NYC Truck Accident Lawyer
After a traffic accident involving a semi-truck or another large commercial truck, it’s important to consider your legal rights.
As a crash victim in New York City, you’ll have the opportunity to demand compensation for your crash-related damages, including your medical expenses, disability, and harder-to-value suffering. Taking on a powerful trucking company won’t be easy. The experienced New York truck accident lawyers at The Platta Law Firm can help you make the most of your fight for compensation.
The Platta Law Firm is a trusted advocate for crash victims and families in New York City and throughout the greater tri-state area. We’re nationally recognized leaders in personal injury litigation with over 150 years of collective experience handling complex legal disputes. As fierce defenders of our clients’ rights, we’ve helped them recover hundreds of millions of dollars in monetary awards.
Demand the results you deserve after a life-changing truck accident by putting our award-winning legal team in your corner. Your first case evaluation is free, so contact our NYC law office to get started today.
Why Truck Accident Victims in New York City Trust
The Platta Law Firm
Getting into a truck accident can be catastrophic and change the course of your life forever. The consequences – physical, emotional, and financial – can be overwhelming. When the truck accident is the result of a truck driver’s negligence, you’ll have the right to bring a legal claim to help offset the costs and stress of the crash.
However, you can’t trust the trucking company or its insurance carrier with your future. In fact, you should expect any defendants in your case to actively work against your best interests and attempt to stand between you and the compensation you deserve. Hiring an experienced New York personal injury lawyer can make all the difference in the world. Which law firm you decide to hire can make or break your fight for compensation. Here’s why truck accident victims and families in NYC consistently choose The Platta Law Firm:
- Our team includes award-winning New York trial attorneys who have been honored by Lawyers of Distinction, Super Lawyers, and the American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys.
- We have successfully recovered hundreds of millions in settlement agreements and jury verdicts for our clients.
- Our attorneys have over 150 years of combined experience taking on trucking services, insurance companies, and other powerful opponents.
- We prioritize providing our clients with approachable, transparent, and personalized legal representation.
- Contingency fee representation means it costs nothing to hire our truck accident attorneys in NYC unless we win your case.
Don’t leave well-deserved compensation on the negotiating table. Don’t allow the trucking service or its insurance company to have the upper hand. Force the results you deserve by hiring our truck accident attorneys in New York City to be your most vocal and passionate advocates.
How a Truck Accident Attorney Can Help You
After a Crash
Hiring a personal injury attorney in NYC is one of the best things you can do after a truck accident. Not only does it give you time to focus on your recovery, it also gives you the best shot at winning your case and recovering a substantial monetary award. When you choose The Platta Law Firm, our team of top-rated New York trial attorneys will handle all aspects of your legal dispute for you:
- Investigate: We’ll launch a prompt and thorough investigation into your truck accident so that we can fully appreciate how it happened, how it could have been avoided, and who’s liable for resulting damages.
- Evaluate Evidence: Throughout the discovery process, we’ll gather critical pieces of evidence, including truck black box data, driver logs, vehicle inspection and maintenance records, cell phone records, property damage, photographs of the scene of the crash, accident reports, and your medical records.
- Depose Witnesses: Eyewitnesses to the collision can provide valuable information that can be used to build a compelling legal claim for damages. We’ll locate and depose all parties who can shed light on what happened and help us win your case.
- Hire Experts: We’ll make the most of your truck accident lawsuit by hiring experts in the trucking industry, medical professionals, accident reconstructionists, rehabilitation specialists, and other witnesses to consult and testify on your behalf.
- Calculate Your Damages: Our team will carefully evaluate the ways in which the big rig accident has affected your life and, with the help of experts, determine what your personal injury case is worth. When you’re offered a settlement, you’ll be able to make informed decisions about your future.
- Satisfy Procedural Requirements: Our team will make sure that your truck accident lawsuit complies with procedures established by New York state law, including satisfying applicable statutes of limitations.
- Represent You During Negotiations: Putting our experienced and respected litigators in your corner means forcing the insurance company to make more genuine attempts to settle your truck accident case honestly and fairly.
- Bring Your Truck Accident Lawsuit to Trial: If the trucking company or its insurer won’t stand up and accept responsibility for the wreck, our award-winning litigators in NYC will be more than ready to try your case in front of a compassionate jury of your peers.
We offer a complimentary case evaluation to all prospective clients, so don’t hesitate to contact our law office in New York City to discover how we can help you after your truck accident. Members of our team are standing by to answer your questions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Are Truck Accidents Common in NYC?
