The wrecker has cleared U.S. 287, the deputies are gone, and you are in a hospital bed in Palestine or Crockett trying to understand a crash you did not cause. An 18-wheeler case rarely has one answer to the question of blame. The driver, the trucking company, the shop that serviced the rig, and the crew that loaded the trailer can each be part of it. As an East Texas truck accident attorney, Chris Sbrusch starts with a different question: which records still exist, and how much longer will they be available?
Why an 18-Wheeler Claim Runs on a Different Rulebook
A collision with a loaded tractor-trailer is not a bigger version of a fender bender. The weight difference alone can cause catastrophic injuries, and the vehicle is regulated differently than an ordinary car.
Most interstate trucking runs under safety rules issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and those rules limit how long a driver may stay behind the wheel. A driver hauling property may generally drive up to 11 hours inside a 14-consecutive-hour window that begins after 10 consecutive hours off duty, and may not keep driving past eight cumulative hours of driving time without a 30-minute interruption. A driver also may not drive after 60 hours on duty in seven consecutive days, or 70 hours in eight if the carrier runs trucks every day of the week. That count restarts after 34 or more consecutive hours off duty. See a plain-language summary of the federal limits on driving hours. Narrow exceptions apply, including a two-hour extension for adverse driving conditions and separate oilfield rules.
Trucks that never leave Texas can fall under the state’s intrastate rules instead, which allow up to 12 hours of driving after eight consecutive hours off duty. Which set of limits applies depends on the truck and the trip.
A driving-time violation is not a paperwork problem. It shows someone kept driving after the law said to stop.
Who May Share Responsibility for an East Texas Truck Crash
Texas does not make a jury pick a single villain. The jury, or the judge in a trial without one, assigns a percentage of responsibility to each claimant, each defendant, each settling person, and each responsible third party a defendant has designated.
These are the parties whose conduct usually gets examined:
- The driver, for speed, fatigue, distraction, impairment, or an unsafe lane change.
- The motor carrier, which is generally responsible for its driver’s negligence on the job. Its own hiring, training, supervision, and dispatch decisions can also come into play, particularly on a claim of gross negligence.
- The owner of the tractor or trailer, when that is a different company from the carrier.
- The shop or contractor responsible for inspection, repair, and maintenance.
- The company that loaded and secured the cargo, when a shifting or unsecured load contributed to the crash.
- The manufacturer of a component, when a brake or a tire failed.
Naming the right parties early matters more than in a car wreck. Each keeps a separate file, and every file runs on a separate clock.
The Evidence That Proves Fault, and How Long It Lasts
Federal and Texas law both put clocks on the records that decide a truck case. Five categories carry most of the weight:
Records of Duty Status
A carrier generally must install electronic logging devices and require drivers to use them, with narrow exceptions such as a driver who logs on no more than eight days in 30. The carrier must keep those records and supporting documents for at least six months from the date it receives them, and neither a driver nor a carrier may falsify a duty status or tamper with the device.
Inspection and Maintenance Files
A carrier must systematically inspect, repair, and maintain every vehicle under its control. For any vehicle it has controlled for 30 consecutive days, it must keep a file identifying the vehicle and recording the date and nature of every inspection, repair, and maintenance operation. The carrier must retain those records where the vehicle is housed or maintained for one year, plus six months after the vehicle leaves the carrier’s control.
Post-Crash Drug and Alcohol Testing
When a crash involves the loss of human life, the carrier must test the surviving driver who was performing safety-sensitive functions. When the crash instead caused an injury for which someone immediately received medical treatment away from the scene, or disabling damage that required a tow, testing is required only if the driver received a citation for a moving traffic violation. That citation must come within eight hours for alcohol and 32 hours for drugs. If the alcohol test is not given within two hours, or the drug test within 32 hours, the carrier has to record why.
The Crash Report
A Texas officer who investigates a collision in the regular course of duty must file a written report with the state when the collision caused injury, death, or property damage to any one person to the apparent extent of $1,000 or more. It is due within 10 days.
The Accident Register
A motor carrier must keep an accident register for three years after each accident, including copies of all accident reports required by state or other government entities or by insurers. Federal rules define an accident by its consequences: a death, an injury for which someone immediately received medical treatment away from the scene, or disabling damage that required a tow.
The engine control module’s crash data, often called the truck’s black box, sits outside those rules, and so does video from a dashcam or a nearby business. A written demand to preserve the truck and its data, sent within days, is often the most valuable step.
What to Do in the First Days After the Crash
You do not need to build a case from a hospital bed. You do need to protect a few things while they still exist.
- Get medical care, and keep every follow-up appointment. Gaps in treatment become the insurer’s argument.
- Photograph what you safely can: the tractor and trailer, the company name, the USDOT number on the door, and your injuries.
- Collect names and phone numbers for witnesses before they scatter.
- Request the officer’s report. It is confidential by default, but a person involved in the collision, or that person’s authorized representative, may request a copy of the crash report in writing. It costs $6, or $8 certified.
- Be careful with the trucking company’s adjuster. A recorded statement taken while you are on pain medication can be used later as evidence against you, and it often becomes raw material for an argument that you share the blame.
Then make one call. Those clocks start on the day of the crash, and a preservation letter has to arrive first.
How Texas Fault Rules Change What You Recover
Texas follows proportionate responsibility. A claimant may not recover damages if that claimant’s percentage of responsibility is greater than 50%. At 50% or less, the court reduces the recovery by the claimant’s percentage. For example, a $100,000 award with the injured person found 20% responsible is reduced to $80,000. That is why an adjuster works hard to move a few points of blame onto you early.
Naming every responsible party matters at collection time too. A liable defendant ordinarily pays only its percentage, and joint and several liability generally applies only when a defendant’s share exceeds 50%.
The filing deadline is just as unforgiving. In most Texas personal injury claims, suit must be brought not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues, and when the injury results in death, the two years runs from the date of death. A few situations change that math. Limitations do not run while a claimant who was under 18 when the claim arose is still a minor, and a claim against a governmental unit carries a separate and much shorter notice deadline, often six months but sometimes less by city charter. Confirm your dates.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can be held responsible for an 18-wheeler crash in Texas?
Depending on the facts, the driver, the motor carrier, the owner of the tractor or trailer, the maintenance shop, the company that loaded the cargo, and a parts manufacturer can each share responsibility. A Texas jury assigns a percentage of responsibility to each one.
How long does a trucking company have to keep a driver’s logs?
Federal rules generally require a motor carrier to keep a driver’s records of duty status and supporting documents for at least six months. Engine data and dashcam video have no comparable federal retention rule, which is why a written preservation demand should go out quickly.
How long do I have to file a lawsuit after a truck accident in Texas?
In most cases, two years from the date of the crash, or two years from the date of death in a fatal crash. A claim involving a government vehicle can require written notice within six months or less.
Talk With an East Texas Truck Accident Attorney
PINEYWOODS LAW™ is based in Grapeland, between Palestine and Crockett, so families in Anderson County and Houston County do not have to drive to a big city. Attorney Chris Sbrusch has practiced law in Texas since 2010, spent his first two years defending insurance companies, and returned home to East Texas in 2019 to run PINEYWOODS LAW™ full time. That defense work is how he learned how these files are handled from the inside. Contact PINEYWOODS LAW™ for a free consultation. Se Habla Español. No fees or expenses unless we recover for you.
