Los Angeles Truck Accident Lawyer
Ravan Law represents people seriously hurt by big rigs, 18 wheelers, semi trucks, and other commercial vehicles across Los Angeles County. A loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, roughly 20 times the weight of a family sedan. When one fails to stop in traffic on the 405 or drifts across a lane on the I-5, the injuries are rarely the kind a person walks away from.
Within hours of a serious truck accident, the motor carrier and its insurer may have people working on the file. The evidence that decides these cases, including electronic driving logs, engine data, and dashcam video, sits on the trucking company’s own systems, and some of it is overwritten on a routine schedule. We move quickly so that it is still there when you need it.
Call (424) 465-2500 for a free consultation. You work with us directly, and there is no fee unless we win.
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Truck Accident Lawyer in Los Angeles for Big Rig, 18 Wheeler, and Semi Truck Crashes
A truck accident is not a larger version of a car accident. Three things make yours a different kind of case.
The physics. A loaded big rig at freeway speed needs far more distance to stop than a passenger car. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports that 97% of the occupants killed in two-vehicle crashes between a passenger vehicle and a large truck in 2022 were in the passenger vehicle.
The rules. Interstate trucking is regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the federal agency that sets safety rules for commercial trucks and buses. A violation of those rules is often the clearest proof of fault in your case.
The defendants. A car crash usually involves one driver and one insurer. A semi truck accident can involve the driver, the motor carrier, the trailer owner, the company that loaded it, a maintenance shop, and a parts manufacturer, each with its own insurance. As your commercial vehicle accident lawyer, we identify which of them shares responsibility, and we put each on notice, before evidence is lost and deadlines run. We often do that work while you are still in the hospital.
Federal Trucking Rules a Los Angeles Truck Accident Attorney Uses to Prove Fault
These are the federal rules that come up most often in truck accident cases.
Hours of service (49 CFR Part 395). A driver carrying property may drive up to 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, may not drive beyond the 14th hour after coming on duty, and must take a 30-minute break after 8 cumulative hours of driving. Weekly limits of 60 hours in 7 days or 70 hours in 8 days also apply. Our article on truck driver fatigue accidents in California explains how we prove these violations.
Electronic logging devices. Since December 2017, most interstate drivers have been required to record their hours on an electronic logging device (ELD), which captures driving time, location, and engine hours automatically. Carriers must keep these records for six months. Gaps or edits in the log are evidence in themselves.
Driver qualification files (49 CFR Part 391). Every carrier must keep a file on each driver, including the commercial license, medical certificate, and driving record reviews. A thin file can show the company put an unqualified driver behind the wheel.
Drug and alcohol testing (49 CFR Part 382). After a qualifying truck accident, alcohol testing is due within 8 hours and drug testing within 32 hours. California sets the limit for a commercial driver at 0.04 percent blood alcohol, half the limit for other drivers (California Vehicle Code 23152(d)).
Maintenance and cargo (49 CFR Parts 396 and 393). Carriers must systematically inspect and repair their trucks, and federal rules specify how freight must be blocked, braced, and tied down. Worn brakes and shifting loads usually leave a paper trail, and we follow it.
Under California Evidence Code 669, violating a safety regulation meant to protect people in your position can create a presumption of negligence, known as negligence per se. When we find an hours violation in the ELD data, or a skipped brake inspection, we are often holding the core of your liability case. That is the work a Los Angeles truck accident attorney is there to do.
Truck Accident Evidence That Can Disappear Within Days
Truck accident evidence does not wait for a lawsuit. In most cases our first step is a preservation letter (sometimes called a spoliation letter) to the motor carrier, demanding that it keep every record connected to the truck, the driver, and the trip.
Evidence | What it can show | Why it cannot wait |
Engine control module (ECM) or “black box” data | Speed, braking, and throttle in the seconds before impact | Can be overwritten once the truck goes back into service |
ELD and hours-of-service records | Whether the driver was over the federal limits | Carriers only have to keep them for six months |
Dashcam and in-cab video | Following distance, lane position, distraction | Many systems record over older footage within days or weeks |
Driver qualification and maintenance files | What the carrier knew about the driver and the truck | Defines negligent hiring and maintenance claims |
Dispatch messages and delivery schedules | Pressure to meet an unrealistic delivery window | Messaging data has short retention periods |
Video from nearby businesses | How the truck accident actually happened | Often overwritten within days |
The carrier’s insurer can have an investigator at the scene within hours. That is why, as your Los Angeles truck accident lawyer, we send the preservation letter within days, not months. For a closer look at the first weeks, read our guide to protecting your rights after a commercial vehicle crash in Los Angeles.