Every year, thousands of car accidents involving big rigs, tractor-trailers, semis, and other large commercial trucks are reported across New York City.
According to a comprehensive analysis of NYPD crash data, there were 6,751 truck accidents citywide in 2023.
That’s an average of 18.49 commercial truck accidents every day. While New York’s truck accidents happen in every borough, they’re most common in Brooklyn. In 2023, Brooklyn accounted for 34.71 percent of NYC’s truck accidents.
Queens and Manhattan also see quite a few truck accidents annually, with 23.39 and 20.56 percent of the city’s total, respectively. The Bronx accounts for 18.34 percent of all NYC trucking accidents, while Staten Island accounts for about 3 percent of all commercial vehicle collisions.
Representing Clients in All Types of Truck Accidents
in New York
It’s not enough to hire a personal injury attorney after your truck accident. Truck accidents are much more complex than other types of auto accidents. Related legal claims will require in-depth knowledge of state and federal trucking regulations, considerable resources to conduct exhaustive investigations, and experience taking on powerful trucking services. At The Platta Law Firm, we’ve been fighting on behalf of truck accident victims for decades. In that time, we’ve successfully advocated for clients injured in:
- Jackknife accidents
- Side-impact collisions
- Truck rollovers
- Rear-end collisions
- Underride accidents
- Lost load truck accidents
- Frontal collisions
- Squeeze-play truck accidents
- Tire blowouts
- Construction truck accidents
Put our 150+ years of combined experience to work for you. We represent clients in Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Long Island, Westchester, and throughout the greater New York City area. Call our law office to set a time for a free initial case evaluation today.
Understanding How New York State and Federal Trucking Regulations Could Affect Your Personal Injury Case
While trucks play a pivotal role in our nation’s economy, they don’t operate in isolation. Every day, large, heavy, difficult-to-navigate rigs are driven right alongside other commercial vehicles, small passenger cars, SUVs, and motorcycles. Even minor mistakes or problems can cause accidents of catastrophic proportions.
New York state and federal agencies have passed regulations in an effort to increase the overall safety of trucking operations. Trucking companies are legally required to adhere to these regulations, which affect just about every aspect of trucking operations.
When a trucking company – or any of its agents – violate a state or federal trucking law, it can be liable for resulting property damage, injuries, and deaths.
Federal Trucking Regulations
Since trucking is often an interstate operation, it is regulated by the federal government. Specifically, federal trucking regulations are enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), an agency within the Department of Transportation (DOT). FMCSA regulations affect everything from driving hiring requirements to vehicle maintenance and inspections to load management. Some of the most notable federal trucking regulations affect:
- Driver Qualifications: Drivers must have a standard-issue driver’s license and obtain a commercial driver’s license (CDL) with necessary endorsements before operating a commercial vehicle. CDL requirements are established by the state, and include minimum age, health, and testing requirements.
- Hours of Service: Truck drivers may only spend 14 hours behind the wheel at one time. After 14 hours of service, a driver is legally required to take a 10-hour break before they can resume their trip. Drivers must also take a 30-minute break after spending 8 hours on the road.
- Load and Weight: Overloaded or improperly loaded trucks are a safety hazard, so trucking companies must ensure that their vehicles adhere to applicable load and weight limitations, especially when transporting hazardous materials.
- Vehicle Inspections: In addition to mandatory bi-annual inspections, vehicles must be inspected by a driver before and after each trip. Regular inspections help to limit the potential for unsafe vehicles on the road.
Federal safety regulations apply to all trucking operations in New York. Additionally, trucks operating within New York are bound by additional regulations established by the state.
State Trucking Regulations
New York’s trucking regulations typically follow standards set by the FMCSA. However, New York also has other regulations and limitations that affect trucking operations in New York City. In addition to requiring drivers to obtain a CDL and operate their rigs without alcohol, drugs, or distractions, New York law specifically prohibits trucks from being driven on certain New York parkways, including:
- Bear Mountain Parkway (Westchester County)
- Belt Parkway (Queens and Brooklyn)
- Bronx River Parkway (The Bronx and parts of Westchester County)
- Cross Island Parkway (Queens)
- Franklin D. Roosevelt Drive (Manhattan)
- Grand Central Parkway (Queens)
- Henry Hudson Parkway (The Bronx and Manhattan)
- Harlem River Drive (Manhattan)
- Hutchinson River Parkway (The Bronx and parts of Westchester County)
- Jackie Robinson Parkway (Brooklyn and Queens)
- Korean War Veterans Parkway (Staten Island)
- Mosholu Parkway (The Bronx)
- Pelham Parkway (The Bronx)
- Saw Mill River Parkway (Westchester County)
- Taconic State Parkway (Westchester County)
A thorough investigation into your truck accident can help to uncover which, if any, trucking regulations may have been violated and contributed to your injuries.
