 3294)

There is no cap on compensatory damages in a California truck accident case. The value of a claim turns on the injuries and their permanence, the medical evidence, the effect on your work and life, the strength of the liability evidence, and the available coverage across all responsible parties. We do not quote settlement ranges or “multipliers”; anyone who does before reviewing the evidence is guessing.

Deadlines

Two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit against a private driver, carrier, broker, or shipper (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1); two years from the date of death for wrongful death.
Six months to present a government claim if a public entity is responsible for a dangerous road condition (Gov. Code § 911.2), with a lawsuit generally due within six months of the entity’s written rejection (Gov. Code § 945.6).
Months, not years, for the evidence: the retention rules above mean a preservation letter should go out within days of the crash.

What to do after a truck accident in California

Get medical care immediately and follow through with treatment. The medical record is the foundation of the claim.
Make sure CHP or local police prepare a report and get the report number. Note the carrier’s name and USDOT number printed on the truck door, the trailer number, and the license plates.
Photograph everything: the truck, the trailer and cargo, skid marks, debris, road and weather conditions, and your injuries.
Get witness names and numbers and note any nearby cameras (businesses, traffic cameras, dashcams).
Do not give a recorded statement to the trucking company’s insurer or investigator and do not sign anything from them.
Preserve your own vehicle unrepaired until it has been inspected; its event data recorder may matter.
Stay off social media about the crash and your injuries.
Get legal advice quickly, so preservation letters go out before the retention periods run.

How Abdi & Associates can help

Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals injured in commercial truck accidents throughout California. We will review what happened, identify the carrier, broker, and other companies involved, explain the deadlines that apply, and make sure evidence preservation is handled immediately. Consultations are free and confidential, and there is no fee unless you recover. If you were driving for work when the crash happened, for example as a delivery driver, rideshare driver, or employee on the road, you may also have a workers’ compensation claim, which we handle in-house alongside the injury claim.

Frequently asked questions

Who is liable in a truck accident, the driver or the company?

Usually both, and often others. The motor carrier is responsible for its driver’s negligence on the job and for its own hiring, training, scheduling, and maintenance failures. The broker that arranged the load, the shipper that loaded it, and a maintenance contractor can each be liable for their own negligence.

Can a freight broker be sued for a truck accident in California?

Yes. A broker that negligently selects an unsafe carrier can be liable, and the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed in May 2026 (Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II) that federal law does not preempt these claims.

How long does a trucking company have to keep driver logs?

Six months. Federal rules require carriers to keep records of duty status and supporting documents for at least six months from receipt (49 C.F.R. § 395.8(k)(1)) and ELD back-up data for six months (49 C.F.R. § 395.22(i)). After that they may be destroyed unless a preservation demand has been made.

What is a spoliation letter?

A written demand that the carrier, broker, shipper, and their insurers preserve specific evidence: ELD and log data, ECM downloads, dashcam video, dispatch records, driver qualification and drug-test files, maintenance and inspection records, and the truck itself. If evidence is destroyed after notice, the jury may infer it would have hurt the party that destroyed it.

What is an ECM or “black box” download?

Data recorded by the truck’s engine control module and related systems, typically including speed, throttle position, brake application, and hard-braking or sudden-deceleration events in the seconds before a crash. It can confirm or contradict the driver’s account and must be captured before the truck is repaired or returned to service.

How much insurance does a trucking company have?

Interstate general-freight carriers must carry at least $750,000; hazardous materials carriers $1,000,000 or $5,000,000 depending on the cargo (49 C.F.R. § 387.9). Many carry more, and brokers and shippers have their own coverage.

Does the trucking company’s insurer have to pay my medical bills right away?

No. Liability insurers pay when a claim is resolved. In the meantime your health insurance, Medi-Cal, Medicare, or your own auto policy’s medical payments coverage typically pays for treatment, and those payers may assert liens against your recovery, which usually must be negotiated before settlement.

What if the truck driver was an independent contractor?

Under the federal leasing rules, a carrier that operates a leased truck under its authority is responsible for its operation (49 C.F.R. § 376.12(c)), and California law also looks at the carrier’s control over the work. The “independent contractor” label rarely shields the carrier.

How long do I have to file a truck accident lawsuit in California?

Generally two years from the injury (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1), but only six months to present a claim against a public entity (Gov. Code § 911.2). The evidence deadlines are much shorter.

Do you handle truck accident cases outside Los Angeles?

Yes. Abdi & Associates helps individuals with truck accident claims throughout California, with consultations by phone.

Injured in a truck accident in California? Call (888) 772-2529 for a free consultation, 24/7, in English or Spanish, or use the form below. No fee unless you recover.

Primary sources: 49 C.F.R. §§ 376.12, 382.303, 387.9, 387.15, 390.15, 395.3, 395.8, 395.11, 395.22, 396.3, 396.11, 396.17, 396.21, 393.100–393.136; Cal. Code Regs., tit. 13, § 1212.5; Cal. Veh. Code §§ 34501.12, 34505.5; Cal. Evid. Code §§ 413, 669; Cal. Civ. Code §§ 3294, 3333.4; Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 335.1, 377.60; Cal. Gov. Code §§ 835, 911.2, 945.6; CACI No. 204; Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC (U.S. Supreme Court, May 14, 2026); Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804.

Reviewed by Shawn Abdi, Esq., Abdi & Associates, Inc. Published: September 2, 2026. Attorney advertising. This page is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation. Legal deadlines have exceptions; confirm yours with an attorney. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.