Who Is Liable? How a Truck Accident Law Firm in Los Angeles Identifies Every Defendant
Liability in a truck accident case rarely stops at the driver. Each responsible party is a separate source of insurance, and in a catastrophic injury case the driver’s coverage almost never reaches the full loss. We look at every one of them.
- The truck driver, for fatigue, speeding, distraction, impairment, unsafe lane changes, or hours violations.
- The motor carrier. Under respondeat superior (the rule that an employer answers for an employee’s negligence on the job), the trucking company is responsible for its driver’s conduct within the scope of employment. It can also be directly liable for negligent hiring, training, or supervision, and for schedules that required breaking the hours rules.
- The truck or trailer owner, when equipment is leased from a separate company. Carriers sometimes argue an owner-operator was an independent contractor, but the lease, the USDOT number on the cab, and the dispatch records usually show who was in control.
- The shipper or cargo loader, when overloaded or poorly secured freight caused a rollover, a jackknife, or a spill.
- The maintenance provider, when an outside shop missed worn brakes, failing tires, or a steering defect.
- The manufacturer of a defective truck, trailer, tire, or brake component.
- A government entity, when a public vehicle caused the crash or a dangerous public road contributed to it. These claims follow their own deadline, explained below.
Insurance layers a truck accident attorney traces
For-hire interstate carriers must carry federal minimum liability coverage under 49 CFR Part 387, generally $750,000 for general freight and more for certain hazardous materials. Many carry $1 million or more in primary coverage, with excess policies above it. Federal rules also require an MCS-90 endorsement on an interstate carrier’s policy, which can obligate the insurer to pay a judgment for injuries to the public up to the federal minimum even when the policy would otherwise exclude the claim. Each insurer evaluates settlement on its own schedule, so we give every policy notice early.
Identifying every defendant matters for another reason. Under California Civil Code 1431.2, each defendant pays only its own percentage of the non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering. Leave a responsible party out, and part of your compensation can be lost. As a Los Angeles truck accident lawyer, we look at every policy, because stopping at the driver’s policy can leave most of the available coverage untouched.
Los Angeles Big Rig Accident Lawyer for Every Type of Truck Accident
The way your truck accident happened usually points to its cause, and the cause points to the defendants.
Jackknife and rollover accidents
A jackknife happens when the trailer swings out and folds toward the cab, often sweeping across several lanes. Hard braking on a wet grade, worn brakes, a light or unevenly loaded trailer, and overcorrection are common causes. Rollovers follow a curve or ramp taken too fast, a shifting load, or a tire failure. Long mountain grades such as the Cajon Pass on the I-15 see both.
Rear-end truck accidents
A semi truck at freeway speed cannot stop in the distance a passenger car can. When the driver follows too closely or looks away, a rear-end collision with stopped traffic can crush the vehicle ahead. A rear-end collision injury claim in Los Angeles follows the same basic rules whether the vehicle behind you was a sedan or a tractor-trailer, but the injuries and insurance are on a different scale.
Underride and override crashes
In an underride crash, a car slides beneath the trailer, which can strike the occupants at head height. Federal rules require rear underride guards on most trailers, but side guards are not federally required. In an override, the truck rides up onto the smaller vehicle.
Wide-turn, blind-spot, cargo, and tire blowout crashes
A big rig needs extra room to turn right and has large blind spots, called no-zones, along both sides and behind the trailer. Wide-turn “squeeze” crashes catch cyclists, pedestrians, and cars at intersections in Downtown Los Angeles, Vernon, and Commerce. Unsecured freight falling onto the freeway, and a tire separating at highway speed, usually trace back to loading or maintenance, which brings the loader or the maintenance shop into the case.
The trucks most often involved in big rig accident claims
Port drayage trucks, long-haul tractor-trailers, fuel tankers, dump trucks, box trucks, city trash trucks, and utility trucks. As your Los Angeles big rig accident attorney, we start by identifying who owned, leased, dispatched, and loaded the vehicle. For delivery fleets, see our article on Amazon, DoorDash, and Uber Eats delivery accident liability.
