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Cargo Related Trucking Accidents

Have you been injured by cargo that fell from a truck or other commercial vehicle in Texas?

The City of Houston is, unfortunately, the home of many recent cargo related accidents. These accidents represent a unique occurrence of trucking accident law due to the inherent difficulties you are likely to encounter. For example, the truck that caused the accident is often not aware that the accident even occurred. Other times, they simply flee the scene.

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Generally these accidents involve cargo that has fallen off of a trailer or out of the back of a cargo container, or cargo that is forced off of a trailer due to a collision with another vehicle or an immobile object such as a bridge. These accidents are particularly devastating simply because the cargo carried by such large trucks is rarely anything but the most massive cargo.

It is very common for the cargo that falls from these trucks to weigh more than the vehicle that it collides with. As you can imagine, the results are often tragic.

These types of cases differ slightly from conventional trucking accident cases because there are often multiple defendants. For instance, the cargo may have been loaded by a company other than the operator of the 18-wheeler or delivery vehicle. It is very common for much of the liability in these types of accidents to fall on the company that loaded the trailer or bed because they improperly restrained the cargo.

In some instances, the defendants can be tricky to locate without athorough investigation. This is quite common in scenarios where the truck driver was never aware that the cargo fell from their vehicle. In such an event, our attorneys will launch an investigation to identify the cargo and trace its origin back to the truck that it fell from.

Other possible defendants may be the company who manufactured the trailer, tie down straps, or other restraint devices or equipment, if it is determined that those devices failed to work properly.

In cases where the cargo was knocked from the vehicle due to an encounter with an overpass, power line, trees, etc. the person or organization that designated the route for the truck driver may be to blame.

At the very least, these types of accidents open the door to many potential areas of difficulty for non-attorneys. Our cargo and trucking accident attorneys can help you navigate through all of the pitfalls to ensure that you receive the maximum compensation for your injuries.


Some of Our Most Recent Successful Cases
$300,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Back Injury Requiring Surgery)
A delivery driver hired our firm to pursue a negligent trucking company following a collision with insecure cargo. Our client was driving his work vehicle when numerous large metal pipes fell from the back of a flatbed trailer onto the roadway. Our client took evasive action but was unable to avoid the debris, which resulted in a fairly severe accident. As a result, our client sustained lower back injuries including two herniated discs which required surgery to correct. The defendants conceded liability early on but would not make a reasonable settlement offer. As such, suit was filed and the case was ultimately successfully resolved through litigation.
Total Recovery:
$300,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$120,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$1,500.00
$300,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident / Work Injury (Facial Fractures and Head Trauma)
A loading dock worker suffered serious including numerous facial fractures and minor brain trauma when an 18-wheeler back into him, crushing him against the loading dock. The plaintiff's employer was a subscriber to Texas Workers' Compensation coverage, thus a claim was rightly filed against the third party trucking company whom the truck driver operating the reversing 18-wheeler worked for.

The plaintiffs asserted the position that the trucking company in question was liable on the basis of respondeat superior and negligent retention. The defendants argued that the plaintiff was the sole proximate cause of his injuries by virtue of the plaintiff putting himself in harms way. They maintained that the plaintiff simply walked behind the reversing tractor trailer as it pushed back toward the loading dock.

It was later determined through deposition testimony that the truck driver had indeed instructed the plaintiff to stand behind the trailer in order to determine the vehicle's proximity to the dock. Once this fact came to light, the defendants agreed to mediate whereby the case was satisfactorily settled.
Total Recovery:
$300,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$120,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$9,807.00
$700,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident / Work Injury (Fractured Pelvis, Other Internal Injuries)
A loading dock employee suffered a fractured and damage to internal organs as the result of a crushing injury sustained when an 18-wheeler backed into him and crushed him between the trailer and loading dock.
Total Recovery:
$700,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$175,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$1,084.00
$187,500.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Back Injury Requiring Surgery)
Our firm was hired by a young woman who was rear-ended by an 18-wheeler when she slowed for traffic in a construction zone. Initially, she attempted to represent herself and the insurance carrier offered roughly $1,000 to settle her case. She then contacted our firm and we filed suit soon after our initial investigation. The case was successfully resolved in litigation.
Total Recovery:
$187,500.00
Attorney Fees:
$61,875.00
Litigation Expenses:
$2,500.00
$145,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Back and Neck Injury)
Recovery for driver struck from behind by 18-wheeler: Driver sustained back and neck injury.
Total Recovery:
$145,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$48,333.00
Litigation Expenses:
$2,696.00
$350,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Back Injury Requiring Surgery)
Our client, a middle-aged woman, was injured when an 18-wheeler rear-ended her vehicle. As a consequence of the wreck, she sustained a back injury which required surgery to remedy. Naturally, the defendants denied liability and argued that the accident was unavoidable. Our attorneys filed suit. The defendant driver initially claimed that our client suddenly changed lanes in front of his tractor-trailer and then inexplicably slammed onto her brakes. When confronted with eye-witness testimony and other physical evidence that reflected an entirely different scenario, the truck driver ultimately recanted. The case was successfully resolved through litigation.
Total Recovery:
$350,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$140,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$8,188.00
$30,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Muscle Aches, Pains & Dizziness)
Recovery for the driver of car that was side-swiped by an 18-wheeler. Plaintiff suffered muscle aches, pains & dizziness.
Total Recovery:
$30,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$10,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$500.00
$200,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Back Injury Requiring Surgery)
Recovery for motorcyclist who suffered a back injury in an 18-wheeler accident.
Total Recovery:
$200,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$80,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$5,709.00
$250,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death / Commercial Vehicle Accident
(policy limits) A young mother was killed in an accident involving two commercial vehicles, one an 18-wheeler. The accident occurred as the young woman was a passenger in a vehicle that was traveling down a highway in the early morning hours. Without warning, the vehicle in which she was a passenger collided with a stalled 18-wheeler that parked in the right of way, resulting in catastrophic injuries that claimed the young woman's life soon thereafter.

The authorities initially faulted the driver of the vehicle in which the victim was a passenger, stating that he was using an electronic device rather than paying full attention to the roadway. However, the 18-wheeler was indeed blocking the roadway and plaintiff alleged that the vehicle did not follow the requirements of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Act in regard to providing adequate reflective or laminated warning at specific intervals. Further, the plaintiffs alleged that the defendant failed to remove his vehicle from the roadway when he first noticed signs of mechanical failure.

Had he simply moved to the shoulder of the road, plaintiffs argued, his lack of adequate warning signs would have been inconsequential. An initial settlement has been obtained in this case, yet litigation has commenced in full against the remaining defendant, and is currently ongoing.
Total Recovery:
$250,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$78,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$370.00
$19,000.00 Recovery - Commercial Vehicle Accident (Pulled Muscle)
Recovery for client who sustained a pulled muscle in an 18-wheeler accident.
Total Recovery:
$19,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$6,270.00
Litigation Expenses:
$100.00

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