In 2024, Houston recorded a historic high of 301 traffic fatalities, with 41 of those deaths in Harris County involving Commercial Motor Vehicles (CMVs), primarily large trucks. In many cases, these accidents could have been prevented if truck drivers and trucking companies had complied with state and federal safety regulations — enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Common causes include driver fatigue, improper vehicle maintenance, and speeding.
If you’ve been hurt in a truck accident, a personal injury lawyer in Houston from D. Miller & Associates, PLLC® can help. We can evaluate your legal options, guide you through every stage of your truck accident claim, and advocate for the full compensation you are entitled to under the law. Contact us today for a free consultation with our legal team.
Leading Causes of Truck Crashes
Truck accidents rarely have a single cause. In many cases, multiple factors overlap and contribute to a collision – the most frequent include the following:
Distracted Driving
Reading or responding to a text while driving takes a truck driver’s eyes off the road for several seconds, long enough to cause a life-changing crash. Cell phone use is one of the most dangerous forms of distracted driving, but it’s not the only one. Eating, drinking, grooming, or adjusting the radio or GPS can also take a driver’s attention away from the road, with devastating results.
Driving While Impaired
Alcohol and drugs contribute to a significant number of motor vehicle accidents, including those involving large trucks. Impairment is not limited to alcohol or illegal substances; many prescription and over-the-counter medications can also affect a driver’s ability to operate a commercial vehicle safely. This includes certain allergy medications, muscle relaxants, and antidepressants. Sleep aids, in particular, may cause lingering effects that impact alertness and reaction time.
Texas consistently reports one of the highest rates of drunk driving fatalities in the country, underscoring the serious risk impaired drivers pose on the road.
Driver Fatigue
FMCSA enforces strict Hours of Service Regulations that limit how long truck drivers can operate their vehicles, aiming to reduce accidents caused by driver fatigue.
Truck drivers and their employers are fully aware of federal limits on driving hours. However, trucking companies may pressure their drivers to meet tight delivery deadlines, even if it means pushing beyond safe or legal driving limits. This kind of pressure can lead to fatigue-related violations and keep drivers on the road when they should be resting.
Inadequate Driver Training
Operating a commercial truck safely requires more than a license; it demands proper training and experience. Inadequately trained or inexperienced drivers may tailgate, make unsafe lane changes, drive too fast for road or weather conditions, or misjudge the speed and position of other vehicles. A lack of familiarity with local roads or how to handle emergencies can also lead to delayed reactions, overcorrection, or panic behind the wheel.
Improper Loading and Overloaded Trucks
Safe truck operation begins with proper loading. When cargo is secured and balanced correctly, it remains stable during transit. However, if the load is improperly distributed or inadequately secured, it can shift suddenly, causing the truck to become unstable, jackknife, or overturn. These accidents often involve multiple vehicles and can result in spilled cargo obstructing the roadway. Debris may strike other vehicles directly or force drivers to swerve, causing additional collisions.
While trucks operating within their legal weight limits already pose serious risks in a crash, overloaded trucks are more hazardous. Every commercial truck is designed for a specific weight capacity. When these limits are ignored, the excess stress can lead to mechanical failures such as tire blowouts, increasing the risk of losing control.
Overloaded trucks also require longer stopping distances, raising the likelihood of rear-end collisions with stopped or slow-moving traffic.
Speeding
Due to their size and weight, large commercial trucks require significantly more distance to come to a complete stop than passenger vehicles. When a truck is traveling at excessive speeds, especially in heavy traffic, the driver may be unable to stop in time to avoid a collision.
Abrupt braking at high speeds increases the risk of rollovers, which can involve multiple vehicles and cause severe injuries. Speeding on downhill grades or inclines further compromises a truck’s braking ability and control.
Poor Maintenance
FMSCA requires truck drivers to conduct thorough inspections of their vehicles at the beginning and end of each shift. Any issues must be documented and reported to the motor carrier, and the vehicle must not be operated again until those issues are corrected.
The trucking company is legally responsible for ensuring that all vehicles in its fleet receive regular and adequate maintenance. Given the heavy use and extreme demands placed on commercial trucks, routine inspections and timely repairs are essential to safe operation.
Common maintenance-related failures that contribute to truck accidents include:
- Brake system defects
- Tire blowouts or tread separation
- Improperly secured or shifting cargo
Hazardous Weather and Road Conditions
Severe weather and poor road conditions are significant contributing factors in many truck accidents. In Texas, drivers may encounter a wide range of weather hazards, including hurricanes, flash floods, ice storms, and heavy fog. These conditions can reduce visibility, impair vehicle handling, and increase stopping distances, especially for large commercial trucks.
In addition to weather, road conditions themselves often play a critical role. Factors such as damaged pavement, missing signage, malfunctioning traffic signals, and poorly marked intersections can create dangerous situations for even the most experienced drivers.
Some accidents occur due to a combination of contributing factors, such as driver error, vehicle malfunction, and hazardous road or weather conditions, creating a complex chain of events that can lead to severe or fatal crashes.
Determining Liability in a Truck Accident
A Houston truck accident attorney conducts a thorough investigation to identify all potentially liable parties. This process typically involves reviewing the truck’s electronic logging and maintenance records, consulting with accident reconstruction experts, obtaining dashcam or surveillance footage, interviewing eyewitnesses, and analyzing police reports and medical documentation.
Truck accident liability is more complex than in standard car accidents. Depending on the specific facts of the case, responsibility may lie with the driver, the trucking company, the vehicle’s manufacturer, or a government entity responsible for road maintenance. In many cases, multiple parties share liability, each contributing to the conditions that led to the crash.
The Statute of Limitations
In Texas, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit related to a truck accident is generally two years from the date of the collision. However, prompt legal action is critical. Consulting a Houston truck accident attorney as soon as possible enables a timely investigation and helps preserve crucial evidence.
Delays may result in the loss of surveillance footage, vehicle data, or witness testimony, all of which can significantly impact the strength of your claim.
Schedule a Free Consultation with Our Legal Team
If you were seriously injured due to a truck driver’s negligence, you need the services of an experienced Houston truck accident lawyer at D. Miller & Associates. Schedule a free, no-obligation consultation today. Because we work on a contingency basis, you pay no fee unless you receive compensation. While most truck accident cases are settled, we will take your case to trial if the insurance company fails to agree to a reasonable settlement amount.