Big Rig Accident Lawyer Los Angeles: The Freeway Corridors Where Truck Accidents Happen
The Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach together form the busiest container port complex in the United States, and most of those containers leave by truck. Where your crash happened often decides which agency investigated it, which cameras recorded it, and whether a public entity is involved.
The I-710 and the Port of Long Beach. The Long Beach Freeway is the main truck route between the ports and the rail yards inland. Drayage trucks run it around the clock. A 710 freeway truck accident can involve a port trucking company, an owner-operator lease, and a chassis supplied by a third party.
The I-5 and the Grapevine. Interstate 5 is the state’s main north-south freight route, carrying freight past Commerce, Downtown, Burbank, and Sun Valley, through Santa Clarita, and over the Grapevine. Long-haul fatigue and long downgrades that punish brakes define truck accidents on this stretch.
The 405. Stop-and-go traffic through the Sepulveda Pass, West Los Angeles, and the South Bay creates exactly the rear-end risk a loaded truck is least able to avoid. A 405 freeway truck accident at rush hour often involves several passenger vehicles.
The I-10 and the 60. The I-10 runs east through the San Gabriel Valley toward the Inland Empire warehouse belt, and the 60 carries heavy truck traffic past the distribution centers of the City of Industry.
The I-15, the Cajon Pass, and Barstow. The I-15 climbs the Cajon Pass and runs through Barstow in San Bernardino County toward Las Vegas, meeting the I-40 freight route east. Steep grades, high winds, and long desert stretches produce rollovers, brake failures, and fatigue crashes.
The 14 and the Antelope Valley. The freeway through Santa Clarita, Acton, and Palmdale mixes commuters with trucks serving the high desert, on grades and curves that expose worn brakes and excess speed.
Freeway crashes are usually investigated by the California Highway Patrol, and the most serious may be reconstructed by the CHP’s Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team. Surface-street crashes usually fall to the Los Angeles Police Department or a local agency. We request the report from whichever agency handled yours.
Los Angeles Truck Accident Lawyer for Crashes With City, County, and Caltrans Trucks
Some of the most serious truck accidents in Los Angeles involve a public entity. A City of Los Angeles sanitation truck on its route. A Department of Water and Power utility truck. A county public works truck. A Caltrans maintenance vehicle on a freeway shoulder. Or a dangerous condition on a public road, such as a malfunctioning signal.
The law allows these claims, and we take them. Vehicle Code 17001 makes a public entity liable for injuries caused by an employee’s negligent operation of a motor vehicle on the job, and California Government Code 835 covers injuries caused by a dangerous condition of public property. Both run on a separate legal track under the Government Claims Act, the California law that governs claims against public entities. Read more about Los Angeles government claims.
The six-month government claim deadline
Before any lawsuit can be filed against a city, a county, a school district, a transit agency, or the State, a formal written claim must be presented to that entity within six months of the injury, under California Government Code 911.2. That deadline is separate from the two-year statute of limitations for personal injury under California Code of Civil Procedure 335.1, and the longer deadline does not extend the shorter one. Missing the six-month window can permanently bar an otherwise strong case, no matter how clear the fault or how severe the injury.
If the entity rejects the claim in writing, a lawsuit generally must be filed within six months of the rejection notice (Government Code 945.6). If no written notice is sent, the deadline is generally two years from the injury. A late-claim application is possible in limited circumstances, but it must be made within a reasonable time, not to exceed one year from the injury, and approval is far from automatic. For an injured child, the two-year statute is generally tolled until age 18 under Code of Civil Procedure 352, but that tolling does not pause the six-month government claim deadline. A late-claim application may be available for a child under Government Code 911.4 and 911.6, but it has its own one-year limit.
Why government truck claims are a core focus of our firm
Our firm came to this work through family. Ted H. Ravan first became involved with personal injury law when his grandfather was in a near-fatal incident involving a city-operated bus. That is why our firm treats the six-month claim as the first task in any case involving a public vehicle or public road.
- What to do if you have been injured due to a government entity
- Claims against Caltrans and the State of California after a highway crash
- Filing a claim against the City of Los Angeles
- Guía en español: plazos para reclamos contra entidades públicas
Catastrophic Truck Accident Injuries and the Lifetime Cost of Care
Not every truck accident case is the same. Because of the size gap between a commercial truck and a passenger car, these crashes produce a high share of the most serious injuries: traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury and paralysis, crush injuries and amputations, severe burns from fuel or cargo fires, multiple fractures of the pelvis, femur, and spine, and internal bleeding.
