I-10 through Katy is the main truck route between Houston and San Antonio and one of the busiest freight corridors in Texas. The warehouses along I-10 and the Grand Parkway put even more trucks on it. When an 18-wheeler hits a car on that stretch, the case isn’t a bigger version of a fender bender. The trucking company has lawyers and an adjuster working the case within hours, and much of the evidence belongs to the company.
Call (713) 664-4000. The consultation is free, and there’s no fee unless we recover for you. If we don’t recover, you don’t owe us for case expenses either. If the trucking company or its insurer calls you, don’t give a statement until you’ve talked to us.
The truck’s data and the six-month clock
A modern truck records its own crash. The engine control module logs speed and braking in the seconds before impact, and the electronic logging device tracks the driver’s hours. Many trucks carry forward-facing cameras, and the carrier’s dispatch records show what schedule the driver was on. The company only has to keep the driver’s hours records for six months (49 C.F.R. § 395.8), and a camera clip can be overwritten much sooner. We send a preservation letter to the carrier in the first week, and if the company won’t cooperate, we ask a court to order it.
Under federal rules, a driver generally can’t drive more than 11 hours after 10 hours off duty (49 C.F.R. § 395.3). A driver who never leaves Texas gets 12 hours after 8 off (37 Texas Administrative Code § 4.12). And after a fatal crash, or one where the driver gets a ticket and someone is taken for treatment or a vehicle is towed, the carrier has to test the driver for drugs and alcohol (49 C.F.R. § 382.303). A driver who was over his hours, or a company that skipped the test, changes the case.
Who’s liable for a Katy truck crash
A trucking case usually has more than one defendant. The driver is one. The carrier that employed him is responsible for his driving on the job, and it can also be responsible for hiring a driver it shouldn’t have or keeping a truck on the road that should’ve been in the shop. The shipper that loaded the trailer and the company that maintained the truck can share the blame too.
The coverage is bigger than on a car. A for-hire interstate carrier hauling general freight has to carry at least $750,000 (49 C.F.R. § 387.9), and a carrier that only operates inside Texas has to carry $500,000 for most heavy trucks (43 Texas Administrative Code § 218.16). Many carry more. That money is why trucking companies defend these cases so hard.
Texas changed the rules for these trials in 2021. If a defendant asks in time, the trial gets split in two. The jury decides fault and compensatory damages first, and punitive damages come in a second phase (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 72.052). If the company also admits the driver was working for it, most of its hiring history stays out of that first phase. But a driver over his hours, a drug or alcohol violation, a missing medical card and a truck the company didn’t maintain can all still come in (§ 72.054). So we build the case against the driver to stand on its own, and we build the company’s violations right alongside it from day one.
Picking the courthouse for a Katy truck case
Katy crosses three counties, and a truck case can be filed where the crash happened or in the home county of the driver or the trucking company (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 15.002). That can put the case at 201 Caroline in downtown Houston even when the wreck was on the Fort Bend side. An out-of-state carrier may try to move the case to federal court in Houston. We think about all of that before we file, because the courthouse changes what the company is willing to pay.
Paying for years of treatment
Truck crashes cause the injuries that take years to recover from, if they fully heal at all: spinal injuries, brain injuries, burns and crushed limbs. Serious cases from Katy usually go to Memorial Hermann Katy, a Level III trauma center, or straight to the Level I trauma centers in the Texas Medical Center. We work with your doctors on what your future care will cost, because a settlement that covers this year’s bills and nothing after is a bad settlement.
Two years to sue, less time for the evidence
You generally have two years from the crash to file suit (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003). The evidence has a much shorter clock than that, so call early.
Our $2.95 million truck settlement
We recovered a $2.95 million settlement for a client rear-ended by a commercial truck driver who was following too closely. See all of our settlements and verdicts. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Call us after an I-10 truck crash
Jay Blass Cohen was born and raised in Houston and has practiced here since 2009. We prepare every truck case as if it’s going to trial, starting with the evidence the company would rather lose. For more on how these cases work, see our Houston 18-wheeler accident page. If it was a car that hit you, see our Katy car accident page.
Call (713) 664-4000. If the crash was this week, call now, before the truck’s data gets overwritten.
Reviewed by Jay Blass Cohen, founder of Blass Law PLLC, ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist, certified Drug Recognition Expert, and SFST instructor, serving Houston since 2009. This article is general information, not legal advice for your situation. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.