What Causes Most Tractor-Trailer Accidents?
Most truck accidents can be avoided, but happen because of costly mistakes. Many times, these mistakes arise from violations of the state and/or federal trucking regulations that are designed to prevent collisions. Some of the most commonly cited causes of semi-truck accidents in New York include:
- Driver fatigue, often related to violations of hours of service limitations
- Speeding
- Distracted driving
- Drug and alcohol use
- Braking errors
- Improperly loaded cargo
- Wide turns
- Illegal turns
- Unsafe passing
- Following too closely
- Failing to yield the right of way
- Inadequate maintenance
- Vehicle malfunctions
- Vehicle defects
- Inexperienced and/or undertrained truck drivers
- Overloaded trucks
- Road defects
Our truck and car accident attorneys in New York City, New York, will thoroughly investigate your collision so that we can fully appreciate what happened, and why. Our investigation will help us lay the foundation for a successful legal claim for damages on your behalf.
Who’s Liable For a New York City Truck Accident?
When someone contributes to a truck accident in New York, they can be liable – or financially responsible – for resulting damages. Depending on the specific circumstances of your crash, several parties could potentially be on the hook for the costs of your medical care, lost wages, distress, and other accident-related damages.
Truck Driver
Truck drivers have a legal obligation to adhere to state and federal trucking regulations, follow New York state traffic laws, and generally drive in a way that doesn’t pose a threat to others on the road. When a truck driver is negligent and breaches the duty of care owed to others, they can be liable for a resulting collision. Truck drivers might be liable if they speed, drive more than is permitted by FMCSA rules, fail to conduct a pre-or-post trip inspection, or operate a rig while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Trucking Company
Truck companies are ultimately responsible for safe trucking operations. When a trucking company is negligent, they can be held accountable when there’s a crash. For instance, a truck service might be liable for failing to conduct regular truck inspections and maintenance, for hiring unqualified drivers, or for allowing overloaded trucks out on the road. A trucking service may also be vicariously liable for a truck driver’s negligence. Since the truck driver is employed by the company, the company assumes responsibility for the driver’s actions. When the driver makes a mistake, their employer can be on the hook for the consequences, too.
Manufacturer
Companies that manufacture vehicles or vehicle components – like brakes and airbags – can be strictly liable if a defect causes a truck accident. Strict liability means a truck accident victim won’t have to prove that the company was negligent. Rather, the simple fact that the defect existed and caused the truck accident is enough to help the victim recover damages from the manufacturer. Defects that are commonly seen in tractor-trailers affect the brakes, fuel systems, electrical systems, transmissions, and steering wheel mechanisms.
Freight Broker
Freight brokers are companies that coordinate the transportation of goods across the country. The broker connects a trucking service with a company that needs its goods hauled from one location to another. Freight brokers – who are sometimes called truck brokers or third party logistics companies – assume a duty to support safe trucking operations.
Essentially, brokers should hire trucking services that score highly on the FMCSA’s SAFER system, which rates services based on a history of safety violations, inspections, hours of service compliance, and other factors relevant to trucking safety. If a broker coordinates a shipment with a company with a low SAFER score, it can be sued for negligence if there’s an accident.
Third-Party Motorist
Truck drivers aren’t the only ones on the road capable of causing motor vehicle accidents. Other motorists on the road – including drivers of passenger vehicles, bus drivers, and motorcyclists – can also cause wrecks. So, too, can bicyclists and pedestrians under the right circumstances.
For instance, let’s say the driver of an SUV cut off a truck in traffic. As a result, the truck had to slam on its brakes, which caused it to jackknife. The jackknife accident is at least partly the SUV driver’s fault. When a third party is at fault, they can be held accountable to the extent that their negligence caused the truck accident.
Government Agency
Government agencies in New York are responsible for designing state roads and conducting regular maintenance. If there’s a problem with the way a road is designed, constructed, or maintained, the government agency that neglected the problem can be liable for related accidents. Defects might include potholes, obstructed or obscured signage, and malfunctioning lights.
What Types of Damages Can I Recover If I File a Truck Accident Lawsuit?