These cases require more than a demand letter. We work with a life-care planner who projects every future surgery, therapy, medication, piece of equipment, and hour of attendant care across your life expectancy, and with an economist who reduces that total to present value. Vocational experts measure lost earning capacity, which for a younger worker can exceed every other item in the claim. An early settlement offer, made before you reach maximum medical improvement (the point at which doctors expect no further significant recovery), rarely accounts for any of it. Read more about catastrophic injury claims in Los Angeles.
Brain injuries and internal bleeding can take hours or days to show symptoms. If you were not taken to a trauma center such as Los Angeles General Medical Center or Harbor-UCLA, get evaluated anyway. Our article on why trucking accident cases often involve higher damages in California explains how these injuries change the value of a claim.
Wrongful death after a truck accident
When a truck accident takes a life, the surviving spouse or domestic partner, children, and in some cases parents or other family members may bring a wrongful death claim under California Code of Civil Procedure 377.60. The deadline is generally two years from the date of death under Code of Civil Procedure 335.1, and if a public entity was involved, the six-month government claim must be presented first. Compensation can include lost financial support, the loss of love, companionship, care, and guidance, and funeral and burial expenses.
What Compensation a Los Angeles 18 Wheeler Accident Attorney Can Pursue
Compensation in a truck accident claim falls into two categories of compensatory damages. We build your case to account for both.
Economic damages cover measurable financial loss: medical treatment, future care, lost wages, lost earning capacity, in-home care, home modifications, and property damage.
Non-economic damages cover harm that has no invoice: physical pain, emotional distress including post-traumatic stress, disfigurement, the loss of the activities and relationships that made up your life, and a spouse’s loss of consortium. California does not cap non-economic damages in a truck accident case. The statutory cap on those damages applies to medical negligence claims, not to motor vehicle crashes.
Punitive damages are separate from both, and they are not compensation. Under California Civil Code 3294 they require clear and convincing evidence of malice, oppression, or fraud. Against a trucking company, they also require proof that an officer, director, or managing agent knew in advance the driver was unfit and kept the driver on the road in conscious disregard of others’ safety, or authorized or ratified the conduct. Punitive damages cannot be recovered from a public entity (Government Code 818).
What moves the settlement value of a truck accident claim
- The severity and permanence of the injury, and the projected cost of future care
- Whether you can return to your prior work, and at what earnings
- How many insurance layers are available, and how many defendants share fault
- The strength of the liability evidence, especially ELD, ECM, and maintenance records
- Your own share of fault, if any
California follows pure comparative fault, so you can recover even if you were partly responsible, with your compensation reduced by your percentage. If a case is valued at $1,000,000 and you are found 20 percent at fault, the recovery is $800,000. The full value of a truck case is often underestimated in the first weeks, before the long-term medical picture is clear. For more, see our explanation of economic and non-economic damages.
California Deadlines That Can End a Truck Accident Claim
The first thing we confirm as your truck accident lawyer in California is which deadline applies to you and the date it ends.
Claim or task | Deadline | Authority |
Personal injury | Generally 2 years from the date of injury | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 |
Wrongful death | Generally 2 years from the date of death | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 |
Claim against a public entity | 6 months from the date of injury, before any lawsuit | Government Code 911.2 |
Lawsuit after a rejected government claim | Generally 6 months from the written rejection | Government Code 945.6 |
Injured minor | Generally tolled until age 18 (does not pause the six-month government claim deadline) | Code of Civil Procedure 352 |
SR-1 report to the DMV | 10 days, if anyone was injured or killed or damage exceeds $1,000 | Vehicle Code 16000 |
The evidence clocks run faster than any of these. ELD records only have to be kept for six months, and post-crash testing windows close within hours.
What to Do After a Truck Accident in Los Angeles
- Call 911 and accept medical care. A CHP or police report creates a record, and paramedics catch injuries adrenaline hides.
- Photograph the truck. Capture the carrier’s name and USDOT number on the cab door, the plates, the trailer number, the damage, and any cameras on nearby buildings.