In New York, truck accident victims will have the opportunity to seek compensatory damages from a negligent truck driver, a trucking company, or another liable party. Compensatory damages can include two different types of awards: economic damages and non-economic damages. Each type of award is intended to help victims cope with the different consequences of their accidents. Economic damages should offset the financial burdens of a truck accident, which might include:
- Hospitalization, medication, surgery, medical devices, and other current medical bills
- Future medical expenses related to rehabilitation, follow-up care, and medical equipment
- Lost wages, earnings, and income
- Temporary and/or permanent disability
- Costs of replacing or repairing damaged property
- The costs of a rental car, traveling for medical care, and other things paid out-of-pocket
- Funeral expenses if a New York truck accident is fatal
Non-economic damages should help to compensate for consequences of a truck accident that are much more personal and, therefore, harder to value. Compensable damages include:
- Pain and suffering
- Chronic physical pain
- Loss of consortium
- Inconvenience
- PTSD
- Reduced quality of life
- Emotional distress
- Disfigurement
- Physical scarring
The trucking company will challenge your claim for damages at every turn, working hard to downplay your physical injuries and the suffering you’ve experienced since the wreck. Our New York City truck accident attorneys will not let their tactics jeopardize your fight for compensation. Instead, we’ll concentrate on building a compelling legal claim that proves your losses, clearly establishes liability, and forces the trucking service to negotiate fairly. If you’re offered anything less than your truck accident lawsuit is worth, our law firm won’t hesitate to bring your dispute to trial.
Helping You Seek Compensation for Your Catastrophic Truck Accident Injuries
The average small car weighs about 2,500 pounds. An SUV will weigh anywhere between 3,500 and 4,200 pounds. Large commercial trucks, however, can weigh up to 80,000 pounds when fully loaded. Truck engines, along, can weigh as much as these smaller vehicles. Needless to say, a truck can do considerable damage when it’s involved in a collision, no matter the speed. The occupants of these smaller vehicles tend to suffer the consequences. At The Platta Law Firm, we represent clients and families who’ve suffered catastrophic injuries in New York 18-wheeler accidents, including:
- Spinal cord injury
- Quadriplegia injury
- Paraplegia injury
- Back injury
- Thoracic injury
- Neck injury
- Whiplash injury
- Nerve damage
- Soft tissue injury
- Leg injury
- Chest injury
- Crush injury
- Traumatic brain injury
- Concussion injury
- Eye injury
- Amputation injury
- Degloving injury
- Burn injury
- Wrongful death of a loved one
Never underestimate the impact your truck accident injuries might have on your life. Seek prompt medical treatment at the closest emergency room to you in New York after a collision to ensure every injury is treated and diagnosed. Then, call our personal injury law firm to discuss your legal rights and the options available to you at this time.
Truck Accident FAQ
It’s common to have questions after you or a loved one has been involved in a truck accident in New York City. The Platta Law Firm has the answers you need to make informed decisions about your related personal injury claim for damages.
How Do I Win a Truck Accident Lawsuit?
While some truck accident lawsuits might be based on strict liability, most involve the tort of negligence. The plaintiff (injury victims) has the burden of proving that they were injured or experienced the wrongful death of a loved one because the defendant (the truck driver, trucking company, or another liable party) was careless. More specifically, a successful negligence action will involve proving the following elements:
- Duty: the defendant had a duty to act reasonably to protect you from foreseeable harm (e.g., adhere to FMCSA safety regulations).
- Breach: the defendant breached this duty by engaging in behavior that was unsafe (e.g., the truck driver spent 16 hours behind the wheel, a clear violation of FMCSA hours of service limitations, and they fell asleep).
- Causation: the defendant’s unsafe behavior caused a truck accident in which you were injured (e.g., the driver struck your car after running a red light because they were asleep).
- Damages: you’ve experienced damages, such as medical bills or a loss of income, because of the truck accident.
New York law requires you to prove your negligence claim by a preponderance of the evidence. Your claims against the truck driver or trucking company must be more likely true than not. You’ll need compelling evidence to carry the burden of proof. In most truck accident cases, helpful evidence can include data from the truck’s electronic onboard recording device (black box), photographs of the wreckage and scene of the collision, driver cell phone records, accident reports, witness statements, trucking service hiring and training requirements, and vehicle inspection logs.
Don’t stress out about how to prove that a truck company was negligent. Our NYC truck accident lawyers have over 150 years of combined experience navigating complex negligence actions. Count on us to invest our considerable resources and experience into your pursuit of compensation.
Can I Recover Compensation If I’m Blamed for a Truck Accident in New York?