- Get witness names and numbers. Witnesses to a freeway truck accident are often other commercial drivers who will be in another state within a day.
- Be careful with the trucking company’s insurer. You are not required to give a recorded statement to the carrier’s insurer, and it is reasonable to decline until you have spoken with a lawyer. Do not sign a release or a broad medical authorization.
- Keep your vehicle. Do not let it be repaired or salvaged before it is inspected.
- File the SR-1 with the DMV within 10 days if the crash caused injury, death, or more than $1,000 in damage.
- If a public vehicle or public road was involved, treat the six-month government claim deadline as already running.
Our tips for handling a bad trucking accident cover the first days in more detail.
Truck Accident Attorney Los Angeles: How We Work With You
Ravan Law is a Los Angeles truck accident law firm, and we work from our office on San Vicente Boulevard in Los Angeles. You work with us directly. We answer your questions and keep you updated at every stage, so you always have a Los Angeles trucking accident attorney who knows your file.
Ted H. Ravan, a Los Angeles truck accident attorney, studied political science at UC San Diego and earned his law degree at the University of San Diego School of Law, where he gave more than 100 volunteer hours to the campus free legal clinic. Read more about attorney Ted H. Ravan. In his first year of practice, attorney Ted H. Ravan obtained more than $1 million for his clients. We work on contingency, with no fee unless we win, and information is available in Spanish.
How a truck accident lawyer moves the case forward
- Free consultation. We tell you whether there is a claim worth pursuing, including when the answer is no.
- Preservation and investigation. We send preservation letters and gather the crash report, the ECM and ELD data, and the carrier’s federal safety record.
- Government claim, where one applies. We prepare the Government Code 911.2 claim and present it inside the six-month window.
- Medical documentation. In serious cases, we project future care with your treating physicians and life-care planners.
- Demand and negotiation. We send a demand to every insurer with the evidence behind it. Many truck cases resolve by settlement at this stage.
- Litigation where needed. If no offer reflects the harm, we file the case, usually in Los Angeles County Superior Court, and prepare it for trial.
To understand the timeline, read how long a personal injury case takes in California.
Motor Vehicle Settlements and Verdicts
Recovery | Case type |
$3,500,000 | Motor vehicle accident with a county vehicle |
$500,000 | Motor vehicle accident |
$275,000 | Bus accident |
$200,000 | Motor vehicle accident |
Clients rate our firm 4.9 on Google across 65 reviews. Every result depends on the injury, the evidence, the available insurance, and the facts of the claim.
Every result depended on the facts of that case, and results will differ based on different facts. Past results do not guarantee, warrant, or predict the outcome of your matter.
Truck Accident Lawyer Los Angeles: Serving Los Angeles County and Southern California
We represent people hurt in truck accidents throughout Los Angeles County, including Downtown Los Angeles, Long Beach, Wilmington, San Pedro, Carson, Commerce, Vernon, the City of Industry, Burbank, Sun Valley, Van Nuys, Panorama City, Santa Clarita, Palmdale, and Lancaster. From our Los Angeles office, we also represent injured clients across Southern California, including Orange County, San Diego County, Palm Springs, Barstow, and San Luis Obispo County.
If a passenger vehicle hit you, see our Los Angeles car accident lawyer page. If you were riding in an Uber or Lyft when a truck hit it, see Uber and Lyft accident claims. For other serious injuries, see personal injury claims, or return to the Ravan Law homepage.
Speak With a Los Angeles Truck Accident Lawyer Before the Evidence and the Deadline Are Gone
If you or someone in your family has been seriously hurt by a big rig or other commercial truck in Los Angeles, the next few weeks matter more than they seem. Electronic logs and engine data can be overwritten while you are still in treatment. If a city truck, a county vehicle, or a state highway was involved, the six-month government claim deadline under Government Code 911.2 started on the day of the crash, and it does not wait for you to recover.
Call Ravan Law at (424) 465-2500 for a free consultation. When you need a Los Angeles truck accident lawyer, we will review your case with you. No fee unless we win.
6310 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 401, Los Angeles, CA 90048
Attorney Advertising. Ted H. Ravan, Esq., Ravan Law, Los Angeles, CA. This content is general information, not legal advice. Every case depends on its specific facts.
Every result depended on the facts of that case, and results will differ based on different facts. Past results do not guarantee, warrant, or predict the outcome of your matter.