Yes, as long as you’re not entirely to blame. New York operates under a system of pure comparative negligence. As a result, shared fault limits a victim’s ability to recover compensation from other parties. If you’re assigned any blame for your truck accident in NYC, any financial awards obtained through a settlement or jury verdict will be reduced proportionately to fault.
For instance, let’s say you were injured when a truck made an unsafe wide right turn at a New York City intersection. The estimated value of your related personal injury case is $500,000. However, an investigation reveals that you were distracted at the time of the collision and could have avoided the crash if you had been paying better attention. As a result, you’re assigned 50 percent of the blame for the collision. Now, your maximum financial recovery is limited to $250,000, or half of the value of your damages.
It’s important to be ready to defend yourself against claims of shared fault. The more fault you share, the less you’ll be able to recover from a liable third party. If you don’t fight back, you could watch valuable compensation slip away. Our truck accident lawyers in New York anticipate attempts to shift liability and devise strategies to stop them in their tracks. You can count on us to do everything in our power to not only help you win your case but also recover every cent you deserve.
When Should I Hire a Truck Accident Lawyer?
As soon as you can after an accident with a big rig. Not only do you risk losing the right to seek damages if you wait too long to take action but the strength of your claim will wane over time. If you hesitate to bring a claim, you’ll be giving the trucking company control over the situation. They’ll conduct an investigation, have the opportunity to manipulate or get rid of evidence, and have the time to devise a strategy to fight you at every turn.
When you hire a New York truck accident attorney right away, you put yourself in the driver’s seat. When you hire The Platta Law Firm, we’ll jumpstart your case by conducting a prompt and thorough investigation. We won’t let the defense call the shots or dictate your future.
How Much Does a New York Truck Accident Attorney Cost?
Between medical bills, lost wages during your recovery, and vehicle repairs, truck accidents can be costly. Asking for help shouldn’t add to the unbelievable financial stress you’re under. At The Platta Law Firm, we are so confident in our ability to make a difference in your life that we’re willing to stake our fees on the results of your case.
Our contingency fee representation means it costs nothing to hire our truck accident attorneys in NYC unless we win your case. There are no out-of-pocket costs. Instead, our law firm recovers a percentage of your financial settlement or jury award.
What Happens if a Big Rig Accident in New York Is Fatal?
Not everyone who is involved in a New York City truck accident survives. Every year, hundreds of families grieve the tragic and unexpected deaths of family members after fatal big rig crashes. In these situations, the right to file a lawsuit sometimes shifts to the victims’ personal estate. The personal representative can file a wrongful death lawsuit to recover compensation from a negligent or otherwise liable party. Compensation can include money for:
- Lost financial support
- Medical expenses paid prior to the victim’s death
- Reduced inheritance
- Lost household services
- Funeral expenses
If the truck accident victim survived for any period of time after the wreck, the lawsuit could also seek compensation for the victim’s conscious pain and suffering prior to their death. Any damages awarded in a wrongful death lawsuit are awarded to the victim’s surviving family members, including the spouse, child(ren), and/or parent(s).
How Long Do I Have to File a Truck Accident Lawsuit in New York?
Barring any exceptions, you’ll usually have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit after a truck accident in the state of New York. A two-year statute of limitations applies in matters of wrongful death after a fatal big rig crash. You must file your legal claim within the applicable timeframe. If the filing deadline passes before you’ve taken action, you will lose the right to demand financial justice from a negligent trucker, a trucking company, or another responsible party.
What If I’m Injured in Truck Accident at Work?
If you’re injured while driving a truck in New York City, either while hauling freight or navigating a construction site, you may have the right to seek workers’ compensation insurance benefits from your employer. This is true as long as you’re classified as an employee, your employer has coverage, and your truck accident is work-related. Workers’ compensation can be a lifeline as you get your life on track, but it won’t cover the full extent of your crash-related damages. It can be important to explore other avenues for recovering compensation, including a civil truck accident lawsuit against a negligent or otherwise liable party.
Trusted New York Truck Accident Lawyers Here to Fight for You
Truck accidents can be avoided. If you’ve been in an accident with an 18-wheeler in NYC because the driver or another party was careless, you deserve to be compensated. The Platta Law Firm can help you fight for justice. Our New York truck accident lawyers are award-winning litigators with over 150 years of combined experience. The unwavering support of our client’s rights has helped us win hundreds of millions on their behalf.
Now, we’re ready to do everything in our personal injury law firm’s power to make things right for you, too. Call our New York City, NY, law office to discuss the details of your truck accident case with our team. Your initial case evaluation is absolutely free.
